Boston Bruins Start-of-Season Press Conference Key Takeaways and Insights – The Hockey Writers Boston Bruins Latest News, Analysis & More

The Boston Bruins kicked off their 2024-25 campaign with a Start-of-Season press conference on Monday, touching on various topics as the team looks to assemble their final roster. From player contracts to goaltending strategy and the ongoing training camp evaluation process, members of the Bruins brass provided insight into the team’s direction. Let’s break down the major talking points, including comments from CEO Charlie Jacobs, team president Cam Neely, general manager Don Sweeney, and head coach Jim Montgomery.

Jeremy Swayman’s Contract Update

One of the most significant focal points of the press conference was the discussion surrounding Jeremy Swayman’s contract extension. Swayman’s standout postseason cemented him as the No. 1 goaltender, prompting the Bruins to trade away Linus Ullmark and hand the net to the 25-year-old. Unfortunately, just over a week before the Bruins open their season against the Florida Panthers on Oct. 8, the team and Swayman have been unable to come to terms on a new contract extension.

Amid offseason speculation and rumors, most talking points have left fans frustrated, regardless of who’s blamed. As the Bruins finalize their roster, the ongoing media discourse seems to have worn thin on management, prompting Neely to make a pointed statement about Swayman’s extension

“I don’t want to get into the weeds with what his ask is, but I know that I have 64 million reasons why I’d be playing right now,” Neely said.

Though he didn’t outright say what this meant, many have inferred that the Bruins have offered Swayman’s camp an eight-year contract worth $64 million. Maximizing the value of a player and signing him to the maximum eight-year term makes sense when the team views the player as a cornerstone piece, but it’s also distinctly possible that the deal is a shorter deal with a higher annual salary and cap hit. Nobody outside of the team and Swayman’s team knows for sure, but it’s still fair to say that the Bruins have made what they feel to be a competitive offer to their goaltender.

Jacobs would mention that he’s been in constant communication with Neely and Sweeney regarding this situation and that the dialogue has not stopped.

Sweeney would also note his thoughts during the press conference, stating that the Bruins are a better team with Swayman as the team’s goaltender. He’d also note that he was going to work hard to find a settling point. As far as the concerns about trading Ullmark and whether or not the team had any regrets about this move, Sweeney remained confident in his offseason decision.

“Both goaltenders had asked to play 55 games and that’s not possible if they’re on the same team. We felt comfortable with Swayman going forward,” said Sweeney. ‘We made a difficult decision because Ullmark was an outstanding Bruin.”

Joonas Korpisalo to Start Opening Night

In a more unexpected piece of news from the press conference, Montgomery revealed that newly acquired goaltender Joonas Korpisalo will be the Bruins’ starting goalie for opening night given the uncertainty surrounding Swaymans’ status.

“Right now he’s going to be our Game 1 starter,” Montgomery said of Korpisalo.

Related: Bruins: 1 Winner, 1 Loser From Preseason Thus Far

It’s not entirely surprising given the team has mentioned in the past that the goal is to sign Swayman by the Dec. 1 deadline, but it’s still a little surprising to hear the team make such a concrete statement without really needing to tip their hand. Whether it’s a negotiation tactic or it’s simply the plan and the team is being fully transparent is unclear.

The good news for the Bruins is that Korpisalo has impressed in the crease, posting a .936 save percentage and a 1.91 goals-against average. The expectation is that he’ll be the starter early in the season with Brandon Bussi playing as his backup. Things can change in a hurry, however, and the crease will undoubtedly immediately be given back to Swayman when he signs his deal.

The Training Camp Evaluation Process: Cuts Don’t Mean the End

When the Bruins announced that Fabian Lysell and Georgii Merkulov would be among the most recent wave of players cut from the Boston Bruins training camp, many were concerned. The expectation was that one of these two players would earn a roster spot and start the season as the team’s second-line right winger. Unfortunately, a slow start put a damper on things before Lysell seemed to put together some very positive shifts. Still, it didn’t seem to matter.

During Monday’s press conference, however, Sweeney mentioned that players like Lysell and Merkulov could be back before the end of camp and that camp isn’t over. He’d also note that the evaluation process never ends.

Discussing Lysell specifically, Sweeney would note that everybody can see the skillset and that they’re excited about it. “He’ll get another opportunity and hopefully he takes advantage.”

Contract Extension Discussions for Marchand, Geekie and Frederic

While there wasn’t a lot said about it, Sweeney did confirm that the team has had discussions with captain Brad Marchand, Morgan Geekie and Trent Frederic about new potential contracts. All three players will be unrestricted free agents at the end of the season and there’s mutual interest between all parties to keep this core together for the long-term.

Geekie and Frederic are both candidates to start the season as the team’s second-line right winger, though it’s likely that Frederic will continue anchoring the third-line center position with Geekie being given the nod early. There’s also the potential for a player like Tyler Johnson or Matt Poitras to get a look in that spot, or even Lysell and Merkulov based on the aforementioned comments made by Sweeney about camp not being over.

Frederic, a first-round draft pick of the Bruins in 2016, is in the final year of a two-year contract worth $4.6 million. He’ll see a nice increase on his $2.3 million cap hit next offseason. Geekie signed a two-year deal, $4 million deal with Bruins last offseason and has become a very important member of the team. Both 26-year-olds will get a raise.

As for Marchand, the Bruins captain is coming to the of a very team-friendly eight-year, $49 million contract. The veteran will be 37 years old at the start of his next contract, so it will be interesting to see what kind of deal he and the team negotiate to keep him in the fold. While it will certainly be a short deal, the salary implications will be the intriguing part.

While there isn’t a lot of time between now and the start of the 2024-25 regular season, the Bruins do still have time to widdle down their roster and make their final decisions for opening nights. What’s important to remember, however, is that no team has ever had the same opening night roster and closing night roster. Whether it’s trades, injury, performance, call-ups or anything in between, personnel and lineups change regularly in the NHL. The “final product” come opening night will not be the true final product, and the process of bettering the team is never-ending.