Cam Neely Reiterates How Patrice Bergeron Is Approaching Free Agency

The Boston Bruins are hoping this season isn’t the last for Patrice Bergeron.

At the same time, they are giving their captain the space he needs to make his own decision about his future.

Bergeron, 36, is entering the final season of his contract. He is tabling all discussions until after the season, at which point the most likely scenario is he either returns to Boston and continues playing on a year-to-year basis, or he retires.

The door is open for Bergeron to play in Boston as long as he’d like, a point team president Cam Neely made clear Wednesday.

“I think he really wants to, and rightfully so, see how he feels at the end of the year and see if he still has the passion and the drive to be the player he’d like to be, Neely said over Zoom. “I’d certainly love to see him continue.”

There’s a lot of tread on Bergeron’s tires, but he is still an incredibly impactful player. Time will tell on how much he has left in the tank, but at this point, he hasn’t shown any signs of declining.