Patrice Bergeron Wanted To Retire At Top Of His Game
Patrice Bergeron announced his retirement but still had some gas in the tank. Even at age 38, Bergeron took home his 6th Selke award. He’s one of the best 200-foot players in the history of the sport and seemed to be aging like a fine wine. Check out his player card from a year ago. The Bruins captain could have kept playing if he wanted to.
Patrice Bergeron has announced his retirement. #NHLBruins pic.twitter.com/IP1MDo52iU
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) July 25, 2023
Bergeron had nothing left to prove so nobody blames him for retiring. He’s a Stanley Cup champion, future Hall of Famer, and part of the greatest regular season team in the history of the sport. Bergeron said he wanted to go out on top. Retiring after he was already washed wasn’t an option.
“It was taking a lot longer now. I couldn’t just put the equipment on and jump on the ice,” he said.
“I wanted to play the game at the highest level that I could, and felt like I wanted to kind of leave on top of my game,” Bergeron told a gathering of reporters, with representatives from ownership and the front office also in attendance for the news conference in the aptly named Legends restaurant. “I just knew it was time.”
Bergeron suited up 19 seasons for the Bruins and posted 427 goals and 613 assists. That’s not including another 128 points during the postseason. He’s a one-in-a-million type of player. The Bruins struck gold when they selected Bergeron with the 45th pick in the 2003 NHL Draft.
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