One of the more positive surprises from the 2021 Bruins season was the performance of their rookie goaltender, Jeremy Swayman. Swayman was called up to the NHL following injuries to both Tuukka Rask and Jaroslav Halak. Swayman shined in his 10 games played, posting a save percentage of .945. Heading into 2021-2022, the Bruins will most likely rely more on the young goalie, but is he ready?
Swayman’s Promising Development
The Bruins selected Jeremy Swayman 111th overall in the 2017 NHL Draft. Follwoing the draft, the Bruins allowed Swayman to remain at the University of Maine to continue his development. Swayman would play at Maine for three seasons, finishing with a save percentage of 0.927 for his college hockey career. He would even earn player of the year honors for the Hockey East Conference in 2020.
The Bruins were obviously impressed with Swayman’s performance in college as he was signed to an entry level contract shortly after he was given his award from hockey east. Swayman would begin the 2021 season in Providence playing for the Bruins’ farm team. There he would light up the AHL with an excellent goals allowed average of 1.89. Again clearly impressed with Swayman’s play, the Bruins would call up the goalie to the NHL.
Swayman’s Impressive NHL Debut
Swayman wasted no time once getting to the NHL. Playing in the net as though he had played in the league for years, Swayman made big saves in big situations for the Bruins. The young goalie quickly earned the trust of his coaches as he continued to look solid in net. He ultimately would finish the season with a record of 7-3 losses and posted two shutout performances.
Swayman came up huge for Boston at a point in the regular season where both of the Bruins’ top goalies were out for the count. With how tight the division race was in the East Division, the Bruins could have been trounced by the New York Rangers had Swayman not stepped up. Swayman’s play even earned him the back up job for the 2021 playoffs over Jaroslav Halak. The fact that Swayman earned a spot over a solid veteran goalie speaks volumes.
Is Swayman Ready?
The Bruins will most likely call upon Swayman a lot more in the 2021-2022 season. With Tuukka Rask’s future in Boston in question, the extent of Swayman’s responsibilities is yet to be known. But is Swayman ready for an increased role in Boston? Looking it his performance in 2021, the answer is surely yes.
While 10 NHL games is a small sample size, Swayman was clearly up to the task in all of them. Swayman has put up impressive performances at all levels of play, that cannot be ignored. When it comes to young NHL goalies, teams often times need to take a risk and have them play. Swayman’s play has shown that that risk is easier to take for Boston.
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