Senators Give Ullmark Big Extension Before Playing A Game

It didn't take long for the Ottawa Senators to commit to their starting goalie in an attempt to finally get themselves back into the playoff picture. The team acquired Linus Ullmark from the Boston Bruins in the summer and with one year left on his current deal worth $5 million AAV, he signed a four-year, $8.25 million AAV extension before the season kicks off.

Four years. $8.25 mil per for Ullmark and the @Senators
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) October 9, 2024

The Senators' commitment to Ullmark is solely based on his past work as the elite netminder won the Vezina Trophy with the Bruins in 2022-23. He has recorded a SV% of at least .905 in all nine seasons in the NHL and has only once finished a season with a SV% south of .913.

Ullmark is coming off a 22-10-7 record with a 2.57 GAA, .915 SV%, and two shutouts. He also finished sixth in Vezina Trophy voting.

Ullmark got the exact same AAV as former teammate Jeremy Swayman, except for half of the length considering he's 31 years old. The Senators decided to move on from Joonas Korpisalo after just one season due to a disastrous showing by all netminders in 2023-24. If Ullmark can't turn things around in net, there will be a lot more to concerns to answer than just the goalies.

While it is a big payday for a goalie, Ullmark has shown over the course of his career that he is worth the investment. He has held bad teams together and excelled with good teams. He is set to become the fourth highest paid goalie next season behind only Sergei Bobrovsky ($10 million AAV), Andrei Vasilevskiy ($9 million AAV), and Connor Hellebuyck ($8.5 million AAV). This is until Igor Shesterkin signs a bigger long-term contract before next season.

There's a great chance Ullmark picks up the slack in net from the last number of seasons, but the defense also has to help reduce the amount of goals as well. We will see how this contract looks before it begins in 2025-26.