Bruins fans held their breath when Linus Ullmark was removed in the third period of the Bruins’ history-making win over the Capitals on Tuesday night.
But much like Boston did with Charlie McAvoy, Ullmark was removed and kept out of the game for precautionary reasons. Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery confirmed as much after the 5-2 win that secured the B’s 133 points — good for a new NHL best — and said a muscle just tightened up on the goalie.
But when Ullmark didn’t appear at Warrior Ice Arena on Wednesday for the Bruins’ final practice of the regular season, more panic started to creep in.
The Bruins also recalled Brandon Bussi from Providence on an emergency basis Wednesday morning.
There’s no need to worry, though, as the Bruins are just protecting their likely Game 1 starter.
“Linus is good (Wednesday),” Montgomery told reporters at Warrior Ice Arena. “But we’re gonna be precautionary with him and he’s not gonna come on the trip (to Montreal).”
Montgomery hasn’t named a Game 1 starter for the Stanley Cup playoffs, but he did say it likely would be Ullmark, who leads the NHL in save percentage, goals-against average and is the runaway favorite to win the Vezina Trophy. Making sure everyone is as close to 100% healthy is a must — especially your goalie — so it’s wise of the Bruins to be as cautious as possible with someone who’s helped bring them a lot of success this season.
Boston wraps up its regular season Thursday night against the Montreal Canadiens. Puck drop from Bell Centre is set for 7 p.m. ET on NESN.
