Chara not the retiring type BRUINS NOTEBOOK
Hopes to keep playing with B’s
In the aftermath of the Bruins’ Game 5 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning that ended their season Monday, the narrative it was the final game of Zdeno Chara‘s Hall of Fame career was pushed hard by the NBC announcing crew.
That plot line only got more interesting with Chara’s noncommittal words in his post-game press conference.
But in his end-of-season meeting on Zoom Thursday, the Bruins’ captain left zero doubt about his desire to continue playing and where he wants to be.
“I feel strong physically and I’m positive and I believe that I can still play this game and contribute to the team and I want to stay in Boston,” said Chara, 43. “I want to be a Boston Bruin and I want to continue to lead by example and share my experiences and my game skills with the younger players and my teammates. So that hasn’t changed. I’m committed and we’ll see what’s going to happen next.”
As he often is on break-up day, after unplugging from a grueling season, the usually locked-in and locked-down Chara was effusive and engaging. He even made a point at the end of the call to give unprompted appreciation for the his teammates, coaches and Bruins’ staff for the dedication they showed in a difficult situation in Toronto.
As to retirement talk, Chara chalked up any confusion he may have contributed to it to still being in the heat of the moment after his season had just ended in dramatic fashion. He couldn’t speak to anyone else’s perception at the time.
“I’m committed to the Boston Bruins. I’m committed to the Boston fans and the city of Boston,” said Chara. “Again, I’m excited about the future of this team. Again, we’re going to do whatever we can to win another Stanley Cup. I can’t really reflect on some of the rumors. I have not heard any of these rumors directly and I can’t talk about any comments on this matter because it causes unnecessary distractions to my teammates and the organization. I expressed to my agent that I would like him to meet with the management. I make that my priority. The sooner, the better and see what the future holds.”
If there’s been any talk between the B’s and his agent Matt Keator ,it hasn’t gotten to the stage where Chara’s been informed.
“I am confident,” said Chara. “But at the same time, you’ve been in the business and hockey for so long you know there are different circumstances and possibilities. But as of right now I’m excited, I want to be a Boston Bruin, I want to play for Boston Bruins. But again, we will see what decisions are going to be made and that’s something up to my agent and the senior, upper management to go over it.”
Chara was not ready to think about whether he’d play anywhere else.
“If it comes down to that, that’s something we can talk about later,” said Chara. “But I love Boston. I love the city. I think we have the best fans in the world and I have no plans to move or go anywhere else. So we will see what the future holds.”
The idea of chasing Gordie Howe‘s record of most games played in the league (1,767) was brought up, and Chara’s certainly aware of it, mentioning fellow active players Patrick Marleau (1,723) and Joe Thornton (1,636). Chara sits at 1,553. Chris Chelios holds the record for defensemen at 1,651. Chara said the record is not a motivating factor.
“My focus is on the team and I just want to continue to play not because I want to get the games in. I want to play because I believe I have a lot to offer, I have a lot to bring to the team and I believe in my abilities,” said Chara. “I continue to go after my dreams. And my dreams are not reaching stats. My dreams are competing and being on the ice in crucial situations and defending, when it matters, making strong defensive plays. For me, it’s always being out there, being on the ice, doing my thing and in the offseason being ready, being in the best possible shape, helping my teammates, being a good leader and doing whatever I can to help the team win. To me, I’m more driven and dedicated to that than just going out there and being OK, just putting the uniform on and just going through the motions and not being involved.”
Halak expects Rask back
Jaroslav Halak said he remained in contact with Tuukka Rask through the playoffs after Rask left the bubble and expects they’ll be a tandem again next season.
“I was in contact with him. We are good friends off the ice so we kept talking in the bubble while he was there and when he left, I’ve talked to him a bunch of times. Our approach for next season doesn’t change anything. I believe we’ll be together and hopefully better than ever,” said Halak.
Back to reality
The end of every season is disappointing when you don’t lift the Stanley Cup, but losing this time around held the silver lining for players of being able to get back to what’s close to a normal life.
“It’s still a little weird being here. I mean I drove by the Garden for the first time today and it’s weird being back in reality,” said Brad Marchand. “I mean we were only gone for six weeks or whatever it was, but it’s a big change when you’re stuck in a hotel and you don’t have many things to do and now we’re back in society. And driving around and stuff, it’s just odd, but it’s a different feeling because typically this time of year we’re not playing, we’re preparing for training camp so just to be finishing up now and obviously with everything that’s been going on in North America and I guess all over the world, it’s just obviously we’re all going through it, it’s different times and things are odd and we’re trying to get that normalcy back, but it’s definitely a lot different being back than being in the bubble no question but I mean it’s nice to be back to family and back to reality and we’ll start preparing next year.”
No word on free agents
Unrestricted free agent-to-be Joakim Nordstrom said there’s been no contact with the Bruins regarding an extension (a recurring theme for players without a contract).
“I love my teammates and our staff has been great. Boston, this is an unbelievable place to live too and we have great fans so really enjoyed my time. It has to be under the right terms too, so we’ll see what happens here the next couple weeks or months,” said Nordstrom. …
Matt Grzelcyk, a restricted free agent, said it was understood that his situation would be addressed after the season.
Both his future paycheck and role could have a lot to do with what happens with fellow defenseman Torey Krug.
“I wanted to put that off until now, and yeah obviously I don’t want to speculate too much on what else is going on with other guys, but I’m sure the team has quite a lot to work out so I’m going to let that process happen organically,” said Grzelcyk.
Bergeron was hurting
Patrice Bergeron said he continued to deal with his chronic groin issues that have dogged him the last few years.
“It’s the same old song and dance with this. It comes and goes and it’s something I just manage and deal with,” said Bergeron.