Jeremy Swayman’s Draft Story Shows How Bruins Benefited From Maple Leafs

Jeremy Swayman was selected by the Boston Bruins in the fourth round of the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, and the pick came as a surprise to the young goaltender.

The 24-year-old told Chris and Dan Powers of the “Empty Netters” podcast that he elected to watch the draft on his laptop in his home in Alaska instead of attending the event in Chicago.

“I was sitting at my breakfast table with my dad, we were four hours behind in Alaska,” Swayman explained on the podcast. “I knew I wasn’t going in the first round with it being my first year eligible for the draft. There was a lot of hope, but I was a C-rated prospect so it wasn’t necessary (to attend).”

Swayman said that during the year, while playing in the Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League he had a lot of college and NHL scouts visiting his practices and talking to him about his future in hockey. One of the teams was the Toronto Maple Leafs.

While watching the second and third rounds of the draft, Swayman said his agent reached out to him and alluded to the Leafs picking him in a later round.

“It was the fourth round, and Toronto came up, and they picked a goalie,” Swayman said. “I was kind of bummed but at the same time hopeful still because I had talked to other teams.”

Apparently, the WiFi in the Swayman house was not the best, because the Alaskan native explained his friend, who attended the draft, actually broke the news he was drafted before the announcement.

“I’m looking at the screen, and the next pick is the Bruins, but nothing’s happened yet,” Swayman said. “I get a call from my agent, and he’s like, ‘Sway, you’re a Bruin! Let’s go.’ And I’m like, ‘no, I’m not. I can’t see anything.’ Then my phone starts blowing up. … I kept refreshing my laptop until I saw it.”

Swayman said being in Alaska allowed him to celebrate with his family and because it was still morning, the celebration was able to last all day.

“We had a pretty good celebration. It was totally unexpected which is the coolest part,” Swayman said. “I think because you’re so devastated for one second and the next second it’s like a new world opens up. That was a pretty cool experience to share with them, and I’m glad it turned out the way it did (being drafted by the Bruins).”

It didn’t work out so well for the Leafs. They used the 110th pick of the draft to take goalie Ian Scott. The Calgary native never reached the NHL, making just two appearances in the AHL. Boston, meanwhile, took Swayman one pick after the Leafs’ selection of Scott.

Swayman is entering his third full season with the Bruins and will look to build on the success he and partner Linus Ullmark had last season as the William M. Jennings Trophy winners.