Ottawa Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark has returned to full health, prompting the team to return Mads Sogaard to the AHL, shares Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun. Ullmark has been working back from a muscle strain that’s held him out of the team’s last three games. Previous reports shared that Ottawa wanted to be patient not to aggravate the injury as they worked Ullmark back to full speed.
Ullmark has been strong in the two games he’s played with Ottawa, saving 53 of 58 shots faced en route to a 1-1-0 record and .914 save percentage. The same hasn’t been true for Ottawa’s other goaltending options, with Anton Forsberg allowing 10 goals on 73 shots (.863 save percentage) and Mads Sogaard allowing four goals on 17 shots (0.765) in Ullmark’s absence. The Senators have managed to win in front of all three goalies regardless, largely thanks to each of Tim Stutzle, Brady Tkachuk, and Jake Sanderson recording seven points through the first five games of the season. Ullmark’s return could give Ottawa the back-end consistency to ramp up their early winning-record, though it seems the team could still be in the process of easing their franchise goaltender back to strength.
Other notes from around the league:
- Winnipeg Jets defenseman Logan Stanley has been activated off of injured reserve and will step into the lineup for Haydn Fleury, per Mike McIntyre of The Winnipeg Free Press. Stanley missed the first four games of the season with a knee injury that required surgery during training camp. Stanley has played in just 44 games over the last two seasons, recording five points, 57 penalty minutes, and an average of 13:45 in ice time. He faces an uphill battle to an everyday role, but will get a chance to take the first step when the Jets take on the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sunday.
- The Dallas Stars have returned forward Matej Blumel and defender Alexander Petrovic to the AHL. Blumel stepped into one game with Dallas during his recall, recording eight minutes of ice time and two shots on net. Petrovic spent the extent of his time in the press box, leaving two games and one point in the AHL as his only stats this year. The Texas Stars will get two big additions with this move – readding the stout, veteran presence of Petrovic and the 30-goal upside of Blumel back to the lineup.