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Saturday was Linus Ullmark's first game since late December before leaving the team for mental health reasons. Troy Parla / Getty Images
OTTAWA — Linus Ullmark kept his head bowed toward the ice as two spotlights shone over him while he stood in front of his net. Ullmark normally keeps his head down as long as possible, drowning out the noise as he tries to focus on the game ahead. But on Saturday, he looked up.
The night was always going to be Ullmark’s. It was his first game in 35 days (just like his jersey number) after being away for mental health reasons. Fans cheered him when he led his team on the ice for the pregame warmup. They hoisted signs such as “Loud 4 Linus” and “Puck the Stigma” in support of him.
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In a video tribute before the game, which featured Ullmark’s comments expressing why athletes are reticent to speak on mental health, before complimenting Senators fans, those same fans delivered tributes and welcome-backs. Even Senators legend Chris Phillips spoke his piece.
So, when Ullmark’s name rang through the public address system moments before the anthems, he let the emotions flow. It’s something he says he’s been working on. He subtly nodded at the crowd in approval before pounding his chest as fans roared.
“There’s a lot of things that we take for granted when it comes to hockey in general,” Ullmark said. “And as players, we play 82 games in a short amount of time. So you don’t really have time to take a step back and think about what you’re actually doing. I had the moment to do that. And I’m really thankful for the support from the fans, warmups, during the anthems, and throughout the game as well.”
The game began with Ullmark making the first few saves and gaining his rhythm. During the first stoppage in play, a few game officials welcomed him back. They include former AHL teammate Justin Kea, from their days together with the Rochester Americans. By the end of the night, Ullmark emerged victorious in a 26-save performance after beating New Jersey 4-1. Ullmark made save after save before his team gave him the offensive support he needed.
“Our MVP tonight was Linus Ullmark,” captain Brady Tkachuk said.
Ullmark’s return to the Senators has been a slow burn. By mid-January, a few weeks after taking time away and consulting a health professional from the NHL/NHLPA’s player assistance program, he was back at the Canadian Tire Centre looking at different goalie sticks. He trained, skated and practiced with his teammates and eventually worked his way toward full practices. But he was only added to the Senators’ active roster last Sunday, playing backup to Mads Sogaard, who beat the Vegas Golden Knights 7-1.
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He participated in the pregame warmup that night, taking shots and doing his usual stretches. And at one point, he stood behind — literally back-to-back — fellow Swede and winger Fabian Zetterlund. During the first period, as Ullmark’s face was shown on the arena’s video board, fans cheered him on.
“They love him here,” Zetterlund said. “It means a lot for him.”
Ullmark wasn’t sure if that love would be found in the Senators’ dressing room upon his return from his personal leave. But when he came back, he was greeted by his teammates with warm hugs.
“I saw him in the trainer’s room,” Senators forward Michael Amadio said. “It was nice to see him. It was a nice surprise. I didn’t know he was going to be in that morning.”
“He was so excited to come back,” Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson said. “He’s all smiles, and I think it rubs off on our team, too.”
The love for Ullmark goes beyond his own dressing room. The netminder previously said Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman offered support for him. On Monday, Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck said he “felt” for Ullmark as he endured mental health struggles amid speculation about the reason for his absence.
“I just felt really sad,” Hellebuyck said. “Sad that everyone around him blew up the story and really just started speculating and making stuff up. And maybe they heard something here or something there. But really created a story and really attacked the guy. When, really, I don’t know how many people just sat down and tried to talk to him. I mean, that’s the whole point of mental health is to sit down and listen.”
In his last appearance against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Dec. 27, Ullmark suffered from anxiety before and during that game before being pulled after allowing four goals. Ullmark told TSN he experienced struggles as far back as June 2024, just after the Senators acquired him from the Boston Bruins in a trade.
But on Saturday, he was just happy to be back after working himself up to be ready to play.
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“It felt like I came out of retirement during practices because I didn’t have a real practice since before Christmas,” Ullmark said. “So, it’s been a battle coming back.”
In a hallway of Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, just outside the Senators’ dressing room, Ullmark looked up from his cellphone and glanced at the score on a television screen hanging from the wall. It wasn’t looking good.
Over a week ago, the Senators unraveled after blowing a 3-0 lead to the Nashville Predators. A snowballing collapse, thanks to their indiscipline and porous penalty kill, ended the team’s three-game road trip on a sour note. Ottawa’s goaltender that night, 37-year-old James Reimer, wasn’t much at fault for the loss. In fact, he made a handful of spectacular saves to keep his team in it. But they were for naught.
Ullmark watched the game in street clothes. A black hoodie and sweatpants with a similarly colored beanie atop his head, and white and light blue Nikes on his feet. He looked up at the TV screen, watching the replay of the Senators’ fifth goal allowed — an empty-net goal that sealed the deal — before walking away.
That was life for Ullmark over the last month as he watched his team from a distance. His “hope” and “dream” were to play on that road trip. But he wasn’t ready.
“There were some doubts,” Ullmark said. “I said I’m going to have to be 100 percent if I’m going to go back. And slowly but surely, that week, this week, things have gotten in the right direction.”
What was clear throughout Ullmark’s process was that it would be up to him when he wanted to play. And the Senators respected those wishes, while still letting him be around the team at home or on the road.
“When he’s ready to play, he’ll play,” Senators head coach Travis Green said last Tuesday. “Do we miss him? Yeah, for sure. Do we want what’s best with him? 100 percent. And no one’s rushing him back.”
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Weeks earlier, before he was even participating in full practices, Ullmark was watching Senators games from private suites. Sometimes he was alone. But sometimes he watched with someone else, namely his old goalie coach, Maciej Szwoch, from his playing days as a youngster in Sweden. The Senators invited him to be around Ullmark for support. On practice days, Szwoch will sit in the stands watching Ullmark fend off shots and take instructions from the Sens’ goalie coach, Justin Peters.
“I think it’s a great idea,” Green said. “Whenever someone’s going through something, you want to support them in any way we can. And I’m all for it.”
Once Ullmark progressed to full skates, he did his part to get himself into game shape. On Friday, he wore an X-tracker over his mask to narrow his focus toward oncoming pucks while also helping with his posture.
And even if he wasn’t playing, as was the case on that three-game road trip through Detroit, Columbus and Nashville, he still offered support wherever he could.
In that same Nashville hallway, moments after the Senators’ loss to Nashville, young forward Stephen Halliday met the media. The 23-year-old scored his first NHL goal that night but knew he couldn’t be too overjoyed on camera. As his media scrum broke, he walked toward the dressing room. But not before running to Ullmark, who reappeared in the corridor. Halliday embraced his goaltender, who congratulated the rookie on his first-ever goal as only he could.
“Finally, eh?” Ullmark said.
Results against teams such as the Predators haven’t helped the Senators make their case to reach the postseason for a second consecutive season. But recent results could help turn the tide slightly. Ottawa is now riding a three-game win streak after two dominating performances against Western Conference giants Vegas and Colorado, and their win over New Jersey. But entering the weekend, their chances of making the playoffs were at 27 percent according to Dom Luszczyszyn’s model. Ottawa remains eight points back of the last wild-card spot with three games to go before the Olympic break and seven games before the March trade deadline.
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Should the Senators miss the playoffs, goaltending will be seen as the team’s biggest letdown. The Senators’ team’s save percentage is the worst in the league and one of the worst in the last 35 years. Not only would Ottawa miss out on a crucial year with their best players on team-friendly contracts as they approach their primes, but they also won’t have a first-round pick to show for it.
Ullmark himself has to work to change his fortunes. He entered Saturday night’s game with a 14-8-5 record, an .881 save percentage, and a 2.95 goals-against average. But Saturday night’s performance will go down as one of his best of the year, thanks to the quality of the saves he made.
By game’s end, his teammates showed their appreciation for him through hugs and pats.
His teammates feel that burden isn’t for Ullmark to take on alone.
“I don’t really know if it’s just pressure on just him,” Tkachuk said. “I know there’s pressure on me. There’s pressure on a lot of guys in this room.”
“When you take a step back, you’re playing hockey,” defenseman Jordan Spence said. “I don’t think you have to put a lot of pressure on yourself especially (after) being away for a little bit and coming back.
“We all feel pressure with the playoff push. But we all kind of forget that once we’re on the ice. We’re all just focused on one thing, (it’s) to win a hockey game. And, we always just take it one day at a time. And I think (Ullmark) is going to do the same thing.”
And Ullmark, in turn, has his teammates’ backs.
“The support in this locker room has been tremendous ever since day one,” Ullmark said. “I can’t thank enough this whole organization. I can’t thank them enough.”
Julian McKenzie is an NHL staff writer and contributor to the NHL’s news and enterprise team for The Athletic. McKenzie also hosts The Chris Johnston Show with The Athletic’s Chris Johnston. McKenzie is also the writer of the upcoming book, Black Aces, on Black hockey players and people. McKenzie’s work can also be found in The New York Times, FiveThirtyEight, the Montreal Gazette, the Canadian Press, TSN 690, CTV Montreal and more. Follow Julian on Twitter @jkamckenzie
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