Player Discussion Jeremy Swayman: VII- Swayman's agent basically calls Cam a liar

[smithformeragent]

@Gee Wally

We have numerous deletions and more in here. We know tension and emotions are high.
But you folks must simply stop taking personal shots at each. Stay to topic.

If not we will be left with no choice other than adding thread bans.

BOSTON — Boston Bruins president Cam Neely suggested Monday that the team has made an eight-year offer to unsigned restricted free agent goaltender Jeremy Swayman at $8 million annually.

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

Neely did not disclose what Swayman’s ask has been but said he was surprised by it.

So far, Swayman is holding firm to his demand. It aligns with his personality of not backing down, especially following his uncomfortable 2023 arbitration hearing. According to Neely, Swayman wants to set a new market for goalies, specifically ones under team control.

“What his ask is and what we believe his comp group is,” Neely said, “are two different things.”

General manager Don Sweeney said he remains in contact with Lewis Gross, Swayman’s agent. The Bruins are not interested in trading Swayman.

“Ultimately, we’re a better team, as I’ve said all along, if Jeremy is part of our hockey club,” Sweeney said. “That’s my intention. That’s my wish. I’ll continue to work to do that. I think Jeremy and the team are both hurt in this regard. That’s what I’ll do. I’ll continue to work hard to find a settling point.”

With only three preseason games left, it is likely Swayman will miss regular-season time, even if an agreement is pending. Coach Jim Montgomery designated Joonas Korpisalo as his goalie for the regular-season opener against the Florida Panthers on Oct. 8, regardless of Swayman’s situation. The Bruins have two full practices remaining in camp.

“Where we are in camp right now, with how well camp has gone and how well Korpisalo has done,” Montgomery said, “right now, he’s going to be our Game 1 starter.”

How good is the offer?​

Swayman would become the fifth-highest-paid goalie in the NHL under the Bruins’ offer, behind Sergei Bobrovsky, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Connor Hellebuyck and Ilya Sorokin. Only Vasilevskiy ($9.5 million average annual value) signed his contract as a pending restricted free agent. The others were due to become unrestricted.

It is a significant payday for Swayman, considering he has never been a regular-season No. 1 goalie.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5806291/2024/09/30/bruins-cam-neely-jeremy-swayman/

Click to read more...

 

[KillerMillerTime]

I have shit on Neely for the Miller situation and how he handled Claude Julien before firing him. Neely deserves all the shit he gets, I just don't see it in this situation.

It's against the CBA to do what he did if he lied.

He never lied. He could easily say we were letting Swayman and his agent know
publically were we are at to speed things up.

 

[UncleRico]

Not sure if an offer was explicitly withheld, but if you followed the situation at all it was clear after Nylander wasn't happy with Gross and wished he spoke directly to Dubas earlier. Seems likely something similar may be going on here, where Gross isn't being totally forthcoming with Swayman. It's either that or Swayman and him are both full of shit, because I don't buy for a second the alternative (that Neely is blowing smoke).

Ok you’re entitled to your opinion that it’s Gross fault for sure.

Don’t sit here spreading misinformation that he intentionally withheld a contract from Nylander if you can’t provide a source though.

 

[Caper Bruins fan]

Lock Sweeney, Cam, Gross, and Swayman in a room.

No cell phones. No podcasts. No social media.

Take the day. Provide lunch & dinner.

Come out with a signed contract, or agree to seek a trade partner.

Yes , we will even pay for the pizza

 

[JOKER 192]

What I find interesting is that if you listen to podcasts from other markets , they are all pro Swayman.

Listening to Dom's podcast the fan base is almost unanimously pro management.

 

[Seidenbergy]

I listened to NHL Network radio on the drive in, and one interesting thing that struck me is the leaguewide perception that, up until this point, Sweeney's job has been easy. Guys have made negotiations easy and taken a little less to stay due to the culture that Chara, Bergeron, and the core built. But the perception was that those days are now over and Swayman is just the first of several who will now take the Bruins to the mat and seek every dollar.

Sounds a lot like the "Patriot way", no?

I'd be more likely to buy this if the pasta and McAvoy contracts hadn't been signed.

 

[MarchysNoseKnows]

I listened to NHL Network radio on the drive in, and one interesting thing that struck me is the leaguewide perception that, up until this point, Sweeney's job has been easy. Guys have made negotiations easy and taken a little less to stay due to the culture that Chara, Bergeron, and the core built. But the perception was that those days are now over and Swayman is just the first of several who will now take the Bruins to the mat and seek every dollar.

Sounds a lot like the "Patriot way", no?

Except it's of course overblown. Krejci didn't take a team friendly offer. Neither did Rask. Can even debate Marchand, though I'll stipulate it don't want to fight over it.

McAvoy didn't take a cut. Pasta didn't take a cut. They didn't rake them over the coals like Swayman did, but they didn't take less.

 

[danpantz]

I listened to NHL Network radio on the drive in, and one interesting thing that struck me is the leaguewide perception that, up until this point, Sweeney's job has been easy. Guys have made negotiations easy and taken a little less to stay due to the culture that Chara, Bergeron, and the core built. But the perception was that those days are now over and Swayman is just the first of several who will now take the Bruins to the mat and seek every dollar.

Sounds a lot like the "Patriot way", no?

Who’s due for a raise next though? Can’t see it from Marchand. Freddy maybe but how much is he worth.

 

[HuskyBruinPride]

Ok you’re entitled to your opinion that it’s Gross fault for sure.

Don’t sit here spreading misinformation that he intentionally withheld a contract from Nylander if you can’t provide a source though.

Lol spreading misinformation? It's already been posted in this thread extensively quotes and info from the Nylander saga. It's pretty clear Gross is up to the same shady shit again. Doesn't take a genius to see past his smoke screen attempt to save face.

 

[SwayHeyKid]

I was thinking about doing a poll.

Who is single handedly doing more to alienate Bruins fans over the Swayman situation?

1) Gross
2) Swayman
3) Neely/Sweeney
4) @SwayHeyKid

I decided it wasn't even close.

You've gone from being a solid, rational supporter of a key player to some drama hound on a shitty reality tv show contest.

Come back to earth. Please.

What was wrong with the post below? Speculation and opinion are the roots of a message board no?

Was the 64 mil true? Mentioning it out of frustration is amateur hour. Clown shoes. I said Gross is a drama queen as well if they were offered 60mil and making it seem like a crime vs humanity. I know it's rare thinking around here but the Bruins can be idiots at times, along with the agent. Sweeney I'm sure is livid.

If Gross wants 80 and the Bruins don't want to do it deal him. No problems with them doing that even if I believe it's short sighted. Probably would have been helpful for them to know this before dealing Ullmark even though Sweeney is foolishly telling people these two things are not related.

Swayman is not signing 8 per if that's not what he wants. He will more than likely try to be dealt IMO.

 

[Caper Bruins fan]

What I find interesting is that if you listen to podcasts from other markets , they are all pro Swayman.

Listening to Dom's podcast the fan base is almost unanimously pro management.

They all hate the Bruins, that’s why.

 

[SwayHeyKid]

Except it's of course overblown. Krejci didn't take a team friendly offer. Neither did Rask. Can even debate Marchand, though I'll stipulate it don't want to fight over it.

McAvoy didn't take a cut. Pasta didn't take a cut. They didn't rake them over the coals like Swayman did, but they didn't take less.

I actually saw something that said Pasta pushed them further than they wanted to go

 

[Number8]

You're talking about a person whose job is probably the most stressful in the sport and who is counted on to win games in high pressure situations. He knows he's going to get paid eventually, sooner or later, in Boston or otherwise, at the amount he wants or less but either way a lot. He's already rich ($5.5M career earnings) and is going to get richer. I'm gonna say, he's just fine right now.

Dream on. He sits out this year and loses minimum of $8M. He works out over the summer to get in shape while he tries to negotiate with the Bruins (who would still own his rights) who have already been through a season without Swayman and are pissed.

While the Bruins tell him their offer has gone down because they are livid, Jeremy pops a groin while playing pickup at BU in the summer and has to go under the knife.

Trust me from a guy who's (I expect) seen more years than you. Sooner or Later is sometimes a pipe dream. Not always, but I've seen a bunch of people who say "I'm gonna get paid sooner or later" get absolutely trainwreck f***ed. Then they stand there looking stunned with that classic "what happened???" look on their face.

You lose $8M minimum at 25 but are all ok because you've already had $5.5M in career earnings and are "rich"????

Get real.

 

[MarchysNoseKnows]

I actually saw something that said Pasta pushed them further than they wanted to go

That’s Friedman. Maybe. But look where he ended up - right at market value. Coyle didn’t take less. Hampus didn’t take less. Etc etc

 

[Gordoff]

What I find interesting is that if you listen to podcasts from other markets , they are all pro Swayman.

Listening to Dom's podcast the fan base is almost unanimously pro management.

Maybe because "other markets" are loving this discord between the team and player. They couldn't care LESS about Swayman or the Boston Bruins and their fans.

They're hoping for a B's meltdown. f*** them!

 

[dangermike]

Who provided these numbers to Seravalli and Friedman all of a sudden after the $64M offer came out? Why didn't we hear these numbers before yesterday?

Smells like Gross is trying to save his own ass. It sounds like Neely will be on 98.5 later this afternoon so hopefully we will get some clarification.

this part and tbh (and i know 1.5 mil is more money than ill ever sign a contract for) - 64 and 62.5 are so close - are we going to assume these two sides are bickering in the media over 200k a year? other than swayhey, i think most of us think a little higher of the way the bruins have done business recently.

 

[JOKER 192]

Maybe because "other markets" are loving this discord between the team and player. They couldn't care LESS about Swayman or the Boston Bruins and their fans.

They're hoping for a B's meltdown. f*** them!

That's absolutely right.

 

[Dr Hook]

That’s Friedman. Maybe. But look where he ended up - right at market value. Coyle didn’t take less. Hampus didn’t take less. Etc etc

Yeah it can go on and on with Carlo, Gryz, et al. Zadorov and Lindholm this year. Maybe as new guys they get exempt from the narrative, but they've always paid FA's market value or thereabouts too. I don't know where the idea came from that there is an expectation of 'team friendly' deals within the FO.

 

[PatriceBergeronFan]

What I find interesting is that if you listen to podcasts from other markets , they are all pro Swayman.

Listening to Dom's podcast the fan base is almost unanimously pro management.

I am generally anti Sweeney and management. In this, especially as time has passed and especially yesterday, firmly on their side.

Swayman needs to decide himself and soon. Not the agent. Himself.

 

[KnightofBoston]

On August 1, 2023, the Bruins and Swayman agreed to a one-year, $3.475 million contract in arbitration. After the hearing, Swayman expressed his discontent with the process, saying it was something he "never wants to do again".

Swayman clearly holds a grudge about the team deliberately underrating and lowballing him during last year's proceedings. Now he's determined to get every last penny. Good for him. The Bruins' front office needs to be better.

that's a lot of adding details of interpretation there on your part


I take his statement at face value - he never wants to do the process again, doesn't mean he "holds a grudge", maybe against difficult contract negotiations, but no one can definitively say he does agains the bruins

now if the former is true, I have to imagine he's going to sour big time over Gross. If Im him im firing as soon as Im legally allowed to do so, if it's true they offered him 8/8 and Gross didn't tell him that's unforgiveable. 8/8 and Im Swayman Im signing yesterday let alone today let alone tomorrow

Is there any clarity on what Swayman (Gross) has actually asked for? 8 is perfectly reasonable and Gross is f***ing his client over trying to eek out more and causing all this back draft drama. I would be livid with him if Im Jeremy

 

[Dr Hook]

That's absolutely right.

Because if this were happening to the Laffs right now, or the Habs, we wouldn't be laughing it up . . .

 

[goalieman40]

This whole thing has been surprising. Swayman has always seemed the happy-go-lucky type, happy to be here, wants to stay, would do a fair deal; to now wanting to be the highest paid goalie with not a lot to back it up in comparison to other high-priced goalies.

I was taken aback by Neely's comment. That's telling me management has been trying and Swayman (or his agent) are being the difficult side. He was obviously vocal about arbitration and whether it's him personally or his agent they want to play hardball back.

I want Sway, but not at 8 - 10 mil. I know the cap is going up but it's a lot to dedicate to goal, and also he isn't that goalie yet. The flip side looking at the team now is without Sway there is more cap room for bigger improvements elsewhere on the roster. Get another top 2 center or winger, get by with a good enough goalie making 4 - 6 mil.

 

[LSCII]

1st off, do you know that it hasn't been put to paper for a fact?

Then , if it hasn't, do you really think it won't be in short order?

It's been stated in a press conference, no turning back at this point.

The agent said they never offered that. Multiple reports are confirming that to be true. So while I’m not privy to the actual negotiation it sure doesn’t sound like it’s been formally offered other than cam claiming it. Secondly, and far more importantly, he can’t sign a verbal claim. There are terms. There are clauses. That all needs to be agreed on as part of the deal. Having an exec claim they met a players demand isn’t nearly the done deal you make it out to be. It’s also not an actual offer.

 

[UncleRico]

Lol spreading misinformation? It's already been posted in this thread extensively quotes and info from the Nylander saga. It's pretty clear Gross is up to the same shady shit again. Doesn't take a genius to see past his smoke screen attempt to save face.

I’m sure if there’s extensive quotes you can provide one to back up your claim Gross withheld a contract offer from Nylander.

 

[Dr Hook]

This whole thing has been surprising. Swayman has always seemed the happy-go-lucky type, happy to be here, wants to stay, would do a fair deal; to now wanting to be the highest paid goalie with not a lot to back it up in comparison to other high-priced goalies.

There is the public persona, and then the real person that friends, family, and teammates know. I am never shocked to learn that the two often don't match.

 

[bruins cup]

If he's worth 9 million there would have been a
Offer sheet for him or a realistic trade-offer
Nobody is going to pay him the bruins could be real stiff about it and pay him the league minimum for the next 2 years and make him sit out if he doesn't sign it he has no leverage