Bruins’ Jeremy Swayman Finding Rhythm In Crease At Right Time For Boston
The 2024-25 Boston Bruins season got off to a rocky start when star goalie Jeremy Swayman didn’t report to training camp while waiting for his contract extension to be settled.
Swayman then stumbled out of the gates, going 4-5-1 in his first 10 games. At times during the first half of the season, he stood on his head and kept the team in close games, but at other times, he got his doors blown off.
The Bruins netminder needed to get reps to find his rhythm in the crease. Since the Christmas break, the 26-year-old has been able to hit the reset button and has been amazing for Boston.
In his nine starts since the break, the Bruins have gone 3-5-1, but Swayman has put up an impressive 2.66 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage. Swayman has faced 40-plus shots in his last three starts and went 2-0-1 in those contests.
Swayman stopped 39 of 44 shots in the Bruins’ shootout loss to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.
“He gave us a chance to win again,” Joe Sacco said. “All you can ask from your goaltender, and he did that again. We’ve got to cut down on certain scoring opportunities to help him out.”
The Boston goaltender welcomes the amount of rubber he’s been seeing lately.
“It’s just another day at the office,” Swayman told reporters in Ottawa, per team-provided video. “It doesn’t matter what comes your way; every shot matters in this league. And obviously, you gotta go down to the very last second of the game. I love getting shots, and it’s my job to stop them.”
Swayman is doing his part to give the team a chance to win, and the offense needs to continue to do its part. As Swayman continues to build his numbers up to the standard Bruins fans have become accustomed to, it’s important to note that the numbers across the league have dipped this season.
“The goalie stats this year are indicative of that there’s better offenses,” Bruins goalie coach Bob Essensa told Billy Jaffe and Andrew Raycroft on NESN’s “Morning Bru” podcast. “I’m not sure what the actual total is. I’ve tried to keep track of the goals against, but it seems to me the goalies’ numbers are down this year a little bit.”