When the Boston Bruins signed Jeremy Swayman to an eight-year, big-money contract, they envisioned the exact goaltender that they received in a dominating, clutch performance during a huge weekend road tilt against the Red Wings in Detroit.
With massive points for a playoff push on the line, Swayman was dynamite, making 41 saves in a 4-2 win for the Black and Gold over the Red Wings, where the Bruins had a very clear advantage in net as Detroit’s John Gibsonfaltered badly in the third period. Swayman has been solid for the balance of the regular season, but he’s been excellent since the Olympic break, coming off a gold medal experience and giving his B’s teammates all kinds of confidence when he’s between the pipes right now.
“He’s been unbelievable. He’s been our best player all year, you know? We are really confident when we play with him,” said Nikita Zadorov, who scored the game-winning goal for the Bruins in the third period on his second goal of the season. “We have two great goalies, [Joonas Korpisalo]has been awesome and a big part of our success for sure.”
Swayman stood on his head denying quality scoring chances against the Red Wings as Detroit outshot Boston by a 43-26 margin with Swayman making an unreal 21 saves in the final 20 minutes as the Wings furiously tried to tie things up. It’s all been part of an outstanding stretch for the B’s No. 1 netminder since returning from Milan Cortina with a gold medal in his possession, and perhaps a little something to prove after playing netminding understudy to Connor Hellebuyck on Team USA.
Sway keeps it out pic.twitter.com/0TPc4M2Xmv— Mr. Tenkrat (@PeterTenkrat) March 22, 2026
“He kept us in the game the whole game,” said Pastrnak. “When we have Swayman playing like that, we are very confident in our game.”
Swayman is 6-1-1 in the month of March with a 1.85 goals against average and a .934 save percentage and turned away 14 high danger chances against a skilled, speedy Red Wings club that had over four expected goals in Saturday’s contest, according to the fancy stats brigade.
In the last 10 games the defense hasn’t really improved tremendously for the Bruins, but Swayman has been at the pretty much the same level as when he shined in the Stanley Cup playoffs a couple of seasons ago. It’s exactly what the Bruins hoped for when they inked him to a contract paying him $8.125 million per season, and what they’ve come to expect in the big moments.
And everybody is most definitely noticing.
“Swayman, that’s the best that I’ve seen him play since I’ve been around,” said an effusive Marco Sturm. “He was unbelievable. He kept us in the game and won us the game…so pretty happy.”
The real temptation now is how much to keep rolling out Swayman while he’s so red-hot in the net with the points at a very important premium for the Black and Gold. They’ve opened up a two-point cushion over Detroit for the top wild card spot, and face a back-to-back situation with the Maple Leafs and a first-place Sabres crew this week on Tuesday and Wednesday.
They’ll need to sort that out while knowing that Korpisalo hasn’t been as good lately, with a 4.57 goals against average and .863 save percentage in three games this month.
It’s difficult for the Bruins to ignore the temptation to let Swayman go on a run right now, but that also runs the risk of wearing him down for when they truly want him at his best about a month from now. And Saturday was a good reminder of exactly what Swayman is expected to bring in the playoffs and why it could make the B’s a dangerous team even as a potentially modest wild card entry into the postseason.
ONE TIMERS
Interesting that Swayman was pointing postgame at how tight this Bruins team has become this season, and that Don Sweeney’savoidance of making any significant deadline deals played into the team’s very good level of hockey right now in an Eastern Conference where it’s tight for the last few playoff spots.
It looks like there is going to be four teams for three spots with somebody of the Red Wings, Bruins, Islanders and Blue Jackets potentially left out of the playoff mix, and it’s interesting to see how some of those teams fare with the Bruins standing pat, and the Blue Jackets going out and getting a Connor Garlandthat the B’s had some interest in as well at the trade deadline.
"We didn't have any trades at the deadline, and that's rare. It's really cool, because management has believed in our group ever since the start, and we've proven ourselves time and time again,” said Swayman to ABC following Saturday night’s win in Detroit against the Red Wings. "The coaching staff has been unbelievable, and it's just been a growth year. It feels like we've gotten better and better throughout the year, and it's an important time to do that right now."
*With Boston College falling in the semifinals of the Hockey East tournament, now is the time for players like 20-year-old James Hagens to begin considering their NHL options following a dominant sophomore season. It certainly felt like Boston College coach Greg Brownknows that the writing is on the wall with Hagens leaving the Heights after a disappointing season at BC that saw Hagens star as their leading offensive playmaker.
“We’ll sit down and talk. I’m sure he’s going to think it over himself and do what’s best,” said Brown after a disappointing loss that left the Eagles out of the running for an NCAA tournament bid. “He has done a great job staying where his feet are. He was with us the whole time. He didn’t want to look ahead.
“He has so many more dimensions to his game. The defensive side of the puck, the details. He could always carry a puck. He has incredible offensive ideas, vision. You can see the ideas popping out of his head as he’s carrying the puck through the neutral zone. That part was always there. He’s added to his offensive game, but he’s really added to his complete game. He’s not just a talent, he’s a student of the game. It’s great to see his growth in so many areas.”
Massive Bruins vs Red Wings game on ABC in primetime tonight. Boston is on James Hagens watch after BC was eliminated from Hockey East. Don’t expect any announcement today.. Hagens & Bruins still have convos over next day or two on what pro road map looks like.— Emily Kaplan (@emilymkaplan) March 21, 2026
It sounds like Hagens is potentially open to starting off in the AHL at Providence once he signs a pro contract, and then joining a potential Calder Cup run with a loaded P-Bruins team that could have a lengthy playoff run this spring. That would also leave the door open for some cameo appearances in the playoffs with the big club in Boston if injuries create an opening for him a la Charlie McAvoy in his NHL debut almost 10 years ago, or if perhaps the Bruins are looking for a high-octane spark for their power play at some point during the postseason.
It will be very interesting to see how Hagens is potentially deployed and what he looks like if he does indeed break into the pros in Providence.
