Bruins' Ullmark 'so bloody happy' after scoring goalie goal

Boston Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark was just as excited as everyone else in the hockey world after he became the first netminder in over three years to score a coveted goalie goal.

"It's pretty cool. The guys that have scored a goal in this league are terrific goaltenders that went down into the Hall of Fame as well," he told reporters after his team's 3-1 victory against the Vancouver Canucks. "It's hard to describe what I'm feeling right now. I have to kind of digest it all. I'm just so bloody happy."

Ullmark is the 13th goalie in history to light the lamp in the regular season, joining Martin Brodeur (who did it twice), Chris Osgood, Pekka Rinne, Evgeni Nabokov, Cam Ward, Billy Smith, Mike Smith, Ron Hextall, Jose Theodore, Chris Mason, Damian Rhodes, and Mika Noronen. Brodeur and Hextall also scored one goal each in the playoffs.

Rinne was the last goalie to accomplish the feat when he did so against the Chicago Blackhawks on Jan. 9, 2020,

Ullmark, who is also the first Bruins goalie in history to score a goal, said he's holding onto the puck for "safekeeping" and that it was something he and backup netminder Jeremy Swayman have been trying to pull off.

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

Ullmark was mobbed by his teammates afterwards, and he skated down the Bruins' bench for some celebratory glove taps.

The 29-year-old wasn't exactly sure what happened when the puck left his stick in the moment.

"I thought it went in on my own net first, actually," he said. "I didn't see it, as soon as I shot it, I see three guys jumping towards me, I had no idea where it was. I didn't hear anything, I didn't see anything.

"Then you kind of become a little bit more aware of what's happening, that the guys are starting to look up ice. Then, I see it going towards the net and the rest is history."

It was a momentous victory for Ullmark in more ways than one as he required the second-fewest games in NHL history to reach 30 wins in a season after hitting the milestone in his 37th appearance.

Widely considered to be the Vezina Trophy frontrunner this campaign, Ullmark leads all goalies with a sparkling .938 save percentage and 1.86 goals against average.

The Bruins have continued their dominant ways all season long. They sit atop the league with a 45-8-5 record.