Tuukka Rask made it clear in the offseason he only wanted to play for the Boston Bruins.
There probably were a bevy of reasons why the veteran goaltender wanted to remain where he’s always called home, but having Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand as teammates played a big role in that decision.
Rask signed a professional tryout with the Providence Bruins on Thursday morning, marking his next step in rehab for his inevitable return to the NHL. The 34-year-old never contemplated retiring and never thought about signing with another team.
And he revealed how Marchand and Bergeron were part of that reason.
“A lot. A lot. That’s why I never really, in my head, I didn’t want to flirt with the opportunity to go anywhere else,” Rask said Thursday over Zoom. “A lot of it, it’s a business, but for us players when we’ve had a team like the Bruins, basically a bunch of us have grown up together here, you kind of feel that brotherhood and you don’t want to leave guys on bad terms. So I just wanted to try to come back and be helpful and make finish it up with a bunch of those guys I’ve played with my whole career.”
Now more than ever it’s obvious how much of an impact Bergeron and Marchand have on their teammates.
Bergeron is in the last year of his contract, while Rask’s future beyond this season is unclear.
Rask will start for the P-Bruins on Friday night and could make another appearance Sunday, as well.
