Boston Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark is the 2022-23 Vezina Trophy for the league’s top goaltender after he posted a .938 save percentage and a 1.89 goals-against average to go along with a 40-6-1 record. It is the first Vezina Trophy win for the 29-year-old and is his second bit of hardware as he also collected the Jennings award for being the goalie with the fewest goals scored against.
Ullmark’s 40 wins tied him for the most wins in the NHL this season and his .938 save percentage was the fifth-highest mark all-time amongst goalies that played at least 25 games. He led the Bruins to the President’s Trophy this season and was a big reason the club was as dominant as it was. Ullmark even tickled the twine this year scoring the first goalie goal in three seasons.
Despite the incredible season, there is no guarantee that Ullmark will be back next season for the Bruins. Boston is facing a very difficult cap crunch and have goaltender Jeremy Swayman lying in wait ready to take over the starting role. The Bruins may be forced to decide between the two of them depending on how their cap situation unfolds.
Meaningless. The Cup is the only thing that mattered.
Well, hell, by that token, Karlsson’s Norris was meaningless, and McDavid’s Hart and Ross were meaningless, and Beniers’ Calder was meaningless, and Bergeron’s Selke was meaningless. The All-Star Team picks were meaningless, and the All-Rookie Team picks were meaningless.
Strange though it might seem, 31 teams in the league DON’T win the Cup in any given season. Eleven teams have NEVER won it: does that make every game Buffalo or Vancouver or San Jose’s ever played meaningless?