Boston Bruins: Analyzing and grading the 2019-20 season of Patrice Bergeron
By Matt Hawkins
How did center Patrice Bergeron do in 2019-20 for the Boston Bruins?
After setting career-bests in points (79) and assists (47) and also matching his career-best in goals (32) in just 65 games in 2018-19, Boston Bruins veteran center Patrice Bergeron continued his stellar play in 2019-20.
In 2019-20, although he was not on the same 1.22 point-per-game pace that he was on in 2018-19, Bergeron was still phenomenal putting up 56 points (31 goals, 25 assists) in just 61 games.
Bergeron consistently controlled and drove the play. This can be seen in his great possession metrics of a 56.0 Corsi-for percentage (CF%) and 55.5 Fenwick-for percentage (FF%) and his 36.0 expect goals for (xGF).
To go along with his offensive success, Bergy has continued his elite level of defensive play leading to being the runner-up for the Frank J. Selke Trophy — marking his ninth consecutive year in which he was in the top three in voting.
Once again, Bergeron was dominant in the faceoff circle, winning nearly 58% of his draws. Furthermore, his defensive point shares (DPS) was third-highest among forwards on the team at 2.3.
In the playoffs, Bergy continued his great play posting eight points (two goals, six assists) in 13 games and winning over 56% of his faceoffs.
What grade does Patrice Bergeron deserve for his 2019-20 season with the Boston Bruins?
Bergeron has seemed to age like a fine wine — as he gets older, he seems to get better. However, this could be because he has two top-10 wingers on his line in Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak.
Either way, Bergeron is still one of the most complete centers in the NHL and on the Bruins. Just because he has two of the best wingers in the league on his line doesn’t mean he’s not as great as his stats say.
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I think Bergy deserves the highest grade possible for his play in 2019-20. He was a top-three scorer on the team and one of the best defensive forwards on the team and in the NHL. An A+ is more than deserved.