Jeremy Swayman Salutes Johnny Gaudreau After Signing New Deal

Jeremy Swayman met with Bruins media Sunday after finalizing a new contract, but his first remarks had nothing to do with the eight-year pact.

Swayman kicked off the press conference by honoring Johnny Gaudreau, who was killed by an alleged drunk driver while cycling in late August. Gaudreau shared an agent with the Boston goaltender, who provided sincere sympathies before opening the floor for questions.

“Before we do get going, I would like to have one thing to say,” Swayman told reporters, as seen on NESN. “I had a lot of ties indirectly with Johnny Gaudreau. I think this is a great platform for me and my family and obviously this organization to send our condolences to that family and Johnny and Matthew. Obviously, sharing the same agent — Lewis Gross — every conversation I had with him since I joined their team when I was 16 had something to do with Johnny. The way that Lewis spoke about him and all the similarities that him and I had, which is what he would tell me, is pretty humbling.

“So, I hope that his family feels the support endlessly from my family, obviously me and the entire hockey world. To see the amount of outreach and love he got — it just goes to show what kind of impact he had on our world and for the game of hockey. So, I just really wanted to get that across. We miss him a lot.”

Swayman’s regards hardly were the first time the Bruins honored Gaudreau. The organization put out a statement shortly after the Boston College product’s passing and also held a 13-second moment of silence before its preseason opener.