The league’s second-highest scoring team can’t figure out Jeremy Swayman
While it would make sense to continue the timeshare that we have seen from goaltenders Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark, why would the Bruins even consider it at this point? During the regular season, Toronto faced Ullmark just once, and they scored three times on him, albeit on 40 shots on net.
As for Swayman, not only did he stifle the Leafs with 35 saves on 36 shot attempts, good for a 0.972 save percentage, he’s been handling Toronto all season. In the four matchups the Leafs and Bruins faced one another, Swayman saw 97 shots on net, but he gave up just four goals in the process, good for an outrageous 0.958 save percentage.
Divide 97 by three, and Swayman faced an average of 32.3 shots on goal per game, yet the high capacity never fazed him. It’s been four games when you count last night’s win over Toronto, and the Leafs still can’t figure out Swayman.
Right now, there is no reason the Bruins top netminder shouldn’t line up between the pipes for Game 2. If and when that’s the case, it’s not farfetched to expect yet another strong outing from one of the NHL’s best against Auston Matthews and company.