The stat line from Jeremy Swayman’s five outings against the Toronto Maple Leafs speaks for itself.
The fourth-year Bruins netminder picked up where he left off from his Game 1 effort Saturday. Amid a penalty trouble — on a night of subpar officiating — brief defensive lapses and early trouble with 5v5 production, Swayman once again stood tall against a potent Leafs offense.
Eventually, the Bruins found their 200-foot stride after Mitch Marner connected with Matthew Knies for the game’s first tally. By the third, Brad Marchand had entered takeover mode, and Swayman made his last round of clutch stops to cap off his 28-save outing and Boston’s 4-2 win in Game 3.
Swayman’s numbers against Toronto this season following the Game 3: 5-0 with a stingy .964 save percentage and 1.70 goals against average.
Linus Ullmark performed well in Game 2. The Bruins didn’t provide the Swede with much support with their 5v5 production on both ends of the ice, resulting in their first loss to the Leafs since Nov. 2022.
The Bruins had every reason to go to Ullmark in Game 2. But Jim Montgomery and the coaching staff shouldn’t ponder much over their Game 4 decision, with Swayman’s impressive track record providing the ultimate trump card.
“We’re going to have more rest, but the rotation’s been so good for us,” Montgomery told reporters in Toronto during Boston’s off day on Thursday. “You know, it’s a hard decision.”
But even Montgomery admits that Swayman has Toronto’s number.
Swayman backed that trend up with his impressive saves in pivotal moments. He’s rattled the Leafs to the point where they attempted an underhanded tactic during a TV timeout in the second period.
The Bruins didn’t take too kindly to Max Domi running into Swayman as he skated toward the visiting bench. Until then, the Leafs had been knocking on the doorstep as the Bruins struggled to find their stride.
Toronto pounced on Knies’ first tally of the series. But with a series deficit staring them in the face, the Bruins found another gear after Domi’s exchange with Swayman.
In the end, the Bruins celebrated a road win. The Leafs, in turn, spent the last couple of days delivering soundbites first with Marchand’s exchange with former teammate Tyler Bertuzzi and later Montgomery’s comments (seen in the quote below) on the Swayman-Domi encounter.
“Sometimes I don’t think that,” Montgomery told the media on whether a goalie’s success can faze another team. “But when Domi goes off the bench and bumps [Swayman] on purpose, it makes me think that he’s in their head a little bit.”
Regardless of his exchange with Domi or other tense moments in his three previous appearances against the Leafs this year, Swayman proved his worth. They’ve established enough doubt in Toronto and created an opportunity to return to Boston with a 3-1 series lead.
The Bruins can — and should — revisit their rotational plans in net down the road, perhaps as early as Game 5. But now they need to ride with Swayman and give him consecutive stats for the first time since taking over the crease in Game 3 of Boston’s 2022 first-round series with Carolina.
“Any time I get a chance to play, I’m going to do everything I can to help this team win,” Swayman said during his postgame media scrum inside the visiting locker room at Scotiabank Arena.
Over the last three seasons, Swayman formed a brotherly bond with Ullmark. He’ll never mind providing any type of support to Ullmark if the Bruins decide to continue with their rotation on Saturday night.
The uber-competitive Swayman wants as many reps as possible. But he’ll face a little more anticipation with the extra day off between Games 3 and 4.
“I don’t want rest,” Swayman chuckled. “I just want to keep playing no matter if it’s back-to-back or every other game.”
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