Goalie Notes: Ullmark Leaves; Will Stolarz Be Back?

The Ottawa Senators, fighting for a playoff spot in the NHL's Eastern Conference, will have to do without their No. 1 goalie for the time being. It was announced by the club that goaltender Linus Ullmark was taking a leave of absence from the team for personal reasons.

Senators GM Steve Staios said no further information on the reasons for Ullmark's departure would be provided.

It's been a difficult season for the former Vezina Trophy winner. Ullmark shows a 14-8-5 record with a 2.95 goals-against average and a sub-par .881 save percentage. In his most recent start, the Swedish goalie got the hook from Ottawa's 7-5 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday. Ullmark allowed four goals on 14 shots before he was pulled.

Stolarz Status Uncertain

Speaking of the Maple Leafs, they are dealing with their own goalie issues. Anthony Stolarz, Toronto's go-to goalie, remains on the shelf. He hasn't played since suffering an upper-body injury on November 11. 

In his most recent update on the condition of his top puckstopper, Leafs coach Craig Berube suggested that the status of Stolarz is "really indefinite." That's leading to speculation that the 31-year-old netminder, who has a history of concussion issues, might be done for the season.

The Leafs are 9-7-5 with oft-injured Joseph Woll and erratic minor-leaguer Dennis Hildeby sharing the goaltending duties. Not that Stolarz was exactly doing an impression of a brick wall when he was between the pipes.

In 13 games this season, Stolarz owns a 3.51 GAA and .884 save percentage.

Big Save Dave Saves Best For Rangers

Throughout his journeyman NHL career, veteran goalie Dave Rittich earned the nickname "Big Save Dave." Never is the handle more appropriate than when Rittich faces the New York Rangers. And now that he's with the New York Islanders, being able to haunt the dreams of Rangers fans only adds more gravitas to the Big Save Dave legacy.

Saturday, Rittich turned in a 27-save shutout as the Islanders blanked the Rangers 2-0. That win improved his career mark when facing the Broadway Blueshirts to 4-0. He's posted a .975 save percentage and 0.75 GAA, which are the best numbers for any goalie who's faced the Rangers in multple games.

According to Islanders statistician and historian Eric Hornick, Rittich joins Benny Grant (7-0) and Jimmy Franks (4-0) as the only goalies to have faced the Rangers at least four times and never suffered a defeat. Both Grant and Franks played in the NHL prior to World War II.