Linus Ullmark will make his debut for the Boston Bruins on Friday night against his former Buffalo Sabres team.
You really couldn’t script it better for Ullmark, but head coach Bruce Cassidy didn’t plan it that way. Ullmark struggled a bit in the preseason and served as the backup goalie to Jeremy Swayman for the Bruins’ first two games of the season.
Cassidy confirmed earlier this week Ullmark would start while on their short, two-game road trip. It just so happened that the first start will come against the team Ullmark spent his first six NHL seasons with.
“He knows their shooters better than anybody, and their shooters know him better than anybody,” Cassidy told reporters Thursday. “I just think it’s the way everything fell. Swayman had a good opener; we felt he was a little ahead. We knew each was gonna play a game on the trip. It could’ve easily worked the other way.
“It wasn’t set in stone that he was gonna play in Buffalo. We play Buffalo four times. I figured he’d get to play them sooner or later, just happens to be the first one.”
Ullmark will try to get the Bruins back in the win column and halt the Sabres’ 3-0-0- start to the season at 7 p.m. ET.
