NHL Trade Talk: Is Swayman ‘Off Limits’ Ahead Of NHL Trade Deadline?

Is Boston bruins rookie goalie Jeremy Swayman now ‘off limits’ in any trade talks ahead of the March 21 NHL Trade Deadline?

The Bruins are reportedly still in on plenty of big names as the deadline approaches. Whether it’s Arizona Coyotes defenseman Jakub Chychrun or San Jose Sharks center Tomas Hertl or others that are available ahead of the deadline, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney is seemingly doing his best to make a splash or at least make some solid additions to the lineup for what he hopes will be a lengthy playoff run. Players like Hertl and Chychrun are going to cost a big haul and for months now, most NHL trade rumors continued to indicate that if the Bruins wanted Chychrun or Hertl, they would need to include Swayman or top Bruins prospect Fabian Lysell in any package going back to the Coyotes or Sharks.

According to one trusted NHL source on Thursday morning though, and this should come as no surprise, Jeremy Swayman is ‘off limits’ in any NHL trade talks now, and quite possibly, was never available.

“I can tell you this now, I’m so sure that Swayman won’t be traded, I’ll take care of your St. Patrick’s Day weekend tab if he is, just send me the receipt after,” the source cracked to yours truly. “He’s off limits. Honestly, I really don’t think Swayman was ever available. Did teams like the Coyotes ask for him? Of course, they did. But, I think that was just them just doing their job and driving the price up before negotiating.”

Since allowing three goals on 24 shots in a 4-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on February 8, coincidentally the same night that longtime Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask informed the team that he was retiring, Jeremy Swayman has essentially been lights out. He’s gone 7-0-1 and won his last six straight starts. Swayman was also named NHL Rookie of The Month after going 5-1-1 with a 1.13 goals-against average, .960 save percentage and two shutouts in February. The 23-year-old rookie has all but solidified the starter’s role and it appears, unless he slides or gets injured, that job is his to lose not just this season but going forward into next season.