“No matter what role you have on the team, you can still make an impact in the community, and it’s something that we really want to implement.”
The Bruins dressed up as Toy Story characters as part of Wednesday’s community event. Conor Ryan / Boston.com
Jeremy Swayman and the Boston Bruins traded in their skates for cowboy boots and Space Ranger suits on Wednesday afternoon.
The Bruins’ netminder and several teammates made the rounds at local hospitals as part of the team’s annual Halloween hospital visits — with Swayman, defenseman Mason Lohrei, forward James Hagens, and defenseman Frederic Brunet greeting patients and staff at Boston Children’s Hospital.
Since they began this annual tradition over 15 years ago, the Bruins’ welcoming party has embraced a new theme each season while visiting patients.
Last year, it was superheroes. There was “Barbie and Ken” in 2023, and Super Mario Bros. characters the previous year.
And who could forget Zdeno Chara getting a head start on the holidays with the pink bunny costume that Ralphie donned in “A Christmas Story”?
This time around, Swayman and his teammates dressed up as characters from “Toy Story” — with Swayman and Lohrei leading the charge as Woody and Buzz Lightyear, respectively.
“Fit’s good this year, filling it out,” Swayman said of his cowboy apparel. “Dad bod.”
Swayman’s perspective on these visits has certainly changed, especially after he and his fiancée, Alessandra Iacaboni, welcomed a son, Briggs, in June 2026.
But getting the opportunity to brighten patients’ days and thank the medical staff on hand is a responsibility Swayman has embraced for years.
Swayman has made multiple trips to pediatric hospitals since arriving in Boston and holds the title of the Bruins’ Hockey Fights Cancer Champion — an NHL initiative that collaborates with players passionate about raising awareness and supporting cancer-related fundraising efforts.
“It’s one you circle in the calendar,” Swayman said of the team’s Halloween trek. “You’re never going to miss it, and it’s just an incredible opportunity to get into the community.
“But obviously, with families and kids going through what they’re going through here — to just be a small part to make them think about something different than what they’re going through is an impact that we want to be a part of. So really excited for today and many more years to come.”
As part of Wednesday’s visit, Swayman and Lohrei greeted several patients across multiple wings of Children’s Hospital — handing out goodie bags, signing autographs, and exchanging fist bumps and high-fives.
On a separate floor, a pair of Bruins rookies in Hagens and Brunet couldn’t stray too far from one another — given that their costume was a conjoined Slinky Dog get-up.
Unsurprisingly, the two youngsters didn’t have a say in their costume before Wednesday’s visit.
But Swayman was heartened by the number of new faces who took part in Wednesday’s event.
Beyond Hagens and Brunet, rookie Michael DiPietro and offseason pick-up JJ Peterka — fresh out of “Pizza Planet” and dressed as the Aliens from “Toy Story” — visited other hospitals across Boston as part of Wednesday’s event.
“It’s extremely important because it’s a culture that we have here,” Swayman said of getting newcomers and younger players to take part in these community events. “No matter what role you have on the team, you can still make an impact in the community, and it’s something that we really want to implement.
“And it’s really fun to see, again, the new guys come in and have such a good mindset, and just detach from the game and understand that it’s a lot bigger than us and ourselves.”
It’s a community-focused mindset that also resonates with Bruins bench boss Marco Sturm — who also played in Boston from 2005-10.
“I played for a number of teams, but this, I felt like, the Boston Bruins always did the best job,” Sturm said. “As a player, we also did the most. That just shows you how everyone is chipping in to make this work and also have a community like we have here in Boston.
“I created my own foundation for cancer kids at home in Germany because of the Boston Bruins. That was the time I came here, and going to hospitals and going in so many different events, I loved it and I wanted to help. And that’s why I went back home. I said, ‘I want to do that.’ So it just shows you the impact the community has even on us players and coaches, it’s great. And I think nobody here in this room will ever say no.”
Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.
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