Few things in life are certain, and that includes who will start between the pipes for the Boston Bruins when the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin next week.
All throughout the 2021-22 NHL regular season both Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark were in (healthy) competition to be the Bruins’ No. 1 goalie. Swayman had the edge most times, but the rookie hit a slump over the last month that allowed Ullmark to jump ahead of his teammate.
Ullmark looked strong in the Bruins’ 4-2 win over the Florida Panthers on Tuesday night and will get the start Thursday against the Buffalo Sabres in Boston’s regular season finale at TD Garden.
We don’t yet know who the Bruins will play or when their quest for the Cup begins, and head coach Bruce Cassidy isn’t quite ready to name a starting goalie just yet.
“No comment,” he told reporters after Wednesday’s practice at Warrior Ice Arena, per team-provided video. “We’re still evaluating that. I think Linus has been ahead of Swayman of late, numbers-wise anyway, a little smoother for him. Linus is going to start (Thurssday). Sway will start in Toronto and then we’ll make our decision.
“Being playoffs, we’re going to maybe be a little more coy about it than we typically would, but we’ll certainly announce it as we get closer.”
Now we just wait and see how Ullmark and Swayman perform over the next two games.
The Bruins welcome the Sabres to Boston on Thursday for a 7 p.m. ET puck drop.
