The Ottawa Senators announced Sunday that goaltender Linus Ullmark is taking a leave of absence for personal reasons.
The team didn’t provide a timeline for his return.
“Linus has the full support of our organization during this time,” Senators president of hockey operations Steve Staios said in a statement. “Out of respect to Linus, we will not be making any further comments.”
Ullmark has posted a 2.95 goals against average and a career-worst .881 save percentage this season. The 32-year-old has allowed a league-high 82 goals in 28 games.
Ottawa pulled the 2023 Vezina Trophy winner from Saturday’s loss against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second period. He’d allowed four goals on 14 shots in just over 27 minutes.
Ullmark is in the second season of a four-year, $33 million contract.
Rookie Leevi Merilainen will presumably take over as Ottawa’s number one goalie. The 23-year-old Finn has been Ullmark’s backup this season.
Merilainen is 4-6-0 with a .874 save percentage and 3.43 GAA in 10 games this season.
The Senators also have netminders Hunter Shepard, Jackson Parsons, and Mats Sogaard in their AHL organization with the Belleville Senators.
Ottawa sits 12th in the Eastern Conference with an 18-14-5 record.
