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...

 

[Kegs]

Doesn't matter ...there is currently a public verbal 64 mil offer on the table ... until accepted or pulled.

He will take a couple days to think about it he says. Gross is a savage.

 

[Gee Wally]

He will take a couple days to think about it he says. Gross is a savage.

Id put Korpi in bubble wrap until then. Imagine Gross if god forbid something happens to Korpi.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

I like all this except I think their chances for a cup, Swayman or no Swayman, are pretty decent. We have a good team this year. I've always preferred that they signed Swayman and went forward, but now I don't care. I am going to support my team regardless of who is in net.

Bruins have had good teams just about every year since the last Cup (2011). It's always a long shot to go all the way.

 

[Number8]

So all of that it comes down to Gross wouldn't lie vs Neely would? He's a complete drama queen if they offered 60-62 and did that whole media release for 2-4 million dollars. As for Neely the last time the organization looked bad with something he lied, so he could def do it again,

Look this is a nasty negotiation between two parties who are type A and known to let things get a bit heated.

There is just too much nuance and posturing to believe any party's take 100%. I believe that is naive.
Hence why my issue was with statements like Clown Shoes and Amateur Hour.

On the other note (I'm assuming the Mitchell situation) remind me of the "lies" that Neely made that have somehow tarnished him into a guy with a rep that he could "def do it again". And I mean lies -- not interpretations. Honest question by the way. The Mitchell thing was a mess, but I don't recall any "lies". That actual word is strong indeed.

 

[Hazelwig]

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.

I'm kind of into this. We need scoring and if our hand is forced this is opens up a range of options. Swayman should (and to be fair probably does) realize that defensive structure, goalie Bob, and overall team culture play into his success at a netminder. If he goes elsewhere just to be paid, he'll lose all of that and then what? It's never going to be the biggest factor, but it should be worth more than what it seems like if he's been offered $62-$64m for 8 years. I like this idea of riding Korpi and enhancing our scoring. We've reclaimed a ton of goalies in the past.

 

[Knight]

Korpisalo, my beloved

 

[JAD]

How bout Swayman for Huberdeau 20% retained??

You would want Wolf back as well.

 

[Number8]

The name they brought up on the radio was Poitras.

Don't shoot the messenger. Who knows if they're just making crap up.

I suspect they are. Poitras has a long way to go in terms of having any leverage at all. I'm first and foremost worried about his physical situation -- kid sure seems to be a magnet for big hits.

 

[yazmybaby]

The pros and cons of acquiring Jeremy Swayman

Every team will have some form of interest in Jeremy Swayman. That includes the Vegas Golden Knights, who might have the best goaltending tandem if acquired.

vegashockeyknight.com

You would want Wolf back as well.

Pass

 

[SwayHeyKid]

Look this is a nasty negotiation between two parties who are type A and known to let things get a bit heated.

There is just too much nuance and posturing to believe any party's take 100%. I believe that is naive.
Hence why my issue was with statements like Clown Shoes and Amateur Hour.

On the other note (I'm assuming the Mitchell situation) remind me of the "lies" that Neely made that have somehow tarnished him into a guy with a rep that he could "def do it again". And I mean lies -- not interpretations. Honest question by the way. The Mitchell thing was a mess, but I don't recall any "lies". That actual word is strong indeed.

I'll leave the Miller stuff to Google.

When is the last time you saw a team President act like that? It's already a bad situation and to have that hothead pour gasoline on it was clown shoes. They asked a simple question, what was SWAYMAN'S ask. He took it upon himself to take a shot at a guy he supposedly wants as his goalie for 8 years. The entire hockey world thinks it's stupid. I happen to agree. Sweeney and Jacobs were great and how you should act when you want to come to terms eventually

 

[Walkenthewalk]

My final offer(s) would be:

4/26
6/45
8/64

No more negotiating from management and Sway the ball is in your court either pick one or we will have to move on as best we can.

Agreed, it's BAFO time from management.

 

[Oates2Neely]

Id put Korpi in bubble wrap until then. Imagine Gross if god forbid something happens to Korpi.

What’s Tanya Harding doing these days….?

 

[Number8]

I'll leave the Miller stuff to Google.

When is the last time you saw a team President act like that. It's already a bad situation and to have that hothead pour gasoline on it was clown shoes. They asked a simple question, what was SWAYMAN'S ask. I took it upon himself to take a shot at a guy he supposedly wants as his goalie for 8 years. The entire hockey world thinks it's stupid. I happen to agree.

Hockey is full of, and has a long history, of blunt and hardnosed Presidents, Coaches, GM's, Owners, etc. I could list you 10 without breaking the slightest sweat.

Let's just agree to disagree.

 

[SPLBRUIN]

Yeah, there's no f***ing way in hell that prior to yesterday they were only that far apart.

*BUT*, that's not to say that's not where they are at right now. Everyone should understand that these new offers and asks can come at any minute and what's in the news now from a few hours ago is not where they're currently at.

If the Swayman camp is down to 8 yr/68 million per Seravalli, I think that's great news. Gives me a lot of hope that a deal can be done now. I believe they were sticking at 8yr/76 million for a long time, and the Bruins finally got them to budge yesterday (even though Neely may have flubbed the delivery a bit). Whether it was 62 or 64 million, the Bruins looked a lot more favorable in the public/media opinion than Swayman does still sticking to a $9.5M/yr ask. He had to move down, there was no choice.

I think this gets done around 8yr x $8.25M now.

I agree, last night I posted that I think Swayman signs for $8.1 or 8.2 mil, this way Swayman saves face. I think he realizes that as upset/stubborn as he may be right now he knows that he won't have to worry about contracts for 8 years. Playing in Boston is a pretty good thing, they are almost always competitive and they play goalie friendly responsible hockey. The alternative is the possibility of being traded to a shit show team, I doubt he wants that, even if he is paid more.

 

[Babajingo]

If the 7.8 per is true. Swaymans camp has every rite to be pissed. I know in the grand scheme of things, the difference isn't much but its still an exaggeration (to make Swayman out to be the bad guy, in public). Also, if I'm Mason Lohrei next year, do you trust the FO to not publicly lie about negotiations?
Thats if the 7.8 story is true.

 

[PB37]

I'll leave the Miller stuff to Google.

When is the last time you saw a team President act like that? It's already a bad situation and to have that hothead pour gasoline on it was clown shoes. They asked a simple question, what was SWAYMAN'S ask. He took it upon himself to take a shot at a guy he supposedly wants as his goalie for 8 years. The entire hockey world thinks it's stupid. I happen to agree. Sweeney and Jacobs were great and how you should act when you want to come to terms eventually

the entire hockey world does not agree. get over it - swayman has some egg on his face over this, as do the Bruins.

 

[DarrenBanks56]

Id try and get b tkachuk for him.
send him with his boy ullmark.

 

[JAD]

I think it’s odd that we are all working people more than likely and people are so upset that a guy is trying to get what he feels he deserves. Weird is all. Doubt we would like people telling us to take less or just sign

Sure, but there comes a time when someone over asks and or over estimates their worth ... and their ask is simply not in the company's budget and they can replace you with somebody making less. Happens all the time both ways

 

[Mad-Marcus]

I've read that Gross is disingenuous with past dealings with his clients.
Apparently, he withheld and a contract offer for (RIP) Gaudreau, and Gaudreau had to tell him to cut the sh*t and get him the best offer made for him to look at.
If this is true, it sheds light on what happened yesterday. Neeley can get in trouble with the CBA for lying about an offer where the agent cannot. IIATBWIR.

 

[Dr Quincy]

for an offer sheet, the question other teams have to ask isn't just "is he a goalie worth $9m?" It's "is he a goalie worth $9m AND a bunch of draft picks AND opening up my team for retaliatory offer sheets?"

This.. also- I may be more willing to pay him $9 if I can also trade back this $4m goalie that I have to give to you as part of the trade.

 

[Demon Eyes]

Trade Swayman for an upgrade at D, or maybe another 2nd line centre for the 3rd line.
Compensate the loss of Swayman. With more offense or better defense.

 

[UncleRico]

Look this is a nasty negotiation between two parties who are type A and known to let things get a bit heated.

There is just too much nuance and posturing to believe any party's take 100%. I believe that is naive.
Hence why my issue was with statements like Clown Shoes and Amateur Hour.

On the other note (I'm assuming the Mitchell situation) remind me of the "lies" that Neely made that have somehow tarnished him into a guy with a rep that he could "def do it again". And I mean lies -- not interpretations. Honest question by the way. The Mitchell thing was a mess, but I don't recall any "lies". That actual word is strong indeed.

Team president Cam Neely said in a statement the Bruins thought Miller’s bullying of Isaiah Meyer-Crothers was an isolated incident and reversed course “based on new information.”

“We owe it to our fans, players, staff, partners and community to make sure that our practices and protocols are in keeping with the ethos that we demand from ourselves and as an organization,” Neely said. “As such, we will be reevaluating our internal processes for vetting individuals who wish to earn the privilege of playing in the National Hockey League for the Boston Bruins.”

You mean when Neely said they reversed course based off “new information”. However there was no new information.

It was all very well documented old information. Neely just tried saving face because they were taking a beating in the media.

 

[PB37]

The only person saying they did is Neely. Sweeney has not confirmed it at all. The agent said no. Now there are at least 4 reports saying it was $62-62.5 offered, which isn’t 64.

Time will tell who was full of shit, but at the moment, it sure looks like it’s Cam.

How many reports have come out this summer in regards to this dispute that have been half truths, false, or simply misreported, all from third party talking heads? 64 mill is straight from the horses mouth. I'm not ignorant to the potential of Neely lying or stretching the truth but I'm less likely to believe that's the case because of the ramifications and more likely NOT to believe outside reports thinking they know what's going on behind the curtain.

 

[SPLBRUIN]

I'll leave the Miller stuff to Google.

When is the last time you saw a team President act like that? It's already a bad situation and to have that hothead pour gasoline on it was clown shoes. They asked a simple question, what was SWAYMAN'S ask. He took it upon himself to take a shot at a guy he supposedly wants as his goalie for 8 years. The entire hockey world thinks it's stupid. I happen to agree. Sweeney and Jacobs were great and how you should act when you want to come to terms eventually

The entire hockey world dosen't think Neely was stupid at all, stop making this crap up. I watched TSN Overdrive last night, the #1 show in Canada. These guys are based in Toronto, 2 ex NHL players and the host ( Brian Hayes) is a huge Leafs fan. One of the ex players Jeff O'Reilly completely backed Bruins management, the other ex player leaned more towards Bruins management then Swayman, only the host thought that it was a mistake by Neely to err this publicly. Here in Ottawa I heard similar talk by the local sports guys. I strongly suspect that the " hockey world " you are referring to are people who hate the Bruins and/or are people/players who will never side with management.

 

[Dr Quincy]

I've read that Gross is disingenuous with past dealings with his clients.
Apparently, he withheld and a contract offer (RIP) Gaudreau, and Gaudreau had to tell him to cut the sh*t and get him the best offer made for him to look at.
If this is true, it sheds light on what happened yesterday. Neeley can get in trouble with the CBA for lying about an offer where the agent cannot. IIATBWIR.

Where did you read this? Which contract was that for and which team?
If it was the Flames contract, he couldn't have been too upset since he kept Gross on to handle his UFA contract with CBJ, and by all accounts that contract negotiation went swimmingly.

I'm not doubting you but I do want to read the info about Gaudreau and Gross myself.