Should the Utah Hockey Club trade for Jeremy Swayman?

The Boston Bruins president of hockey operations, Cam Neely, did something incredibly dumb on Monday. He called out his superstar goalie, Jeremy Swayman, who has been sitting out of training camp due to ongoing contract negotiations. Swayman has been holding out because he believes he is worth far more than the Bruins have offered him.

These negotiations have not been going smoothly, and some of the tension boiled over into the public eye today when Cam Neely said, "I don't want to get into the weeds with what his ask is, but I know that I have 64 million reasons why I'd be playing right now" regarding Swayman's contract negotiations.

Jeremy Swayman's agent, Lewis Gross, quickly disputed this number and said, "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" (via Sportsnet).

Neely did himself no favours with this comment to the media. It isn't usually the best idea to take a shot at a top-three goalie in the NHL that you are trying to sign for eight years, but what do I know?

Naturally, trade rumours started to emerge immediately after Neely commented about Swayman, and rarely does a top-five goalie in the NHL become available to trade for. So, if the Bruins were open to trade talks for Swayman, should the Utah Hockey Club be interested in the 25-year-old soon-to-be restricted free agent?

Should the Utah Hockey Club trade for Jeremy Swayman

First, we must establish the cost of signing Jeremy Swayman. Even if Utah were to trade for him, they would still need to work out an extension to keep him in Salt Lake City.

We can throw that $64 million number that Neely gave to the media out the window. Even if that was the offer the Bruins gave Swayman, it is nowhere close to where it should be. Over the last two years, Swayman ranks 5th among qualified goalies in save percentage and goals saved above expected; he has been dominant in the playoffs and should accept nothing less than what would make him the highest-paid goalie in the NHL.

At this price, Swayman's next contract should be north of $10 million, which Utah could afford to pay, but Utah would also have to trade assets to acquire Swayman to work out a deal.

Now, I'm not qualified to suggest trade proposals. However, when you have the cap room and the chance to get an elite goalie, you have to consider it at least. Especially considering Swayman fits in perfectly with the age ranges of this team and could play out his prime years with this core.

Elite goaltending is one key to winning a Stanley Cup. Swayman could be the essential addition that pushes Utah into the cup contender conversation over the next year or two.

If I were Bill Armstrong, I would immediately call the Bruins' General Manager, put everyone but Clayton Keller, Logan Cooley, Dylan Guenther, and Mikhail Sergachev on the table, and see where the conversation goes.

However, Connor Ingram has the potential to be a top-10 goalie in the NHL this season, so Armstrong mustn't overpay. Swayman will not come cheap and has shown no interest in taking a team-friendly deal.