Patrice Bergeron has been a fixture in the Boston Bruins' lineup for the past 17 seasons, and if they have their way, that stint will be extended beyond the upcoming 18th year in 2021-22. Speaking with reporters, including NHL.com’s Tracey Myers, Bruins GM Don Sweeney indicated that discussions regarding a contract extension for Bergeron have been started:
"Patrice and Kent Hughes, his representative, and I have had discussions about where Patrice is at. We’ll keep those private as we do all the others and let him decide what path he wants to take. Obviously, it’s a completely open door for how long Patrice wants to play the game for us, and we’ll leave it at that."
The 36-year-old sits third in franchise history in games played and fourth in points and remains one of the premier two-way players in the league. He’s a four-time Selke Trophy winner for the top defensive forward in the NHL and has been a top-three finalist for that award in 10 straight years. Over that stretch, he has averaged at least 0.76 points per game, and over the past four seasons combined, he has been a bit better than a point-per-game player. That has made him an extremely valuable part of their core, and he became their captain after Zdeno Chara left last fall.
Considering that Bergeron hasn’t really slowed down much over the last few years, it’s more than understandable that Boston would love to keep him around. It’s also a situation where they almost have to keep him. David Krejci opted to go back home to the Czech Republic (though Sweeney wouldn’t rule out a return down the road), which took away the other half of their long-standing center duo. Internally, they’ll rely on Charlie Coyle to shift back down the middle, and there is no top-line center prospect in the pipeline. Basically, there isn’t anyone ready to take Bergeron’s place, emphasizing the need to keep him around.
Bergeron is entering the final year of his contract that carries a $6.875M AAV, and assuming he has a similar season to 2020-21, he could get more money on the open market if he wanted to go somewhere else. However, the likelier scenario is that he would leave some money on the table and sign for something close to what he’s making now. With talks underway and a mutual desire to get something done, it feels like it’s only a matter of time before Bergeron’s stay with the Bruins is extended even further.
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