Pressure was on the Ottawa Senators to find their next franchise goaltender after Craig Anderson played his final season with the team following the 2019-20 season. The Senators seemed to have found their next goaltender when Anton Forsberg was in his second season with the team.
In the 2021-22 season, Forsberg looked like he was one of the NHL's best-rising goaltenders in the game. On a bad Ottawa team, Forsberg earned playing time. In 46 games played with 44 starts, Forsberg went 22-17-4, with 2.82 goals against average, and a .917 save percentage.
However, the past two seasons have been disappointing for Forsberg. With Linus Ullmark being traded to the Senators from the Boston Bruins, Forsberg is in a difficult position.
Anton Forsberg needs to earn trust back from Senators
There's no doubt that with the Senators trading for Ullmark who won the Vezina Trophy in 2023, and has posted a 2.28 goals against average over the past three seasons with the Bruins, the Senators will have Ullmark be the number one goaltender on the team. Ullmark will be the Senators' key factor to determine their success this season.
Ullmark being traded to Ottawa puts Forsberg in a tough position on the team. Forsberg's inconsistency from the past two seasons doesn't give the Senators much reason to start him often as backup. Forsberg hasn't started more than 30 games in a season for the past two seasons. In each of those two seasons, Forsberg had a goals-against average of over 3.2. That is not ideal for Ottawa or Forsberg.
One area that puts pressure on Forsberg entering this season is his contract. According to PuckPedia, Forsberg will have a 2.75 million cap hit and will be an unrestricted free agent after the season. Ullmark is also set to be an unrestricted free agent with Forsberg in 2025 too.
How does Forsberg earn the Senators trust back? First and foremost, Forsberg needs to be better. If Ottawa wants to have Ullmark be the top goaltender, that's fine and they should. However, having a reliable backup is important to have.
Having two solid goaltenders on a team isn't uncommon. The New York Rangers have Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick. The Dallas Stars had Jake Oettinger and Scott Wedgewood last season. The Bruins had Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman last season as well. The Senators trading Jonas Korpisalo to the Bruins in the Ullmark trade gives Forsberg his chance to shine as a backup.
It could be possible the Ullmark will help Forsberg's goaltending to make him better, but having a good one-two punch in goal gives the team a better chance to win. With Ullmark previously doing the duo with Swayman in Boston, it could be possible Ottawa tries it in 2024-25.
If Forsberg plays like he did in 2021-22 and be a reliable backup to Ullmark, Ottawa might want to give him a new contract. If Forsberg doesn't play well, the thought of Forsberg being traded at the deadline to another team could be a possibility too.