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Senators Goalie Missing Road Trip

The Ottawa Senators starting goalie will miss the team's upcoming road trip.

Jacob Punturi

Dec 22, 2024; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark (35) gets ready to face a shot against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images
Dec 22, 2024; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark (35) gets ready to face a shot against the Edmonton Oilers at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images / Perry Nelson-Imagn Images
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The Ottawa Senators will be without their star goaltender as they open up their post-holiday schedule. After Linus Ullmark sustained an upper-body injury in the team's most recent contest against the Edmonton Oilers, he's still not cleared to return to action.

The Senators will now resume game action without the former Vezina Trophy-winning goalie. The team kicks off their end of the year schedule with a five-game road trip that begins with a matchup against the Winnipeg Jets. Making things worse, insider Elliotte Friedman is reporting that Ullmark will miss the entirety of the upcoming trip. He shared the unfortunate update via his X account.

With Ullmark out, the Senators will rely on a young tandem to fill his void. Before the break, Leevi Merilainen had two starts for the Sens and figures to shoulder a few more. He was recalled, along with 24-year-old goalie Mads Sogaard. Veteran back-up Anton Forsberg is set to travel with the team, but hasn't played since a December 8th contest against the New York Islanders.

Merilainen was drafted by the Senators in the third round of the 2020 NHL Draft. A native of Finland, he stood out in the Ontario Hockey League before having a breakout campaign in the top Finnish professional league, Liiga. With Karpat in 2022-2023, he posted a record of 18-13-7 with a 2.02 goals against average and a .918 save percentage. This is just his second season in North America with the Senators organization.

Sogaard is a bit more familiar with the Ottawa system. The 6'7 behemoth of a goalie has been with the Senators since they selected him in the second round of 2019. He's bounced back and forth between the NHL and the AHL over the past couple years, but now has another chance to prove he can be an NHL goaltender with Ullmark on the shelf.

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Jacob Punturi
JACOB PUNTURI

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