Ullmark on costly OT gaffe: 'All about having the mind of a goldfish'
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Boston Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark's costly turnover in Game 5 allowed the Florida Panthers to capitalize and stave off elimination.
Ullmark turned the puck over behind his own net in overtime to Panthers forward Carter Verhaeghe, who fired it at the Bruins goaltender as he rushed back to his net. Matthew Tkachuk jumped the rebound to score the game winner and force a Game 6 in Florida.
"I tried to send it out into the corner a little bit and bypass him," Ullmark said of the gaffe. "He makes a good play and catches it, and the rest is history."
"You just try to get back to the net, and then he sends it in. I try not to put myself in a position where it can bank off me," he added. "Unfortunately, it hits my skate and it ends up in the wrong hands. From there, it's kind of a situation where I couldn't get back into position. He takes it wide and he puts it in."
The 29-year-old has been breakout star for the Bruins during their historic season, posting a 40-6-1 record with a career-best .938 save percentage and a 1.89 goals-against average.
He's 3-2 in the playoffs with a .912 save percentage and a 2.79 GAA, allowing four goals on 25 shots in Wednesday's loss.
"He's been a rock for us all year. He's given us a chance to win every time he's out there. He can't be too hard on himself," Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron said. "We're a team and it's about what we do on the ice as a unit of six and go from there. You win and you lose as a team, and it's another example tonight. It is what it is.
"He's a tremendous goalie, probably going to win the Vezina Trophy this year. We're all there for each other. Heads up for everyone."
Ullmark plans to quickly put the gaffe behind him as the Bruins, now up 3-2 in the series, try again to close out the Panthers on Friday.
"I don't know," Ullmark said of what he could have done better on the play. "I'll have to look at it tonight or tomorrow and see what I could've done better. Maybe I should've rimmed it or went up the middle. It's hard to say. This is what happened.
"It's all about having the mind of a goldfish."