Where Bruins goalies ranked in NHL survey

Boston Bruins starting goaltender Jeremy Swayman, left, is congratulated by backup goaltender Linus Ullmark, right, following their win over the Columbus Blue Jackets in an NHL hockey game, Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023, in Boston. (AP Photo/Mary Schwalm)APIt’s pretty universally agreed on that the Bruins have the best goalie tandem in the NHL. Last year Linus Ullmark won the Vezina Trophy and this year Jeremy Swayman was an All-Star. There are teams that have a better No. 1 goalie, but the Boston’s duo is universally considered the best pair.That’s reflected in an ESPN survey that came out earlier this week. They polled 10 players (four from the Eastern Conference, six from the West) and 10 front-office executives (six from the East, four from the West) from around the league and asked each to rank their top 10 goalies. A No. 1 vote was worth 10 points and a No. 10 vote was worth one point etc.The Bruins were the only team with two — Swayman at No. 8 and Ullmark at No. 10.

Swayman got 65 points. Here’s what they wrote about him (stats don’t reflect Thursday’s loss):“The Bruins have the best goalie tandem in the NHL. But once you pry Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark out of one of their patented hockey hugs, there’s a choice to be made: Which one has been the better goalie?According to our panel, it’s Swayman, who didn’t make the cut on last year’s list. The 25-year-old Alaska native has been near the top of the league in save percentage and goals against average during the 2023-24 season. Just over 71% of his starts are “quality starts” under the metric. At 5-on-5, Swayman has been outstanding: .941 save percentage and a 1.71 goals-against average.

He has come into his own this season, and obviously earned the respect of players and front offices. One Western Conference executive had Swayman second on their ballot, in back of only Connor Hellebuyck. Only three ballots out of 20 had Ullmark ranked ahead of Swayman.“Their adjusted numbers are near identical,” one NHL goaltending analyst said. “I’m a little surprised here, given Ullmark won the Vezina.”Ullmark was seventh on last year’s list. He earned 35 points. Here’s what they wrote about him:“Ullmark was objectively the best goalie for the best team in the league last season. His 40 wins, .938 save percentage and 1.89 goals-against average all led the NHL en route to a Vezina Trophy win.

That might have solidified his rep, save for two subsequent events: the Bruins’ first-round meltdown against Florida and Swayman’s rise to prominence for Boston this season.Ullmark has been quite good in 2023-24, with a .915 save percentage and a quality starts percentage of 72%. While Swayman (fifth) is well ahead of Ullmark (11th) in goals saved above replacement, Ullmark (0.527) actually leads Swayman (0.470) in goals saved above expected per 60 minutes.But the Vezina winner didn’t appear on half of the ballots cast. In the end, this all boils down to a good problem for the Bruins to have.”

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