Along with some key unrestricted free agents (UFAs) that Boston Bruins general manager (GM) Don Sweeney also has his hands full with some key restricted free agents (RFAs). Most of the UFAs are leaving in free agency, but now it’s time for Sweeney to hammer out contracts with his two key RFAs, Jeremy Swayman and Trent Frederic.
Both players, along with newly acquired Ian Mitchell who was part of the Taylor Hall trade to the Chicago Blackhawks in June, officially filed paperwork for an arbitration hearing to get a new contract. Hearings will be scheduled between July 20-Aug. 4, but despite the player filing, they can continue to negotiate a deal with their team. In the Sweeney era in Boston, very rarely after arbitration has been filed do they reach the point of having an independent arbiter hear the case.
Related: Grading the Bruins’ Start to 2023 Free Agency
Whether or not that happens remains to be seen, but in the overall picture, Boston should not let that happen. The Bruins and Sweeney, however, should be concerned the longer negotiations drag out with both players. Why? The simple answer is that the Black and Gold have just $6.2 million remaining in cap space for the 2023-24 season after signing James van Riemsdyk, Milan Lucic, Morgan Geekie, Patrick Brown, and Kevin Shattenkirk in free agency on July 1.
Swayman and Frederic Could Eat up a Lot of Remaining Cap Space
How the next couple of weeks go, if it takes that long, to get these ironed contracts out will determine how much money Sweeney has left to add any more pieces to the roster. That includes the decisions from Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, should they decide to come back. Just how much is it realistic that Swayman and Frederic walk away with?
Along with Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark, Swayman was a big reason why the Bruins set a record for wins and points in a season. He went 24-6-4 with a 2.27 goals against average (GAA) and a .920 save percentage (SV%) with four shutouts. He missed a month with a lower-body injury, but once he worked out the kinks in his return, he was on top of his game. In his career, he’s 54-23-7 with a 2.24 GAA and a .902 SV%. He has established himself as a No. 1 future goalie and that is something that Sweeney is counting on.
“He’s been very consistent about where he wants to play hockey,” Sweeney said. “I don’t see why he wouldn’t be playing hockey here now and moving forward for a long time. This is a really good young goaltender. We are excited about having him and Linus.”
The Alaska native is 24 years old and coming off his entry-level contract that carried an average annual value (AAV) of $925,000. This is where things get tricky for Swayman and the Bruins. In an ideal world, getting him to sign a one-year deal for the upcoming season and then get a bigger payday next summer when the Boston cap situation eases up. A contract with an AAV of $3 or $3.5 million is what he’s more than likely going to end up with.
Frederic had the perfect season entering free agency with career highs in goals, assists, and points, but it’s bad timing for Sweeney and the front office. After struggling to find consistency under former coach Bruce Cassidy, the 29th overall pick in the 2016 Entry Draft found it under Jim Montgomery on the third line. In 79 regular season games, he had 17 goals, 14 assists and 31 points. He found himself taking fewer penalties and doing a lot of the dirty work in front of the net.
The question facing Sweeney is whether or not 2022-23 was a sign of things to come for the former University of Wisconsin forward, or just one of those seasons a young player has and he reverts back to the struggles he had in previous seasons. He is coming off a contract that carried a $1.05 million AAV and he should see an AAV in the $2-2.5 million range.
Other Bruins’ Offseason Decisions Could Depend on Contracts
Sweeney has already locked up Jakub Lauko on a two-year deal on July 5 and he is expected to be key bottom-six depth and how his attention turns to Swayman and Frederic. Getting Swayman to take a one-year deal is going to be big for the Bruins, but there is no guarantee that happens. Whatever both players get will either sit well with the front office or will force some trades to clear some space to fill out the roster. Regardless, the longer it drags on, the more concerned the front office should be that a good chunk of their remaining money gets tied up in two players. Sweeney should get it done sooner, rather than later, which has been his track record.
