Bruins RFA netminder Jeremy Swayman won’t be around the team to kick off training camp while he’s still waiting for a new contract, general manager Don Sweeney told reporters today (via Scott McLaughlin of WEEI).
There’s nothing stopping the Bruins and Swayman from agreeing to a tryout and having him take reps in camp while continuing contract negotiations. That’s the approach the Blues are taking with unsigned RFA forward Nikita Alexandrov, for example. But it isn’t in the cards here.
Sweeney said he’s “disappointed” there’s still no resolution to the contract stalemate, and he wouldn’t go so far as to say an agreement was imminent, either. The GM only said he was “optimistic” a deal would get done by the Dec. 1 RFA signing deadline, per McLaughlin.
Other updates from Sweeney as camp opens Wednesday:
- The Bruins have begun initial extension talks with head coach Jim Montgomery, Sweeney said (via Conor Ryan of The Boston Globe). He’s entering the final season of his reported three-year, $6MM deal, which he signed to take over as Boston’s bench boss in July 2022. He’s been an impeccable regular-season hire, leading them to a league-best 112-32-20 record (.744%) since landing behind the bench, but he’s 9-11 in 20 playoff games for Boston.
- Sophomore forward Matthew Poitras is fully cleared after shoulder surgery ended his rookie campaign in February, Sweeney confirmed (via Ryan). They’ll try him at both center and wing during training camp after he played mostly down the middle last season. A shift to wing could open up an opportunity for him to play higher up in the lineup, potentially alongside Charlie Coyle and Brad Marchand on the team’s second line. The 2022 second-round pick had 15 points (5 G, 10 A) in 33 games last season with a +4 rating while averaging 13:24 per game, posting good possession metrics but struggling in the dot with a 43.7 FOW%.