Patrice Bergeron is about to enter his tenth NHL season. When he was picked up in the second round (forty-fifth overall) of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft, the Bruins knew they had something special. In the last ten years, he has played six hundred and sixty games in a Boston Bruins uniform (eighty three of them in the post season). # 37 has been a constant on-ice presence and been recognized by his peers across the NHL as one of the best two-way forwards on the ice today. He was awarded the Selke last year for being the best two way forward in hockey, and was a nominee this year.
Bergeron is probably one of the most team-minded players on the Bruins. He’s certainly not a ‘me first’ player and he has always thanked the team for any honor he has been given. He talked about that mentality a few days ago. “It’s the mentality in the organization.” said Bergeron. “It’s team first and to me it means a lot. That’s the only way you can win and, to me, it exemplifies exactly the values that I have. You can tell what it means to be a Bruin and I just want to do it every time I step on the ice and for over the past five years we have a great core of players that are working towards the same goal.”
This is a player that has sustained injuries and come back even better each time. He played through a myriad of injuries that would have hospitalized practically any other pro athlete. He has four hundred and ninety career points, and will likely notch #500 very early in the season. It is all but decided that Patrice Bergeron’s #37 will hang from the rafters one day. So, why doesn’t Patrice Bergeron have the ‘C’ on his chest yet?
Granted, the current captain of the Bruins is still an amazing player. Zdeno Chara has held the captaincy for as long as he’s been a Bruin. While I do not dislike Chara, and I think he’s done an excellent job these last few years as a player, I personally think Bergeron is more of a leader on the ice than Chara is. Hockey starts in less than two months. I believe in the midst of all these changes that have taken place in the locker room this year, the Bruins need to make one more organizational change and put the ‘C’ on the right player’s jersey.
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Jun 3, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron (37) takes the ice against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the first period in game two of the Eastern Conference finals of the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the CONSOL Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports