Linus Ullmark is excited to try to help the Ottawa Senators improve

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Linus Ullmark is looking forward to feeling at home in his new home.

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And to get this out of the way early so everyone knows, Ottawa wasn’t on his list of 14 non-trading teams.

If first impressions mean anything — and they usually do — the Ottawa Senators hit a home run by acquiring goaltender Linus Ullmark from the Boston Bruins on Monday in exchange for this year’s 25th draft pick, goaltender Joonas Korpisalo and midfielder Mark Kastelic.

The 30-year-old Ullmark joined local media for a 25-minute Zoom call from his home country of Sweden on Wednesday morning and spoke about his enthusiasm to help the Senators’ young core take the next step toward a play- to become an unqualified candidate.

“They’re a very dangerous and fast team,” Ullmark said. “But they can also be quite heavy. They have (Captain) Brady (Tkachuk) pulling the boat forward and he can do anything there.

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“It’s all about consistency, it’s all about winning every day, trying to achieve something new and evolving as a player every day and not being satisfied just because you’ve won two or three games in a row. You have to keep doing that. You can’t just win three or four and then lose three or four.

“It’s all about the consistency of winning that gets you to the playoffs.”

Ullmark has done his homework on the Senators.

Before the transaction was finalized, Ullmark reached out to longtime friend Anton Forsberg and Senators assistant coach Daniel Alfredsson to get information not only about the organization, but also about the city.

Ullmark and Forsberg were a junior tandem with Modo in the Swedish Elite competition almost a decade ago, so they are looking forward to being reunited.

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“I spoke to Alfie a bit about the situation, what we’re going to do, what the city is like and things like that,” Ullmark said.

Since being dealt to the Senators, several of his new teammates, including Tkachuk and alternate captain Claude Giroux, have reached out to let Ullmark know they’re happy he’s coming to Ottawa.

“I feel very welcome and my wife feels the same way,” he said. “It’s a big reason why we’re very happy with this approach. It’s something I was proud of as a Bruin, because when I signed there, we had players like Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand reaching out to us to make us feel welcome.

“Seeing that in the leadership group here in Ottawa is promising. It shows what kind of people they are.”

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Heading into the final year of his $5 million average annual deal, Ullmark confirmed there has been no talk of an extension.

That doesn’t mean that won’t be the case and he left the door open to sign a new deal. Ullmark will leave extension talks to his Sweden-based agent Joakim Persson and Steve Staios, chairman of the hockey department and general manager of the club, to work things out.

“There it is,” Ullmark said, smiling. “I wondered when this would appear, that age-old question. Not yet. I said that to my agent too, it’s only been a little over 24 hours (since the transaction). It’s very fresh.

“My biggest concern right now is finding a place for my family to live, schools for my children and getting to know the people of Ottawa and the Senators. The whole contract situation and conversations are something that my agent and Steve will discuss on the side.

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“If something needs to be discussed, he can always reach me, because as a player I am the one who signs it. That’s the situation right now and I’m trying not to look too far ahead. I try to stay in the moment and not think about what could be or could be in the future.

Once Ullmark settles in, the focus will be on the task at hand. He is happy to have the opportunity to become a No. 1 goalie and is not concerned about the workload that comes with the job.

“I’m happy with the opportunity from Steve and talking to the other people within the team, that they believe in my skills and what I can bring to the team,” Ullmark said. “It’s always something I’ve dreamed of: being a clear No. 1 and playing a lot of games.

“I have shown my skill level throughout my career. I’ve gotten better and better throughout my career. Sometimes you have a great year or just a good year or a great year. I hope this year will be a great year.”

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Boston starter Jeremy Swayman and Ullmark shared a special hug after the games, but “I’m not going to bring that to Ottawa.

“That patented goalie sniff we had in Boston was just for me and Sway. That is out of respect for what we had and built over the years together, plus the respect, love and admiration I have for him,” said Ullmark.

Instead, Ullmark will try to come up with a new winning routine with Forsberg, and if all goes well, they will make plenty of use of it.

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