The Boston Bruins are in a contract dispute with starting goaltender Jeremy Swayman. After trading Linus Ullmark to the Senators, they needed to get a deal done with Swayman, as he is a restricted free agent. Reports from both sides say they are very far apart. Now, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman says the Bruins are prepared to open camp without him.
“Quiet around Jeremy Swayman as everyone tries to bridge the philosophical differences,” Friedman said in one of his 32 Thoughts. In a separate thought, he said “One thing that’s definitely happened with Swayman: it has reminded teams why you should move mountains before taking cornerstone
players to arbitration. Every few years there’s a case — Tommy Salo, P.K. Subban, Shea Weber — leaving lasting bitterness on someone’s part…The best news for the Bruins is their No. 1 goalie still wants to sign long-term.”
The salary has been the biggest difference between the two sides in this dispute. Varying reports say that Swayman wants between $8-10 million per season. The Bruins are reportedly in the $6.5 million range. While a trade needed to be made to fit Swayman under the cap, it may have been done too early. The Bruins lost all leverage and are now paying for it.
Even with an issue at goalie, the Bruins are considered one of the best teams in the league. Swayman has played like one of the best goalies in the league in his limited action and gives the team a chance to win a title.
Bruins must get Jeremy Swayman under contract
The reality of having a goalie of Swayman’s caliber is that they are very expensive. Andrei Vasilevskiy and Sergei Bobrovsky both won Stanley Cups with massive cap hits. That proved that you can still build a team around a high-paid goaltender. Even with Darcy Kuemper and Adin Hill winning Cups lately, that is the rhetoric that Swayman’s camp is building.
The best thing that can happen to the Bruins is the Rangers and Igor Shesterkin reach a contract. The Vezina Trophy winner is one year away from unrestricted free agency and is due a massive raise. He is the most important player on the Rangers and will command a massive salary. If he comes in below what Swayman is requesting, the Bruins will finally get some leverage back.
Joonas Korpisalo made his way from the Senators to the Bruins in the Ullmark trade. He signed a five-year contract with Ottawa just last season and was terrible in 2023-24. His inclusion in the trade was to make room for the Senators and they paid for Boston to take him. He is not a top-shelf goaltender and should not be the number-one goalie.
While the season is still a ways away, the Bruins must get this done soon. Missing training camp is not ideal for anyone, especially a goalie. Without Swayman, they are not going to stay in the Atlantic Division race very long. While it is understandable that they don’t want to cave in on the contract, it is time to end the saga, meet in the middle, and strike a deal.
