Going into the 2025-26 NHL season, several Boston Bruins players are in need of a bounce-back season. After the season the Black and Gold had last year, take your pick as to who needs to have a bounce-back season.
One player who needs to have the biggest bounce-back season it's Jeremy Swayman. Boston's netminder struggled all season long after signing his new deal last October. For the Bruins to come close to the season they want to have, Swayman must come close to the goaltender he can be. In fact, one reporter thinks that Swayman is bound for a big season.
Boston Bruins goalie Jeremy Swayman named dark horse candidate for major award
We are still over a week away from training camp beginning for the Black and Gold at Warrior Ice Arena, and predictions are beginning to be made for the upcoming season. Jacob Punturi of Breakaway On SI listed four darkhorse candidates to win the Hart Trophy, and one of them, surprisingly, was Swayman. Also listed were Tim Stutzle of the Ottawa Senators, Clayton Keller of the Utah Mammoth, and Macklin Celebrini of the San Jose Sharks. The Trophy is awarded to the MVP of his team.
Last season, Swayman played in a career-high 58 games, sporting a 22-29-7 record with a 3.11 goals against average and a .892 save percentage. Just how rough a season was it? Despite playing a career-high in games, he recorded a career-low in wins in any season where he had 37 or more starts.
Following the end of the Bruins' season, Swayman played for Team USA in the IIHF World Championship and played a big role in them winning the Gold Medal. His performance in Sweden was one where he gained a ton of confidence and gave him a good feeling going into a big offseason. Boston forward Elias Lindholm also had a rough season with the Black and Gold last year, but had a very good showing in the same tournament, setting him up for a strong offseason.
If Swayman is going to win the Hart Trophy, or even be a finalist for the award, then the Bruins are going to be in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and their retool this summer would have been successful. However, he doesn't even need to be mentioned in the same breath as other players for the award to have a season to help the Bruins reach their goal of the playoffs.