Buffalo Sabres Linus Ullmark Stepping Up
When Buffalo Sabres netminder Robin Lehner got injured in the team’s first game of the season, one question popped up in everyone’s mind: what now?
Sure, there was Chad Johnson, ready to step up and fill in as needed. Johnson was really brought in to fill the backup role but was pushed to the starting spot upon Lehner’s injury.
But even with Johnson, the Sabres still needed another goaltender.
Enter: Linus Ullmark.
The 22-year-old was busy getting his feet wet in North American hockey out east in Rochester with the Americans of the AHL. He was doing well, despite facing tough teams and high volumes of shots – and so the Sabres decided to give him a shot.
So far, he’s looked like he absolutely belongs in the NHL, not a step behind and fitting into the Sabres’ mold quite nicely.
Ullmark’s first NHL game came on October 24, the second of a back-to-back set for the Buffalo Sabres.
It would end in a loss, but Ullmark looked sharp, stopping 24 of 28 shots faced.
Following his debut, it took the Buffalo Sabres just six short days to give Ullmark another glance, putting him in against the Philadelphia Flyers on October 30.
This time, Ullmark was even sharper, allowing just one goal – a late one, a la Ryan Miller shutout-style, and stopping 27 of 28 shots faced. The result: a 3-1 victory over the Flyers, and Ullmark’s first National Hockey League win.
Safe to say that was good enough for the Buffalo Sabres, who suited Ullmark up once again on November 1 against the New York Islanders.
He faced 30 shots, stopping all but one, as the Sabres captured another win.
Through three NHL games, Ullmark has a respectable stat line, having gone 2-1-0 with a 2.02 GAA and .930 save percentage.
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The oblivious asterisk to this is that he’s still really inexperienced at the NHL level. Three games do not a career make, but if his play is any indication thus far, he’s going to be a darn good goaltender, and a gem for the Buffalo Sabres.
In general, he’s inexperienced in North America. Yes, he played three games with the Amerks – but that’s only three games! Yes, he stopped 110 of 118 shots faced in those three games – but again, it’s a very small sample size.
So now the question seems to be not “what now?” but rather “what happens when Robin Lehner comes back?”
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Lehner’s original injury status calls for four to six weeks of missed time. He’s about three weeks in right now, so it’s a question the Sabres may need to ask sooner rather than later.
As much as it may not seem ideal, it seems likely that the Sabres will send Ullmark back to Rochester once Lehner returns. They aren’t going to keep three goalies at the NHL level – and it’s certainly better for Ullmark to be playing at the AHL level that sitting in the press box every other game as part of a rotating goaltending trio.
Sure, there’s a small chance they choose to waive Chad Johnson, but that would be quite a gutsy move considering Ullmark is still largely unproven at the NHL level. Then again — Tim Murray certainly seems to enjoy making risky moves, so you never know unless it happens.
Though he’s only played six combined games in North America (AHL and NHL inclusive) to date, what do you guys think of Ullmark? What should the Buffalo Sabres do once Robin Lehner returns from injury?