4 Potential Offseason Landing Spots for Bruins Goalie Linus Ullmark

Goalies Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark have been one of the key cornerstones of the Boston Bruins the past couple of seasons, and that continued throughout the 2023-24 season.

But with Swayman taking over as the Bruins' unquestioned top goalie, Ullmark becomes a likely trade candidate this offseason.

Not only because the Bruins have some other needs to address on their roster, but because it is hard to justify two big-money goalies on one roster. With Swayman set to get a significant raise as a restricted free agent, Ullmark's $5 million salary-cap hit becomes problematic especially as the Bruins need to make upgrades at center and defense.

It was rumored at the deadline that Boston tried to trade Ullmark only to have him use his no-trade clause. That is another potential obstacle here.

But with the Bruins now eliminated following Friday's heartbreaking Game 6 loss to the Florida Panthers, let's look at some potential landing spots for Ullmark in an offseason trade.

The Kings are one of the most obvious potential landing spots for a goalie, and especially Ullmark.

Not only because the Kings were reportedly the team that had an interest in him at the trade deadline, but because they don't have a single goalie on their roster under contract for next season.

The Kings have their first-round pick as well as some potential center options that could entice a Bruins team that needs major help down the middle.

Pierre-Luc Dubois' contract is probably too big of a hurdle for the Bruins, but with the Kings desperate to get out of that deal and the Bruins needing a center maybe that is a starting point? Or perhaps veteran Phillip Danault?

The Kings received better-than-expected goaltending during the regular season, but it was a huge problem in the playoffs and now they do not have anybody on the roster.

You have to imagine that the Edmonton Oilers are high on the goalie-needy teams given the way the past two seasons have gone.

They took a big swing with Jack Campbell in free agency and it turned into a huge miss.

Stuart Skinner became the starter this season and into the playoffs, but performed so poorly in the postseason he ended up getting benched for Calvin Pickard.

Goaltending has been one of the Oilers' biggest Achilles' heels during the Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl era, and they are running out of time to win with them in their prime years. Addressing the goalie situation is a must.

Somebody like Ullmark, just one year removed from a Vezina Trophy and still playing at a high level this past season, could be a game-changer for them.

The crazy thing about the New Jersey Devils season is that pretty much everybody across the league knew goaltending was going to be one of the big question marks on a roster that looked to be ready to contend for a Stanley Cup.

They did nothing to address it in the offseason despite having ample salary-cap space and trade assets.

Then as the season progressed and it was clear they had no solution and that the position was helping to sink their season, they sat back and did nothing.

It was not until the actual trade deadline, when they were already out of the playoff race and starting to become sellers, that they made changes to the position.

They need to do more this offseason, whether it is Ullmark or Juuse Saros as another top goalie that could be available by trade.

To be fair, the Devils did have issues beyond just the goaltending. Injuries were also a major problem. But for the bulk of the 2023-24 season, the Devils received some of the worst goaltending in the NHL and it significantly held them back.

The only potential obstacle here is whether or not the Bruins would want to trade Ullmark to another potential Eastern Conference Stanley Cup contender.

It is time for the Steve Yzerman plan to produce a playoff spot.

The Red Wings seemed to be in the driver's seat for a playoff spot for most of the season until self-destructing down the stretch and in the second half, largely because they could not keep the puck out of their net.

Defensive depth beyond Moritz Seider was a huge issue.

But so was goaltending.

Ville Husso is signed for one more year at $4.75 million, but he has not proven to be the answer to the Red Wings' goaltending needs.

Whether it is a defensive upgrade, a goalie upgrade, or both, the Red Wings have to make some moves to cut down on the goals against if they are going to return to the playoffs in 2024-25, something that should be seen as a must.