Heading into the 2024-25 season, Ottawa Senators goaltender Anton Forsberg was in need of a good season to earn trust back from the team. At 32 years old, this season has been rough for Forsberg.
Forsberg started the season with getting pulled in the first game he started. After getting pulled, Forsberg showed at times he can be trusted. Forsberg recorded two shutouts over the next five starts he had.
Now, Forsberg has struggled ever since shutting out the Seattle Kraken on Nov. 2. Against the St. Louis Blues last night, the concern of what to do with Forsberg has arrived again.
Forsberg's start against Blues shows once again the inconsistency
The Senators were shutout 4-0 against the Blues in St. Louis last night. Forsberg started his first game since Dec. 8 after dealing with an injury since Dec. 14. Head coach Travis Green decided to start Forsberg against the Blues, it didn't go well.
Forsberg allowed in two goals in under 16 minutes to start the game. Both goals the Blues scored in the first period by Brayden Schenn and Brandon Saad were on a backhand. Later in the game, Saad score two more goals to complete the natural hat trick.
With his start against the Blues, Forsberg is now 4-7-0 in 12 starts on the season. Forsberg now has a 3.04 goals against average and .885 save percentage.
Forsberg's inconsistency for a veteran goaltender might be something the Senators can't afford anymore. In his last six starts, Forsberg is 1-5-0. In each of those six starts, Forsberg has allowed in at least three goals.
In 12 starts this season, Forsberg has allowed in three goals in six games. In four of the starts, Forsberg has allowed in four goals. The Senators simply haven't seen Forsberg take a big step this season. What the Senators have seen is improvement from 22-year-old Leevi Merilainen.
With Linus Ullmark out with an injury still, the idea of starting Merilainen more over Forsberg could be the answer. Although Merilainen is 2-2-0 in five games played with a 3.10 goals against average and .884 save percentage this season, Merilainen is showing improvement for a goaltender who hasn't played in the NHL since April 2023. In Merilainen's last start, he did allow in four goals against the Dallas Stars two night ago, but the Stars are filled with offensive depth. However, Merilainen also needs to get more NHL experience to get better.
Having Merilainen learn more under Ullmark when he comes back could help Merilainen going forward. If the Senators still think Merilainen might not be ready to be Ullmark's backup, trading Forsberg could also be another option. Forsberg is on an expiring contract at $2.75 million, so the Senators could Forsberg and an asset or two for a better goaltender to complement Ullmark.
Forsberg's season hasn't been a season the Senators were hoping for with his inconsistency. With Ullmark out and the Eastern Conference standings getting tighter, playing Forsberg might not be the option going forward due to his struggles this season.