It wasn't the season that Boston's top goalie was looking for in 2024-25.
Last summer, the biggest offseason storyline surrounding the Boston Bruins was goalie Jermey Swayman and his contract negotiations. Things got ramped up even more when general manager Don Sweeney shipped Linus Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators, leaving the Black and Gold with Joonas Korpisalo, part of the return, and two unproven prospects between the pipes.
As time went on, it became more clear that Swayman and the Bruins were not going to come to an agreement in time on a deal for training camp. Then, as training camp went along, it became more clear that the Bruins were not going to have their top netminder for the season opener in early October in Florida against the defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers.
Just hours before the Black and Gold were to board their flight for South Florida, news broke that Swayman and the Bruins agreed on a new deal that carried an AAV of $8.25 million. After signing so close to the season, he did not play in the opener, and truth be told, it didn't matter given how the season ended up going.
Jermey Swayman's performance & future
The question was, after the Bruins traded Ullmark, was Swayman going to be ready to be the guy and make around 60 starts in a season and handle the workload? It turned out that maybe he wasn't ready to be that guy.
One year after going 25-10-8 with a 2.53 goals against average and a .916 save percentage with three shutouts, he saw his numbers tumble in the opposite direction. The former University of Maine star went 22-29-7 with a 3.11 GAA and a .892 SV% and four shutouts.
You could come up with several reasons as to why Swayman had the season he did, from the team in front of him underperforming to him missing all of training camp despite working out at Boston University while awaiting a new contract. It's not the same as training camp.
Going forward, the Bruins have committed to Swayman for the future, and despite a number of rumors of Boston fielding calls on him in a potential trade, it would be stunning if he were moved. Following the season, he went over to play in the IIHF World Championship and led Team USA to the Gold Medal with a nearly perfect performance.
There are a number of Bruins players who must have a bounce-back season in 2025-26, and Swayman is right at the top of that list.
Jeremy Swayman: C-
