Report: Senators pushing hard to land Ullmark
The Ottawa Senators are making a hard push for Boston Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark, league sources told Postmedia's Bruce Garrioch.
Talks between the Sens and Bruins have intensified over a deal for the netminder, Garrioch added.
The Senators reportedly pursued Jacob Markstrom, who the Calgary Flames dealt to the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday.
The Devils were apparently among the teams interested in Ullmark before landing Markstrom. The Los Angeles Kings also reportedly considered adding Ullmark but acquired Darcy Kuemper from the Washington Capitals on Wednesday in exchange for Pierre-Luc Dubois.
This isn't the first time the Sens have targeted Ullmark, as they reportedly attempted to trade for the 30-year-old at the 2024 deadline. The Bruins nearly shipped Ullmark to the Kings at the deadline, but the goaltender used his 16-team no-trade list to nix the move. It's not known if Ottawa is on that list.
Ullmark lost the No. 1 goalie job to Jeremy Swayman and started just one of Boston's 13 playoff games this past campaign. Swayman is a pending restricted free agent set for a big raise, while Ullmark is entering the last year of a contract with a $5-million cap hit.
The Senators' team save percentage of .888 ranked last in the NHL a year ago. The club signed Joonas Korpisalo to a five-year, $20-million contract as a free agent last offseason, but he struggled with an .890 save percentage in his first season in Canada's capital. Ottawa also has Anton Forsberg under contract for one more year with a $2.75-million cap hit.
The Sens reportedly offered Korpisalo to Boston as part of a package for Ullmark, but the Bruins had no interest.
Ottawa has also kicked the tires on Nashville Predators goalie Juuse Saros, according to Garrioch.