Travis Green on Ottawa Senators Goalie Linus Ullmark: 'I'm Not Worried About Linus One Bit'

It's far too early to be too concerned, of course, but there's no arguing that star goalie Linus Ullmark is off to a slow start.

The Ottawa Senator fan base has now endured a seven-year playoff absence, and along the way, they've learned a thing or two. While other fans see blue sky, Sens fans can smell the rain before it gets here.

They recognize the trends of the past: defensive zone coverage issues, troubles on the road, leaky goaltending, and more.

All of it was on display in a 5-1 loss on Tuesday night. And it wasn't against a perennial powerhouse, it was against the Buffalo Sabres, owners of a 13-year playoff drought, the longest in NHL history.

Every goalie has an off night. But leaky goaltending was expected to be a rarity this season, especially after the Senators acquired 2023 Vezina winner Linus Ullmark from the Boston Bruins. It's still way too early to pass any kind of judgement, but given his high price tag, fans are hoping Ullmark will get going soon.

The price to get him was a first-round pick, along with Mark Kastelic and Joonas Korpisalo. The price to extend Ullmark was $8.25 million a year over four years. So, here at the 12-game mark, fans had hoped, at the bare minimum, he'd be outperforming the much-maligned Korpisalo, who the Sens are still paying.

Sens head coach Travis Green was asked on Wednesday about how he thought Ullmark played on Tuesday night in the 5-1 loss to the Sabres.

"Average," Green said, with a mild shrug of his shoulders. "I'm sure he's probably his harshest critic. He'd probably like a couple (of goals) back. I'm not worried about Linus one bit. He's going to be fine. He'll find his game."

Just 12 games into a new season, with six long months of hockey still to come, this is the right attitude, especially since Ullmark's preparation for the season has been less than ideal. 

He had to deal with the distraction of being hailed as the guy that would fix the goaltending. Between that and his contract extension, that's also brought extra media attention. He was also the new guy on a new team and settling in with his young family in a new city. And most of all, he's had nagging injuries that eventually knocked him out of the lineup for two weeks last month. 

He may still be in preseason form, now trying to jump onto a moving train. 

Ullmark may also be trying to find his swagger. Socially, he has plenty of it. But he's not being afforded a good run of consistent hockey played in front of him, which always bolsters confidence. There's nothing like a three or four-game winning streak, which Ullmark was accustomed to in Boston, to get you feeling great about your game. 

The Sens' performances so far have been hot and cold, and Ullmark's have too.

Naturally, this slow start does nothing to silence those who believe that the so-called goalie graveyard in Ottawa is a myth, that goaltending on any team will only be as good as the team's defence. Since Craig Anderson left in 2020, the Sens have toggled through Matt Murray, Marcus Hogberg, Filip Gustavsson, Cam Talbot, Korpisalo and several others who had cups of coffee here. 

Not all of those goalies were good, but they weren't all bad either. 

So Ottawa changed the goalie out again, getting one of the best ones. They also turned to a new coach to bring in defensive accountability, and they brought in a whole whack of new defensive players. 

Today is not the day to play building inspector, but it will be something to monitor throughout the winter. If a proven goalie and past Vezina winner comes in and suddenly, out of nowhere, has a rough season, then we'll know for certain the biggest issue in Ottawa was never goaltending. 

Read full coverage of the Ottawa Senators at The Hockey News.