Doubt cast on Linus Ullmark's future with Senators

The Ottawa Senators have themselves a new starting goaltender, having acquiring Linus Ullmark from the Boston Bruins and sending Joonas Korpisalo the other direction; he had just completed the first of a five year contract, but badly underperformed in 2023-24. 

Meanwhile, Ullmark is now the main figure between the pipes after having split time with Jeremy Swayman in Boston for the last three seasons. Right now, Ullmark appears ready to enter the upcoming season playing out the final year of his current contract without an extension in place and let the cards fall where they may.

What are the chances of him securing a long-term deal with Ottawa? According to NHL analyst Frankie Corrado, the Senators and Ullmark could be preparing for an upcoming "game of chicken" to see who blinks first. 

"It should be a little bit of a game of chicken between the two," he said during an appearance on TSN's SC. "For the Ottawa Senators, they’ve committed to Joonas Korpisalo, so they had to find a way to get out of those two contracts. "

Ullmark comes over as a former Vezina nominee and was really good in Boston, so signs point to getting him locked up for some reassurance in net. But from Ottawa’s point of view, let’s see how he fits and how the team plays in front of him."

Not long after the deal was made official, Ullmark was asked directly about his contract status, and answered that he prefers to stay in the moment. 

"The whole contract situation and the talks about that, that is something that (Senators GM) Steve (Staios) and my agent will deal with off to the side. I told them as well that once there is something that needs to be discussed, you can always reach me ... I try not to look too far ahead.

"I try to stay in the moment and not worry about what may or what could be in the future and instead, just enjoying the present."

Last season with the Bruins, Ullmark amassed a record of 22-10-7 with a 2.58 goals against average, .915 save percentage and a pair of shutouts.

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