The Bruins have their Game 2 goalie
It took almost seven hours, but Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery‘s Wordle puzzle of the day has been solved.
Which, for the Bruins, means that it will be Linus Ullmark who gets the call in net for Game 2.
The Bruins’ decision to go with Ullmark comes after Jeremy Swayman put forth a 35-for-36 performance in Boston’s Game 1 victory, and after Montgomery outright admitted that it would be tough for the Bruins to go away from Swayman.
But by going to Ullmark, the Bruins remain committed to the every-other rotation they’ve rolled with since Feb. 21, bringing the rotation up to 28 straight starts where Swayman and Ullmark have gone back and forth.
Since the Bruins have committed to the strict rotation, Ullmark’s .919 save percentage is the fifth-best among a group of 37 goalies with at least 700 minutes played. Ullmark has also posted 6.06 goals saved above average, which was the 8th-best figure among that group of 37.
Ullmark allowed two goals on just 19 shots in a season finale loss to Ottawa last Tuesday at TD Garden, but there’s no denying the impact Ullmark made during what was no doubt the B’s best stretch of the season, with two wins and a .956 save percentage over a three-start span that featured head-to-heads with the Lightning, Predators, and then the Panthers.
The 6-foot-5 Ullmark got one start against the Leafs during the regular season, and stopped 37-of-40 shots faced in an overtime win over the Leafs back on Dec. 2. The 37-save outing was Ullmark’s second-highest single-game total of the 2023-24 season, trailing only a 38-save performance against Pittsburgh on Mar. 9.