Some big Boston sports news on Tuesday morning, as Patrice Bergeron has announced his retirement from the Boston Bruins and the National Hockey League. Shortly after that news broke, it was revealed that Jaylen Brown has signed his five year supermax contract to remain part of the Boston Celtics.
Bergeron will go down as one of the best two way forwards in the history of the league, and spent all 19 of his seasons with the Boston Bruins. He won a record six Selke Trophies as the best defensive forward in the NHL, including the last two. He served as the teams captain for the last three years after being an alternate captain to Zdeno Chara for over a decade. He is third in goals (424), points (1,040), and games played (1,294) in franchise history. Bergeron helped win Boston a Stanley Cup in 2010-11, and made two other appearances in the Finals in 2012-2013 and 2018-19 where the Bruins lost both series to Chicago and St. Louis. He also won two Olympic Gold Medals with Team Canada in 2010 and 2014. His best season with Boston was in that 2018-19 campaign where he had 79 points (32 goals, 47 assists). The retirement comes a day after his 38th birthday. Bergeron was pondering retirement at the end of the 2021-22 season, but decided to return on a one-year deal and led the B’s to the best regular season in NHL history before being upset by the Florida Panthers in the first round of the playoffs. He had 27 goals and 31 assists in what will be his final curtain call in 2022-23.
Bergeron said in the statement, “It is with a full heart and a lot of gratitude that today I am announcing my retirement as a professional hockey player,” he said in a first-person story on NHL.com. “As hard as it is to write, I also write it knowing how blessed and lucky I feel to have had the career that I have had, and that I have the opportunity to leave the game I love on my terms. It wasn’t a decision that I came to lightly. But after listening to my body, and talking with my family, I know in my heart that this is the right time to step away from playing the game I love.”
Bergeron went on to say, “Finally, to the next generation of hockey players. I had a dream at 12 years old, and through hard work and perseverance my dreams came true more than I ever could have imagined. Respect the game and your peers. Welcome adversity and simply enjoy yourself. No matter where you go from there the game will bring you so much happiness,” he said. “As I step away today, I have no regrets. I have only gratitude that I lived my dream, and excitement for what is next for my family and I. I left everything out there and I’m humbled and honored it was representing this incredible city and for the Boston Bruins fans.”
Brown became the richest player in NBA history by inking a five year, $290 million dollar max extension that could be as much as $304 million. The 26-year-old is coming off a career high 26.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 3.5 assists this past season earning him second team All-NBA honors and helping the Celtics to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals a year after an appearance in the league Finals against Golden State. The new contract does not include any player option.
The two-time All-Star Brown struggled at times in the playoffs, particularly as a playmaker and especially in this year’s Conference Finals, where he shot 16.3% on six 3-point attempts per game and totaled more turnovers (25) than assists (24). Some of his production decline can be attributed to a laceration on his shooting hand that repeatedly re-opened throughout the postseason, but he also struggled to contain his ball-handling in the 2022 Finals loss to the Warriors. His teammate, Jayson Tatum, will overtake Brown as the highest paid player next summer as the former Duke star is also eligible for a five year supermax in excess of the $304 million that Brown is earning.
Story by Chris Lessner
