Boston Bruins: Top 5 Players Most Likely To Have Their Number Retired
By Luke Ryan
Zdeno Chara
It almost goes without saying that the number 33 will be hanging in the TD Garden rafters before too long. After all, this is the captain that lifted the Stanley Cup in 2011 after our 39-year drought.
Not only that though; Zdeno Chara embodies everything we expect from a Boston Bruins captain; he’s a fearless leader, he’s put his body on the line countless times for the team and has a fantastic veteran nurturing countless young defensemen when they first started in the league.
He is a Boston Bruins icon with over 1000 regular season games and a further 142 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the team. Let’s not forget that in his heyday, he’d be out there thirty minutes a night too.
You only need look at last season’s Stanley Cup Final to see how important the Boston Bruins’ success is to the captain. He suffered a broken jaw in that series and was unable to eat, drinking his meals through a straw, yet he still continued to give his all for the team.
His return at TD Garden for Game 5 of that series with the St. Louis Blues was a goosebump-inducing moment and one absolutely deserved by a warrior of a player.
He’s been to three Stanley Cup Finals in Boston Bruins colors and although he has only lifted the Stanley Cup that once, he’s never backed down from the physicality and intensity you have to show to even get within touching distance of it.
While his game is now slowing down and he can’t quite compete on the same level he once did, you can make an absolute guarantee that it won’t impact upon the adoration Boston Bruins fans hold for him.
The biggest question really is just when will hang up his skates for that one last time? The moment that occurs, you can rest assured a banner will be ordered.