Tom Brady, Mookie Betts, and now… Zdeno Chara. Three staples in the Boston sports lexicon gone to continue their careers elsewhere. It’s been a tough year for Boston sports fans… to put it lightly. Fourteen years ago on July 6th, 2001, the Bruins signed a six foot nine Slovakian behemoth named Zdeno Chara from the Ottawa Senators. They immediately named him their Captain. 1,023 games, and one Stanley Cup later, he has departed to spend (likely) his final seasons with Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals.

What exactly did Zdeno Chara mean to the city of Boston? Well, I’ll do my best to explain. The 2006-2007 season saw the Bruins finish last in the Northeast Division with a 29-37-16 record with a -36 goal differential. Fast forward 5 years… the Bruins now lead that division and win their first Stanley Cup in 39 years. Zdeno Chara came into the Bruins organization and changed an attitude.

He changed the way the team was lead. He not only demanded greatness, but he expected that, like him, his teammates would leave everything they had on the ice. He instilled fear into opposing benches, not only with his size, but the idea of what he might do to you if you were to run down one of his own. Coming back from a broken jaw with a mouth wired shut to continue playing in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2019 will forever remain a testament to what this team meant to Chara, and vice versa.

Thank you for everything Z, the Stanley Cup was never held higher than when you lifted it over your head in 2011.

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