Fresh off a ride in the Boston Triathlon, Jeremy Swayman provides update on situation with Bruins

If you've ever walked down a Boston street and wondered if that was Bruins goaltender Jeremy Swayman who just zoomed by you on some rollerblades, the answer is almost certainly yes.

But on Sunday, Swayman went with a different set of wheels, as he hopped on a bike and took part in team relay race in the 2024 Columbia Threadneedle Investments Boston Triathlon.

"In Alaska, there's a ton of racing events, whether it's triathlons, marathons, mountain races, so I grew up in this community," the always-smiling Swayman, whose mom was a cyclist, told me following a rainy ride in Southie. "I've been able to be pretty tight with it in Alaska and I haven't been able to tap into it in Boston, so meeting [Boston Triathlon president] Michael O'Neil, it was a pretty organic friendship that we formed right away, and he was gracious enough to allow me to come out and compete."

And while it was easy to lose sight of Swayman in a sea of determined athletes absolutely emptying the bucket in front of friends and family in what was a weekend-long event at Carson Beach, it was just the latest excursion in what's been the Summer of Sway, with Swayman in Boston all offseason long.

"I think the biggest thing that I wanted to accomplish this summer was obviously to get really good training in and really be able to tap into the community as much as possible," Swayman, whose relay team in this year's Boston Triathlon also included Human Powered Health co-founder David Wichmann, said. "They're so good to me and, being here year round has been really special. Doing events like this, being able to come out and do different running events. But that's something that's my way of being able to pay it forward and show my love for the community."

Being in the city all summer (Swayman called his decision not to go home this summer a 'tough one'), all Swayman needs to truly be in his new home is a new contract from the Bruins. And that's something that the 25-year-old doesn't seem to have any worries about, even with talks dragging on into mid-August.

"I do love it [in Boston], and that's all I can control, and I know that," Swayman told 98.5 The Sports Hub. "I have complete trust in my agent and I know that it's going to get done eventually."

And Swayman, for what it's worth, has been skating and working at Warrior Ice Arena whenever possible (that includes tomorrow morning even after participating in the Boston Triathlon, by the way). And even without a deal official, he's been working closely with Bruins head performance coach Kevin Neeld and assistant performance coach Tim Lebbossiere on a regular basis. And when Warrior has been unavailable or those guys have been busy, Swayman has worked with Ken Whittier at Boston University. 

"I knew that if I wanted to be an elite level goalie, I need to train year round at an elite level, and Boston has that," Swayman told me. "And that's something I've been attracted to with Boston and being able to tap into the community more and more every year, and I feel more engrained in this community."

Given the uncomfortable nature of last year's arbitration hearing between Swayman and the Bruins, and the way it was brought up multiple times during the 2023-24 season, I wanted to know how the relationship was and if Swayman himself was in a 'better place mentally' now than 2023.

"I am," Swayman told me. "I believe that experience is the key to it all and going through things.

"I'm getting just as much experience right now as I did last year, with different ways of it all. And we know, it's a business. It's unfortunate at times, but I know I'm gonna be playing hockey at the end of the day. And I really hope with it's the Boston Bruins."

When asked if he's focused on a long-term deal and avoiding a 'bridge contract', Swayman opted not to get into specifics, and instead said that that was a question for his agent.

"Right now, I'm focused on being a triathlete," Swayman quipped.

But as he had made clear from the jump, Swayman cannot (and truthfully does not want to, from both the sounds of it and his actions this summer) envision himself playing anywhere else.

"And I'll tell you what, man, when I'm on that Garden ice, there's nothing more I wanna do than save pucks for this city," Swayman said.

Now comes seeing if Sunday's cycling run helps him in what's become a triathlon negotiation of sorts.

With the free agency frenzy behind us, jobs getting filled and veterans beginning to look overseas for work, and the opening of training camp still well over a month away, we are officially in the dog days of the 2024 NHL offseason. Yuck.

It's enough to make a person go insane. You might even catch a person Googling 'Bruins' like an absolute lunatic, desperate for something to pop and catch your eyeballs. Especially when there's nothing new on the Jeremy Swayman front. Hell, I'll even take some more updates on Charlie McAvoy's dog and his preferred brand of dog treats (still one of the weirder PR firm emails I've ever received).

But this past week did come with some Bruins news, with six of Boston's newest additions officially given jersey numbers by the club, and with their player tees and jerseys soon to arrive in the TD Garden pro shop.

Moving from Anaheim to Boston, Max Jones will bring his No. 49 with him. Jones worn No. 49 even before his Anaheim days, actually, as he also wore that number during his time with OHL London. It's a number seldom seen on a Bruins lineup sheet, and Jones will actually be the first Bruins player to wear No. 49 for the club since Rich Peverley did during his three-season run with the club from 2011 through 2013.

Jones is coming off a 2023-24 campaign that featured five goals, 15 points, and a career-high 127 hits in 52 games.

Acquired in the trade that sent Linus Ullmark to Ottawa, Mark Kastelic will begin his Bruins career wearing No. 47. Kastelic did wear No. 47 in Ottawa, and he will be the first Bruins player to wear No. 47 since Torey Krug.

Overall, Kastelic, who projects to at either center or right wing on Boston's fourth line, will be just the 11th player to wear No. 47 in B's history, and will be the first forward to wear the number since Marty St. Pierre in 2009.

Boston's new backup goaltender Joonas Korpisalo will stick with the No. 70 he's worn throughout his NHL career, as Boston will mark Korpisalo's fourth stop with a No. 70, with that number worn by the Finnish netminder in Columbus, Los Angeles, and Ottawa ahead of his trade to The Hub. This is actually a goalie-friendly number in Bruins history, too, with three of its four previous owners also being goaltenders, from Matt DelGuidice to Tim Thomas to Malcolm Subban all wearing that number during stints in the Black and Gold's crease. In fact, Jesper Boqvist is the only player to wear No. 70 and not play goaltender for the Bruins while wearing that number (they should've given him a game in net).

After wearing No. 23 in Vancouver, new top-line center Elias Lindholm will switch back to the No. 28 he wore in both Carolina and then Calgary. Derek Forbort was the last Bruin to wear No. 28, and overall Lindholm will be the ninth different player since 2005-06 to wear No. 28 for the club. The most notable of that group has to be Mark Recchi, who wore No. 28 for the club from 2009 through 2011. Lindholm currently projects to skate to the left of David Pastrnak on Boston's first line, with left-wing options ranging from Pavel Zacha to Brad Marchand.

One of Boston's many depth signings on July 1, the Bruins have confirmed that Riley Tufte will wear No. 10 with the Bruins. Should he make the Bruins, Tufte will be the first Bruins skater to wear No. 10 since A.J. Greer in 2022-23.

Tufte, a first-round pick in 2016, had one goal and an assist in five games for the Avalanche a season ago.

The only 'certainty' on the number front ahead of this announcement, Nikita Zadorov was actually introduced with a No. 91 jersey when he came into Boston for a visit and press conference in early July. Zadorov had worn 16 in three straight stops before wearing No. 91 in Vancouver. That will remain the case in Boston, too, with No. 16 retired for Rick Middleton and No. 91 available. Zadorov's reason for No. 91 is simple: It's No. 16 flipped upside down.

Zadorov will be just the second player to wear No. 91 in B's history, and the first since Marc Savard (2006-11). Ironically enough, Savard coached Zadorov during Zadorov's time with the Flames.