Should Senators Goalie Linus Ullmark Really Be Top 10?

The Ottawa Senators' newest goaltender was ranked in the top 10 of his position by NHL.com

Apr 13, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Boston Bruins goalie Linus Ullmark (35) makes a save against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena. Mandatory Credit: Philip G. Pavely-USA TODAY Sports / Philip G. Pavely-USA TODAY Sports

The Ottawa Senators made a big swing at the 2024 NHL Draft. In an effort to improve their goaltending and team depth, the Sens made a trade with a divisional foe. The team acquired Linus Ullmark from the Boston Bruins in exchange for Joonas Korpisalo, a first-round draft pick, and a young forward named Mark Kastelic.

Ullmark becomes the best goaltender to enter Ottawa's organization in some time. This past season, he appeared in 40 games and posted impressive numbers yet again. He sported a record of 22-10-7 with a 2.57 goals against average and a save percentage of .915. In 2022, he won the Vezina Trophy as the league's top goaltender. He and running mate Jeremy Swayman formed one of the top netminding duos in the NHL over the past few years, and now Ullmark has the chance to carry the load for the Senators. Over 247 career games, he's collected 138 victories and established a career goals against average of 2.51.

Recently, NHL.com released their top 10 goaltenders list for the 2024 season. Ullmark was ranked 10th on that list. His former teammate Swayman sat fourth on that same list.

With Ullmark playing in a brand new organization, it makes sense that the he would drop some spots and even off of this list. HIs inclusion in the top 10 is surprising, to say the least. It would be impossible to place him in the top three, with Andrei Vasilevskiy, Connor Hellebuyck, and Igor Shesterkin claiming those spots.

The reason why Ullmark is on the bubble of being a top-10 goaltender in the NHL is because he's shared the net for the past few seasons. Even during his Vezina Trophy winning season, he played less than 50 games. Swayman started 33 of those games and each goaltender posted a goals against average of 2.27 or lower. This past season again was a split for the goaltenders with Swayman taking on a larger share of the starts. He started 43 games in 2023 compared to his 33 starts in 2023 and Ullmark's 39 starts.

With a new opportunity in Ottawa, Ullmark has the chance to fully assert himself as an elite goaltender. Without the support of another extremely talented goalie like Swayman to back him up, Ullmark must prove that he is capable of starting 50-60 games and posting the same numbers. Until then, he's a fringe top-10 goaltender in the NHL.

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