Why last year's adversity was worth it for Jeremy Swayman

When Jeremy Swayman got pulled from Game 4 on Sunday after being hung out to dry for six goals, he didn't leave the ice quietly. Instead, he stopped at the door and yelled down the bench at his teammates. The Bruins had not played anywhere close to the level they needed to be at, and Swayman felt the need to let them know it.

He put his teammates on the spot, but he also put himself on the spot. Imagine the reaction in Boston if Swayman did that and then gave up a couple soft goals in a season-ending loss a couple nights later?

Swayman walked the walk after talking the talk, though. He was excellent in Game 5, leading the Bruins to a 2-1 overtime win to force a Game 6 back at TD Garden Friday night.

"This guy responded big time," Bruins coach Marco Sturm said Thursday. "...A lot of people don't have that in them. They open their mouth, but then what? So, that was nice to see."

It was a good example of how much has changed for Swayman in a year. He has always been confident in himself, and he has rarely hesitated to say or show it. Last year, however, he wasn't always able to back it up.

During his contract negotiations in the summer of 2024, Swayman was outspoken about wanting to be paid top dollar, and wanting to help set the market for other goalies. When those negotiations dragged on through all of training camp, keeping him away from the team, he was adamant that he would still be ready to perform at a high level once the regular season started.

Swayman got his contract, but then his play on the ice lagged. He was far from alone on the 2024-25 Bruins when it came to underperforming, but in many ways he became the face of that disappointing season. Fair or not, that's what he had signed up for when he put pen to paper on the richest contract any Bruins goalie had ever signed.

A year later, Swayman and the Bruins are back in the playoffs, and Swayman is a Vezina Trophy finalist for the first time. While there was little to appreciate in the moment last year, Swayman can now look back and say that what he and the team went through did help them get to where they are now.

"I don't think I'd be here without it, truthfully," Swayman said Thursday. "It was a whirlwind of a year and a half, on and off the ice. And I think it's just, it's really structured out to be an incredible story. The growth that has come from it internally, and obviously with the team too, is pretty spectacular. I'm so blessed, and truthfully, just so grateful for the journey that I've been on and the mindset that I have and the outlook that I have on life and hockey. Life is completely shifted. So, it was worth the adversity, I would say, and it's definitely shifted my entire life to a different level."

A fresh start helped too – for Swayman and everyone else on the team. Sturm provided that when he arrived last June, telling numerous players, including Swayman, that he simply didn't care what happened last season or any season before that.

"Our conversation was very clear," Sturm said of his first time talking to Swayman. "I don't want to hear it. I don't want to talk about what happened in the past. I didn't really give a sh*t, right? That was pretty much the message: We are gonna move forward. We talked about the importance, and also his role on this team, and that's about it. And he doesn't have to worry about anything else besides stopping the puck."

Swayman actually wound up making four fewer starts this year than last year, but he blew past his career high in wins, posting a 31-18-4 record to go along with a .908 save percentage and 2.71 goals-against average.

His advanced metrics looked even better, as he finished second in goals saved above expected at plus-28.8, trailing only Washington's Logan Thompson (who, in a bit of a snub, is actually not one of the three Vezina finalists).

One reason for that is that Swayman continued to face a lot of scoring chances this season. In fact, the Bruins actually surrendered more high-danger chances (13.52 vs. 11.39) and expected goals (3.57 vs. 3.05) per 60 minutes this season than last season, according to Natural Stat Trick.

The big difference is that Swayman kept more of those chances out of the net. He ranked 36th among 49 qualified goalies in high-danger save percentage last year (.790), but jumped up to 10th among 52 qualified goalies this year (.838).

"We know how important he is for us as a team," Sturm said. "And I know why we are in this position, why we are still playing. He's a big part of it."

Tampa Bay's Andrei Vasilevskiy is the betting favorite to win the Vezina. While his analytical case isn't quite as strong as Swayman's, he still has very good advanced metrics to go along with superior traditional stats, including a league-leading 39 wins.

Swayman may very well finish as the runner-up, though, especially since Ilya Sorokin (the third finalist) dropped off down the stretch as the Islanders ultimately missed the playoffs. Regardless, Swayman is honored just to be in the conversation.

"It's a lifelong dream of mine, and to finally be in the conversation, it's an incredible honor," Swayman said. "The goalies that have come before me and have won a Vezina, most are Hall of Famers. So, it's pretty incredible to be a part of that conversation. And a ton of credit goes to this group in front of me, man. It's such a team award, and I'm just so blessed to be a part of it."