Contract Impasse Ends as Bruins Sign Goalie to Long-Term Extension

After a tumultuous offseason, the Boston Bruins and Jeremy Swayman finally agreed on a contract extension. The 25-year-old netminder signed an eight-year, $66 million deal. Swayman hadn’t reported to training camp which led people to believe that a trade could be on the horizon. Also, the Bruins’ management as well as Swayman’s agent made controversial statements that led many to believe that bridges had been burned between Boston and Swayman. However, Swayman will be locked in black and gold for a long time.

Bruins’ Management Saw Swayman as Rask Replacement

Boston drafted Swayman in the fourth round of the 2017 NHL Draft, hoping to find the successor to the then-30-year-old Tuukka Rask. Swayman subsequently played three seasons at the University of Maine before starting 10 games for the Bruins in the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season. By this time, Rask’s career was quickly coming to a close as he dealt with many injuries and Boston was ready to move on. Swayman quickly solidified himself as a young and talented goalie that the Bruins wanted to hold on to.

Neely Stirred Pot at Press Conference

Last Monday, Boston Bruins President Cam Neely held a press conference where he made headlines. “I don't want to get into the weeds what his [Swayman’s] ask is,” said Neely. “But I know there are 64 million reasons for him to be playing now.” After that statement, it became obvious that the Bruins’ management had been frustrated with Swayman. Many people interpreted Neely’s statement as the team publicly announced that they offered an eight-year, $64 million contract to Swayman. After the ‘$64 million’ statement, things went from bad to worse, but the two sides eventually agreed on $66 million.

Gross Clapped Back Against Neely

After Neely’s controversial press conference, Gross made a statement of his own. "Normally, I do not release statements or discuss negotiations through the media," Gross said in a statement on his agency's Instagram page Monday night. "However, in this case, I feel I need to defend my client. At today's press conference, $64 million was referenced. This was the first time that number was discussed in our negotiations. Prior to the press conference, no offer was made to reach that level. We are extremely disappointed. This was not fair to Jeremy. We will take a few days to discuss where we go from here." By openly responding to Neely, Gross made an ugly situation even uglier before the eventual agreement. 

Contract Talks Stalled in Past Two Seasons

This wasn’t the first time that Swayman had difficulty agreeing to a deal. Last season, Swayman went into arbitration, eventually agreeing upon a one-year, $3.475 million contract. In talks, Swayman took offense to what  Bruins’ management thought of him. “Hearing that you’re not worthy of what you think you’re worthy of, that was hard to hear,” said Swayman. “You don’t forget what was said. I wrote them down and I looked at them the other day and I had a couple of checkmarks. My biggest knock was how I wasn’t trustworthy in the playoffs. Check.” In the 2024 playoffs, Swayman posted a .933 save percentage, and 2.15 goals-against average, proving that he’s reliable in the playoffs. Swayman’s team likely used that to leverage his long-term extension.

Boston Traded Ullmark After Successful Tenure

Another way that Swayman’s team gained leverage was the trade of Linus Ullmark. On July 28th, 2021, the Bruins signed Ullmark to a four-year, $20 million contract. Through three seasons in Boston, Ullmark compiled an 88-26-10 record, .924 save percentage, 2.28 goals-against average, and five shutouts with a Vezina Trophy on his resume. The Bruins revitalized his career, but they had a decision to make: Ullmark or Swayman? The team ultimately chose Swayman, trading Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators for Mark Kastelic, Joonas Korpisalo, and a 2024 first-round pick.

Contract Puts Swayman Among Elite Company

Swayman’s contract makes him the fifth-highest-paid goaltender on a per-year basis, tied with Ilya Sorokin. Ahead of Swayman are Connor Hellebuyck, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Carey Price. By signing his contract, Swayman will undoubtedly be compared to those other phenomenal goalies. He’ll be expected to finish as a top-five goaltender this season and for many years to come. Thankfully for the Bruins, they’ll have their starter before their first regular season game on Tuesday.