Jeremy Swayman’s Redemption Arc Could Lead Straight to the Olympic Spotlight
Jeremy Swayman’s last 18 months have been anything but smooth. Once hailed as the heir apparent in Boston’s crease, the young netminder found himself in the middle of a contract standoff last offseason that cast a shadow over training camp. The dispute kept him off the ice until the second game of the regular season-a rocky start to what was supposed to be his breakout campaign as the Bruins’ full-time starter.
Swayman believed his postseason heroics in 2024, particularly his standout performance against the Maple Leafs, had earned him a long-term deal. And eventually, Boston agreed, locking him in with an eight-year, $64 million contract. The message was clear: the Bruins were betting big on Swayman as their goalie of the future.
But the 2024-25 season didn’t play out like a fairytale. The Bruins stumbled to the bottom of the Atlantic Division, finishing with one of the league’s worst records and securing a top-10 draft pick.
Swayman, meanwhile, posted career lows in both goals against average and save percentage. For a team and a goalie with high expectations, it was a tough pill to swallow.
Still, there was a silver lining. Boston’s early exit meant Swayman was available for the IIHF World Championships-a tournament that turned into a defining moment.
With Connor Hellebuyck and Jake Oettinger still chasing the Stanley Cup with their respective clubs, Swayman stepped into the starting role for Team USA and delivered in a big way. He backstopped the Americans to their first gold medal in 86 years, anchoring the crease with poise, confidence, and the kind of big-game presence that had eluded him during the NHL season.
That experience, according to Swayman, helped reset his mindset. In a recent interview, he credited the World Championships with restoring his confidence and fueling his desire to carry the Bruins forward this season. And so far, he's doing just that.
Boston hasn’t had it easy. Injuries have hit the blue line hard, with key defensemen like Hampus Lindholm and Charlie McAvoy missing time.
That’s left Swayman and fellow goaltender Joonas Korpisalo facing more high-danger chances than they'd prefer. But Swayman hasn’t blinked.
In fact, he’s thrived.
To date, he leads the league in goals saved above expected-a stat that cuts through the noise and highlights how often a goalie makes stops they statistically shouldn’t. It’s a mark of elite-level performance, especially when the team in front of you is banged up or out of sync.
There have been signature moments, too. Like the night he turned aside 43 of 44 shots against the Islanders, or the shootout clinic he put on against Detroit, stoning Alex DeBrincat, Patrick Kane, and Lucas Raymond in succession. These aren’t just good nights-they’re statement games.
And those statements are starting to echo all the way to the Olympic conversation.
With the 2026 Winter Games in Milano Cortina on the horizon, the U.S. goaltending picture is suddenly wide open. Hellebuyck, once the clear-cut No. 1, is dealing with injury concerns.
Oettinger has battled inconsistency. Swayman, meanwhile, is trending in the opposite direction-his stock is rising fast.
Last year, he was the third-stringer at the Four Nations Face-Off and didn’t see a minute of action. Now?
He might be pushing for the top job. Nothing’s guaranteed, of course.
The Olympic net is still Hellebuyck’s to lose, but if his health doesn’t hold up and Oettinger doesn’t bounce back, Team USA may not have the luxury of sticking with the status quo.
Swayman’s timing couldn’t be better. He’s playing his best hockey when it matters most, and his recent body of work suggests he’s more than ready for the spotlight.
Other candidates like Dustin Wolf and Anthony Stolarz have struggled. Thatcher Demko is another injury question mark.
Spencer Knight has shown flashes, but Swayman’s combination of recent international success and elite NHL metrics puts him firmly in the mix.
He’s not just knocking on the door-he’s leaning on it hard.
If he keeps this up, the decision might be made for Team USA. And for a goalie who’s already been through the highs and lows of a turbulent year, that Olympic crease might just be the next chapter in one of the league’s most compelling comeback stories.