Last season, Jeremy Swayman spent training camp time negotiating his contract for the 2024-2025 season. Rather than hitting the ice with his fellow teammates, he trained sans Bruins, which led to a season upset, with the B's not making the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in 9 years.
Realizing his mistakes and taking ownership, Sway stated, “I take accountability, I wanted to play better. I know that I can play better and that’s something that I can’t wait to work on. This team is going to be a lot different next year with what we learned this year, and we have a lot to look forward to."
The veteran Bruin put up impressive numbers for the 2023-24 season, going 25-10, allowing 2.53 goals against with a .916 save percentage. However, fans questioned his lack of time with Goalie Bob to blame for his declining numbers the following season. That poor performance only gathered a 22-29 record, somehow allowing 3.11 goals against and .892 as a save percentage. What does this mean? It means no training camp, no Stanley Cup playoffs.
"”I’m a completely different human being,” he said. “And that’s a testament to the experience that I gained throughout my career to this point. And I’m so grateful for that, the ups and downs of it all.”"Jeremy Swayman
Training camp for the 2025-26 season officially began on Wednesday, and Swayman can be seen in viral clips with his teammates, ready to take the ice. Rebounding from last season, fans and the Sweeney organization have high expectations for Swayman.
1. Improve...anything
Anything he does this round will be an improvement over last season. Let's start with increasing his save percentage and reducing goals against. This is the prime objective for the netminders. The lower these numbers, the better for the other teams - and they know this, too. Anyone who watched the tapes last season could easily see where Sway struggled, which gave our opponents an advantage on where to aim between the pipes.
2. Get back onto the leaderboard
When the black and gold make a presence on any leaderboard for the NHL, it means they are at the top of their game. In the 23-24 season, Jeremy was thought to possibly be one of the top 5 goalies in the NHL. However, last season, former Bruins fave Linus Ullmark made the NHL Network's Top 10 goalies for the new season; for obvious reasons, Boston's own, Jeremy Swayman, did not.
Swayman has been included in the impressive report cards in previous seasons, and when he gains notoriety, his game seems to get better. Here's hoping this round that Sway can gain back his momentum and claim his spot in the headlines once again.
3. Mental Focus
Returning to the ice with all eyes on him, Sway needs to keep his head in the game, remain focused, and not let last season's record interfere with his gameplay this season. He has a lot to prove, and he has promised a stellar comeback. Coach Sturm has been busy building a stronger defense this year, which will benefit Jeremy, but ultimately, his $66M contract extension says he needs to step it up and show that he's recovered and focused.
With the preseason puck drop in a mere few days, Swayman is already ahead of his progress from last year. With full participation in this season's training camp, a new coach, returning teammates, and an improved mental strategy, this is Swayman's season to lose. Can he make a comeback better than ever and pave the road to next year's SCP? Stay tuned, Spoked-B Nation!