After much back-and-forth, the Boston Bruins re-signed goaltender Jeremy Swayman on Oct. 6 with a $66 million, eight-year contract.
The conflict began way back in June, when the B’s split up their powerful goalie tandem (and goalie hugs), Linus Ullmark and Swayman. Ullmark, who won the Vezina Trophy after his exceptional 2022–23 season leading the NHL in wins, goals against average, and save percentage, put up another impressive season last year. He and Swayman were ranked the second-best tandem in the NHL by the Athletic, and were referred to as “the most evenly balanced tandem in the league.”
However, this equilibrium may have been what led to the trade.
“Both goaltenders had asked to play 55 games [and] that’s not possible if you’re playing on the same team,” Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said in a press conference. “We decided to make a decision and we felt comfortable with Jeremy going forward.”
The NHL salary cap ceiling for the 2024–25 season is $88 million, meaning that’s the total amount of money a team can spend on their players in a season. Keeping two star goalies on payroll, along with other high salary players like right wing David Pastrnak and defenseman Charlie McAvoy, would be cutting it really close to the ceiling and leaving very little money for mid-season emergency trades.
It was clear both goalies, while excelling in a tandem, were vying for the starting position and the coaching/operations staff had to make a choice.
On June 24, the Bruins traded Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators for goalie Joonas Korpisalo, center Mark Kastelic, and a first round pick in the 2024 NHL draft. However, this was a bit of a questionable move seeing as the B’s were yet to re-sign restricted free agent Swayman.
It was rumored that Swayman asked for $9.5 million a year, the same salary as Tampa Bay’s Andrei Vasilevskiy (a similarly ranked goalie), which would put the B’s in a tough spot with the salary ceiling. The Bruins’ president, Cam Neely, insinuated in a press conference that Swayman had been offered a counter deal.
“I have 64 million reasons why I’d be playing right now,” Neely said on Sept. 30.
However, Swayman’s agent, Lewis Gross, released a personal statement on behalf of Swayman on Instagram claiming that $64 million was never offered. He also reprimanded Neely, saying the unofficial and seemingly untrue offer being hinted at in a press conference “was not fair to Jeremy.”
Meanwhile, in preseason, Korpisalo impressed the coaching staff and it seems like will earn the starting spot for the season opener despite Swayman resigning. He boasts a .936 save percentage and 1.91 goals against average in his two preseason appearances.
“Where we are in camp right now, and with how well camp has gone and how well Korpisalo has done, right now, he’s going to be our Game 1 starter,” Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery said in a press conference.
Also vying for a roster spot was rookie goalie Brandon Bussi. He has played for the Providence Bruins, Boston’s development team since the 2021–22 season and was looking to grab one of Boston’s two national league positions.
However, it seems Bussi wasn’t performing as well as the coaching staff had hoped, since on Oct. 2 the Bruins grabbed goalie Jiri Patera off of waivers from the Vancouver Canucks.
The Bruins had set an internal deadline to make a deal with Swayman before their season opener on Oct. 8, but definitively needed to sign him before Dec. 1, or he would not have been able to play this season. They cut it close, officially announcing on Oct. 6 that they will be paying Swayman $8.25 million a year for eight years. With this contract, Swayman is now the fifth-highest paid goalie in the NHL.
Relations between Swayman and the B’s seem to be warming up, as he said in a press conference that he wants to “stay a Bruin for [his] whole career.”
Following Swayman’s expensive signing, the Bruins were also forced to cut five players to stay below the salary cap, including two goalies. Bussi was predicted to be the backup goalie for Korpisalo, but with Swayman signed, both Bussi and Patera were sent down to the Providence Bruins.
Korpisalo started in the Bruins season opener at the Florida Panthers on Tuesday Oct. 8. The final score was 4-6, Panthers win.
The home opener at TD Garden will feature “one of the greatest rivalries in sports”: Thursday, Oct. 10 at 7 p.m. versus the Montreal Canadiens.
