Jeremy Swayman was a curiosity when he was drafted by the Boston Bruins in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft’s fourth round as an Alaska native, playing juniors in South Dakota, while committed to play NCAA hockey in Maine.
Four years and 10 NHL games later, the 23-year-old is a curiosity no more, as he has risen to the top of Boston’s prospects depth chart and could very well be the starting netminder when the B’s open their season at home against the Dallas Stars Oct. 16.
Even without the gaudy height of 6-foot-4 or taller that seemed to be the rage (Swayman is listed at 6-foot-2), the former Black Bears star who won the 2020 Mike Richter Award as college hockey’s top netminder at the University of Maine (along with Hockey East MVP honors) is the total package. He spent three years in Orono seeing a lot of shots. Prior to that, he stopped a ton of rubber with the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede.
Through it all, his statistics remained remarkably consistent, despite playing for teams that didn’t generate a lot of offensive support. In short, Swayman gave his teams a chance to win just about every time he took the net.
This piece will break down why Swayman has been successful at every level he’s played to date, including a limited sample size in Boston last spring. Moreover, we’ll tell you why we see the trend continuing.
