How Should the Bruins Manage Their Goalies for the Playoffs?

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Dorin Canaday
March 27, 2023 (0:15)

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The Bruins easily have the best goaltending duo in the NHL, and despite a Vezina-calibre season from Ullmark, can Swayman challenge him for the starting job?

Linus Ullmark has been Mr. Consistent for Boston this season and, as mentioned above, is the front-runner for the Vezina. A slow start for Jeremy Swayman brought its critics, but a recent hot surge has him among his partner at the top of the league.

Can Swayman Challenge for the Starting Job in the Playoffs?

On a recent episode of Bruins Beat, Conor Ryan of Boston.com and Evan Marinofsky of the New England Hockey Journal discussed the topic. As Ryan explains how it's clearly Ullmark's job to lose:

Since January 1st, Swayman (1.88 GAA, .936 SV%) and Ullmark (1.95 GAA, .936 SV%) are number two and three in the entire NHL in those categories. They are trailing only Filip Gustavsson of the Minnesota Wild, who has a 1.78 GAA and a .941 SV%. (Swayman paces all netminders with FOUR shutouts in that span).

The old hockey adage is that teams only run one goalie in the postseason, but the Bruins have a great case to make to continue switching back and forth between both guys.

Matt Porter of the Boston Globe recently shared that Jim Montgomery wouldn't be entirely against the idea:

''Montgomery said they don't have an issue with a playoff goalie rotation, though it's not something they're thinking about yet. Ullmark will start Game 1.''

Limited Experience Between the Pipes

As Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub recently shared on NBC with Mike Felger, the biggest concern for Boston's goalies is the lack of playoff experience between the two.

Per Anderson:

''Neither one of them has shouldered a workload, you know, beyond the first round. Linus has played two career playoff games. Jeremy Swayman's played five. This is the thing they have to figure out between now and come May or June.''

Check out everything else that Anderson discussed in the following video. The reporter shares an interesting story regarding what Buffalo people warned him about Ullmark when he originally signed in Boston.

The way both guys have performed as of late is a ''good'' problem for the Bruins to have. Whoever Montgomery decides to go with will give this team a chance to win.

What are your thoughts?