"All time fumble f**k": Mike Grinnell accuses Boston Bruins of "vilifying" Jeremy Swayman to fans
Mike Grinnell of the "Spittin' Chiclets" podcast has criticized the Boston Bruins for misrepresenting goalie Jeremy Swayman to their fans. This comes after Bruins president Cam Neely commented on Swayman's contract negotiations.
During a press conference on Monday, Neely said that the team had made a substantial contract offer to the goalie, reportedly worth $64 million over eight years, which would place him among the league's top-paid netminders.
Neely expressed surprise at Jeremy Swayman's asking price, implying that it was higher than expected. However, Swayman's agent, Lewis Gross, later took to social media to deny that such an offer had ever been made.
Normally, I do not release statements or discuss negotiations through the media.
"However, in this case, I feel I need to defend my client. At today's press conference, $64 million was referenced. This was the first time that number was discussed in our negotiations. Prior to the press conference, no offer was made reaching that level. We are extremely disappointed. This was not fair to Jeremy. We will take a few days to discuss where we go from here," Gross wrote on IG.
In response, Mike Grinnell accused the Boston Bruins of their approach, describing it as a significant mistake. He reckons that by bringing up a contract number that was never officially offered, the club is unfairly putting Swayman in a negative light with fans.
"Just an all time fumble f*ck by the Bruins. To put Swayman on blast over a number that was never offered to try and vilify him to the fan base is the dumbest move I've seen from a front office in a long long time," Grinnell responded.
Jeremy Swayman remains the only RFA in NHL
Swayman is currently a restricted free agent and remains the only remaining RFA in the NHL. The Bruins recently traded Linus Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators, creating an opportunity for Swayman to take on the starting role full-time.
However, with the 25-year-old absent from training camp, the Bruins are currently depending on Joonas Korpisalo and prospect Brandon Bussi to fill the void between the sticks.
Jeremy Swayman has been with the club for the last four seasons. During that span, he's compiled an impressive record of 79-33-15, along with a .919 SV% and a 2.34 goals-against-average.