Ullmark Proved He’s Ready For The Top Job

There’s little hope for the Sabres this season. Having won just 11 of 44 games there is only one team with a worse record – the Arizona Coyotes. As poorly as this season has played out, Ullmark’s performance in last night’s win over the Columbus Blue Jackets offered Sabres fans a glimmer of hope for the future.

The Sabres kept the pressure off Ullmark throughout most of the 1st period. In uncharacteristic fashion, the Sabres offense was able to control play in the offensive zone and the Sabres defense kept quality scoring chances to a minimum. Pouliot put the Sabres on the board first by stuffing in a rebound. Ullmark ended up facing 11 shots in the 1st while the Sabres registered 15 shots.

The 2nd and 3rd periods were a different story. The Blue Jackets registered a collective 34 shots to the Sabres 14. Ullmark stood strong and even flashed his glove against Blue Jackets’ defenseman Seth Jones.

Ullmark making his mark 😱

Save #22 and it’s a beauty. #Sabres pic.twitter.com/0g8QlfPC43

— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) January 12, 2018

The most impressive part of Ullmark’s game wasn’t his flashy save or the fact that he led the Sabres to a win – it was the progress he’s made over the last couple of seasons with the Amerks. Just two years ago Ullmark had issues with moving post to post, reading plays, and maintaining his cool. This season he’s putting his long legs to use and has no problem covering both sides of the net. He’s demonstrating a level of premonition, seemingly knowing what his opponents are going to do before even they do it. Most importantly, Ullmark is incredibly composed. He doesn’t get caught running around. He doesn’t let goals mess with his head. He’s cool, calm, and collected.

Ullmark finished his 2017-18 NHL debut with 44 saves in a 3-1 win over the Blue Jackets, building a case for his promotion to the top spot. Enjoy Ullmark while you can Amerks fans. He won’t be an AHL’er much longer.