Ottawa Senators make immediate goalie move after Linus Ullmark breaks silence on rumors

When Ullmark addressed the chatter, the club answered with action, not words.

On Tuesday, the Senators loaned Leevi Meriläinen to Belleville and recalled Hunter Shepard. That is a fast, clear reset of the day to day goalie workflow.

Meriläinen, 23, is now back where he can play a ton instead of sitting on a bench during a road swing. He is 8-10-1 with a 3.51 GAA and .860 SV% this season.

Those numbers scream fatigue and chaos more than talent, especially with how often Ottawa has been trading high danger looks. His last start got away from him fast, and that is how confidence cracks.

Ullmark's silence was never going to last forever, not with rumors turning into content farms. He spoke publicly for the first time since his leave, and you could hear how tired he was of the whole thing.

The Senators have already gone on record calling the stories circulating online «fabricated and false,» and they have backed Ullmark hard. That matters inside a room that has looked rattled.

Ullmark is 32, and when he has been available this season he has put up a 14-8-5 record with a 2.95 GAA and .881 SV%. That is not elite, but it is also not the real story here.

The real story is Ottawa trying to stop the daily goalie soap opera from bleeding into the bench. Moving Meriläinen out and Shepard in is a simple way to calm the rotation.

As a fan watching this spiral, it feels like the whole season has been one long scramble drill, and nobody can breathe.

Shepard is not being recalled to «save» the season, he is being recalled to give the staff a safer practice and travel routine. In the AHL he has a .905 SV% in 11 games.

That profile fits the job, hold the clipboard, be ready on a back to back, and keep the room light. If Ullmark is close, you do not want your backup situation to be another headline.

Meriläinen's development still matters, and his résumé is not empty. Ottawa drafted him in 2020, third round, 71st overall, and he earned real NHL wins last season.

If you are Travis Green, you also want your D pairs to know who is starting, and to stop gripping sticks on every rush chance. Cleaner reads on the blue line start with calmer goaltending decisions.

The cap angle is pretty straightforward too, this is papering bodies, not changing the franchise plan. Ottawa is protecting Ullmark's space while keeping Meriläinen playing games.

Now the next milestone is simple and human, get through the road trip, get Ullmark back when life allows it, and stop giving the internet more oxygen than the power play.

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