‘Brothers for life’: Ullmark, Swayman face emotional reunion at opposite ends of ice

It’s been a busy start to the season for Linus Ullmark as he adjusts to a new role on a new team as the new No. 1 netminder for the Ottawa Senators. And as he continues to settle into his new surroundings, he’s about to suit up in a familiar rink opposite plenty of familiar faces as he makes his return to Boston for a game against his former squad.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Ullmark said earlier this week of Saturday’s reunion. “A lot of good memories in that place.”

A lot of success, too, suiting up alongside Jeremy Swayman as the NHL’s top goalie tandem. Though Ullmark’s Boston tenure lasted just three seasons — not even the full span of the four-year deal he signed in 2021 as a free agent from Buffalo — it marked an incredibly impactful time not just for his own career but Swayman’s, too.

Apart, both netminders entered the 2021-22 campaign with their share of questions. While Swayman was then a promising prospect billed as the next starter in line following the succession plan in place — Tim Thomas to Tuukka Rask to Swayman — he was still largely unproven at the NHL level at the time. And Ullmark, unable to establish himself as a true No. 1 over in Buffalo during an up-and-down start to his NHL career with the rebuilding Sabres, found a welcome fresh start.

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Together, both goalies hit their respective strides in that first year manning the crease in Boston. They had almost identical stat lines in that first shared season: both started 39 games, appearing in 41 each; Ullmark registered 26 wins to Swayman’s 23; Swayman’s 2.41 goals-against average just edged Ullmark’s 2.45. They got even better in 2022-23, combining for the league’s best save percentage (.929) to co-win the William M. Jennings Award. Ullmark took the bulk of starts and was awarded the Vezina Trophy for his career-best efforts (1.89 GAA, .938 SV%). They shared the crease against last season, and again combined for some of the best goaltending efforts in the league.

The best part, though, wasn’t just the production. It was the post-win tradition, too. The two became famous around the league for their animated post-game hugs, no matter which one of them had gotten the start — a ritual that broadcast their bond around the league. In a game that so often makes a competition out of starts and who’s getting more ice time, the duo’s camaraderie was always on full display.

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It’s that shared sense of “overall humbleness,” as Ullmark put it earlier this week, that made the tandem work so well. “To be able to put your pride aside,” he added, for the sake of the team.

That approach was an integral building block in their shared friendship at the rink — one that began with them bonding over commonalities in their upbringing in the north — Swayman in Anchorage, Alaska, and Ullmark in Lungvik, Sweden, providing a foundation of shared experiences.

“Once you have that, [there’s] a lot of things to connect to,” said Ullmark. “Same values, same life lessons, so to speak.”

As successful as this duo was in its three-year run, it was never going to last long — salary cap constraints and negotiations for Swayman’s new deal (with true No. 1 netminder money) meant parting ways with Ullmark, who himself appeared ready to take on the top role in Ottawa after finding his game alongside Swayman.

It’s only fitting that, even in separate markets, the two still share a few things — like their matching $8.25-million AAVs on freshly-inked contracts, for example. Just a few days after Swayman’s contract stalemate ended with the signing of his eight-year, $66-million pact with the Bruins, Ullmark ended his own will-he-stay-or-will-he-go speculation in Canada’s capital with a four-year, $33-million extension that kicks in next year.

Ullmark said being in separate markets, each player focusing on his larger role this season, has prevented the two from touching base much so far this season, but the two intend to connect prior to Saturday’s showdown, according to Swayman. Both know the reunion will bring with it some emotion, especially for Ullmark as he visits his former hockey home.

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“It’s gonna be fun, interesting. A lot emotions,” he said. “Like, a forever memory, I feel like, coming back.”

It brings a few stakes, too. The season’s still young, but both clubs find themselves further down the standings than expected, the Bruins unable to find their footing with consistency and the Senators still looking for a spark as they deal with defensive woes. Both goalies are still working to hit their respective strides this season as they adjust to a heavier workload early on.

Asked on Friday about the reunion in Boston, Swayman opened to up to reporters that the split “still hasn’t hit” and smiled as he said fans will “have to wait and see” when it comes to whether the friends-turned-frenemies will share a signature hug for old times’ sake.

“It still feels like I have his presence around here and the traditions that we had still live on,” Swayman said of Ullmark. “We’re brothers for life.”

— with files from Alex Adams

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