Blog #2: Linus Ullmark and the Winter Classic

Welcome to Blog #2! In its creation, I did not necessarily expect this blog to be about the Bruins’ goalies, but in the Bruins’ last game on Saturday night against the Vancouver Canucks, the Bruins won 3-1. In the final few minutes, the Canucks’ goaltender went to the bench for an extra skater, down 2-1, hoping to tie the game up as a team typically does. Linus Ullmark, the Bruins goaltender, shot a rocket down the ice to score an empty net goal with 48 seconds left in the game.

Ullmark has come close several times to scoring an empty netter this season but couldn’t seal the deal until last night’s matchup.

He is the first goaltender in Bruins history to score a goal and just the 13th to do it in the history of the National Hockey League.

"It's one of the dreams I always had that I wanted to score a goal, and now I had the opportunity," Ullmark said postgame. "I tried it at the Winter Classic, didn't really make it, and now everything came together."

This year, the Winter Classic was played in Fenway Park, a yearly game played in an outdoor area, typically a football stadium or baseball park.

The Winter Classic showcases the NHL’s most popular teams and, as a result, garners the highest attendance for the league. In 2014’s edition, 105,491 hockey fans attended the spectacle of a game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Detroit Red Wings.

The Winter Classic is a nod to the sport's outdoor roots and helps remind those of their pond hockey days.

While not a historical event like the All-Star Game, played in late January or early February and comes with a four-day break for all but the All-Stars, the Winter Classic means so much more to players and fans because it actually has stakes—two points.

The Bruins won the 2023 Winter Classic 2-1, but wouldn’t it have been so much sweeter if Ullmark had scored then?