( Photo Credit: NHL.com )

By Brian Boll | Follow me on Twitter @HockeyOgie

Currently with the Boston Bruins down in the series 3-1 against the Tampa Bay Lightning, plenty of people are giving their opinions on the goalie situation.  Despite some inexcusable goals against, the reality is that in the four games so far this series the Bruins have been outscored 16-8 in a league where teams must be able to score goals to have success.  With NHL capable goalies under contract we can assume that unless any major moves are made during the offseason, the goalie depth-chart is easy to figure out going into the later-than-normal start of the 2020-2021 season.  But what will it look like in two or three years? 

Are the Bruins interested in making moves for goalies to lead them into the future?  At any position, teams that can draft and develop their prospects into NHL capable players have proven to be most efficient in both preparing players to fit within their systems and better managing their salary cap and contracts.

In the fourth round of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, the Boston Bruins selected Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL) goaltender Jeremy Swayman from Anchorage, Alaska.  The 21 year old 6’3” 187 pound goalie has chosen to go pro next season, rather than play his senior year at the University of Maine, by signing a 3-year entry level contract back in March of 2020.  Swayman had a successful 18-10-5 season with 3 shutouts, a 2.07 GAA and .939 SV%, before the NCAA season was canceled due to the pandemic.  In 100 NCAA games played over three seasons with Maine, he has posted a 2.51 GAA and a .927 SV% with a record of 47-40-12 and 5 shutouts.

Elite Prospects – Jeremy Swayman Statistics http://www.eliteprospects.com Player statistics for Jeremy Swayman en-US http://www.eliteprospects.com/rss/player_stats.php http://www.eliteprospects.com/player.php?player=269688 <![CDATA[ Player statistics powered by www.eliteprospects.com

 Season Team League GP GAA SVS%      Playoffs GP GAA SVS%
 2010-2011 Alaska All Stars 14U AA Bantam 7 0.99 .895 |        
 2011-2012 Alaska All Stars 14U AA Bantam 7 0.57 .957 |        
 2013-2014 Alaska Jr. Aces 16U AAA 16U AAA – – – |        
 2014-2015 Team Red USA-S16 5 6.40 .805 |        
  South Anchorage High USHS-AK 26 1.27 .948 |        
 2015-2016 Pikes Peak Miners 18U AAA NAPHL 18U 18 1.79 .940 | Playoffs 4 2.01 .931
  Tri-City Storm USHL 0 – – |        
 2016-2017 Sioux Falls Stampede USHL 32 2.90 .914 |        
 2017-2018 Univ. of Maine NCAA 31 2.72 .921 |        
  USA U20 WJC-20 1 0.00 1.000 |        
 2018-2019 Univ. of Maine NCAA 35 2.77 .919 |        
 2019-2020 Univ. of Maine NCAA 34 2.07 .939 |        
 2020-2021 Providence Bruins AHL – – – |        


Player statistics © www.eliteprospects.com ]]> Sat, 29 Aug 2020 21:36:09 +0000 http://www.eliteprospects.com/player.php?player=269688

Jeremy Swayman’s accomplishments include an NCAA (Hockey East) All-Rookie Team selection and a World Junior Championship Bronze Medal for Team USA in 2017-2018, as well as an NCAA (Hockey East) First All-Star Team, NCAA (Hockey East) Goaltender of the Year, NCAA (Hockey East) Player of the Year, NCAA Top Collegiate Goalie (Mike Richter Award), and a finalist for the NCAA Top Collegiate Player (Hobey Baker Award) in 2019-2020, among other collegiate awards.

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According to the Anchorage Daily News, Swayman’s daily workouts include yoga, Pilates, and a lot of high-intensity, high-repetition circuit training to stay in top shape during this extended off-season.  Jeremy also takes advantage of intense mountain running exercises while at home in Alaska and has posted.

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In order to make it to the NHL, players must be skilled and hard-working, any many times need a little bit of luck to get the right opportunities.  Players that have proven themselves as successful by winning and being recognized with awards at developmental levels of hockey typically are more desirable and able to translate their success to the professional levels of hockey.  With strong scouting reports highlighting his athleticism within the goalie position and his ability to evolve his game into a more efficient style of play, Jeremy Swayman has been regularly identified as an extremely hard worker with a high “hockey IQ” and strong anticipation skills.  His former coach at Maine, Red Gendron, said recently in a USA Hockey Webinar “We got a tip about Jeremy, and the first time any of us went out to see him play, it was clear he had extraordinary athleticism.  You could see he had the mobility and puck-tracking skills we have been accustomed to seeing from someone like Jonathan Quick.”

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With Rask and Halak expected to handle the duties at the NHL level, and hopefully, any additional opportunities to gain NHL experience being given to Dan Vladar who is expected to otherwise have the net in Providence, the unproven American prospects Jeremy Swayman and Kyle Keyser will be competing for as much AHL time as possible to continue their professional development.  Keep your eyes on Jeremy this upcoming season as he looks to continue the success that he had in the NCAA into his professional hockey career, we wish him the best of luck and look forward to seeing him at camp.