Bruins Nation’s long national nightmare is finally over. General manager Don Sweeney announced on Sunday that Boston and goalie Jeremy Swayman have agreed to an eight-year contract extension worth $8.25 million per year ($66 million total), ending a months-long standoff two days before the start of the regular season.
Swayman had been a restricted free agent all summer, but the two sides had been unable to reach an agreement for months, with reports suggesting that they were more than $3 million apart on the average annual value at one point.
Negotiations spilled over into a public PR battle this past week, beginning with Bruins president Cam Neely saying in a start-of-season press conference on Monday that he would have “64 million reasons” why he’d be playing, suggesting that the team’s offer at that time was eight years, $8 million per year.
Swayman’s agent, Lewis Gross, responded in a statement later Monday, saying that the Bruins had never offered a $64 million deal before that press conference and that they “would take a few days to discuss where we go from here.”
Despite all the bluster, subsequent reporting throughout the week indicated that the two sides weren’t actually all that far apart – that the Bruins’ previous offer had been close to $8 million a year and officially moved to $8 million with Neely’s comments, and that Swayman had lowered his ask below $9 million a year for the first time. The Bruins had reportedly started the summer at $6.2 million per year, while Swayman had started at $9.5 or 10 million.
When meeting with the media on Sunday, Swayman sidestepped questions about Neely's comments, choosing to keep the focus on the present and future.
"It was a day-by-day thing. It's a negotiation. I respect the fact you have to ask these questions, but what I'm truly focused is the future and the here and now," Swayman said. "Everything else was a blur in my mind. All I'm worried about is being in net for the Boston Bruins right now, and I'm overjoyed with it. I'm really excited about that."
The deal ties Swayman with the New York Islanders' Ilya Sorokin as the fifth-highest-paid goalie in the NHL currently, and the fifth-largest goalie contract in NHL history by total value. Sorokin signed an identical eight-year, $66 million contract in July 2023.
Swayman is coming off the best season of his four-year NHL career, going 25-10-8 in 43 starts (44 appearances) with a .916 save percentage and 2.53 goals-against average while making his first All-Star appearance and finishing seventh in Vezina Trophy voting.
After rotating with Linus Ullmark in the regular season, Swayman took over the starting job in the spring with an excellent postseason, propelling the Bruins to the second round while leading all goalies in the playoffs in save percentage (.933) and goals saved above expected (+13.3).
With Swayman in line for a raise, Sweeney decided the rotation was done for good and traded Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators in June for a first-round pick, Joonas Korpisalo and Mark Kastelic, a clear indication that the Bruins were ready to make Swayman their franchise goalie.
Swayman remained in Boston all summer, skating and training at Warrior Ice Arena with Bruins teammates and staff. He was on the ice for captains practices at the start of September, but did not take part in training camp or play in any preseason games as he remained unsigned.
Swayman could now rejoin the team as early as Sunday for their flight down to Florida as the Bruins prepare to open the regular season Tuesday night in Sunrise against the Panthers. Bruins coach Jim Montgomery said this past week that Korpisalo would be the starting goalie on opening night because even if Swayman signed, he would probably not have enough time to ramp up in time for Tuesday. Sweeney confirmed on Sunday that Korpisalo would start Tuesday.
There is no set timeline for when Swayman will be able to make his first start of the season, but the most important development is that the Bruins’ No. 1 goalie is now officially back.