If it wasn't previously established, Boston Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron officially will go down in history when he decides to conclude his storybook NHL career.
Bergeron won a history-making fifth Frank J. Selke Trophy on Sunday, as announced by the league. Bergeron did so in a landslide while earning 160 of the 192 first-place votes and more than doubling the runner-up in voting points.
The Selke Trophy is given annually to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game as judged by the Professional Hockey Writers' Association. Â
"It's definitely an honor. I think I'm humbled. That's the first word that comes to mind," Bergeron said Sunday during a video conference. "It's an individual award, but obviously you can't get any of those without the help of all of your teammates. I've said that in my acceptance speech, there are so many people to thank and there's a reason why (he's won them). I've been fortunate enough to play on great teams and to win five Selkies. And, yeah, it goes to them, obviously. As I said, it's humbling. Really, that's the only word I have."
Bergeron is the first player in history to win the award five times (2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2022). Hockey Hall of Fame forward and Montreal Canadiens legend Bob Gainey won the award four times. Bergeron has been nominated for the award in an NHL record 11 straight years.
"Yeah, definitely experience of mine has helped me tremendously over the years especially as you get older. The 11th in a row is, as a player, I think you want to be a consistent player, you want to be known as a consistent player. So yeah, it is nice to be recognized that way," Bergeron said. "But I've said that many times, that's the way I've learned to play the game and that's the way I want to play the game. And I don't think I would have changed the way that I play on the ice or the way I have done it for the last 18, 19 years now. I think I've learned a lot so many great people, coaches that have made me a better player, obviously."
Bergeron beat out two other finalists including Florida Panthers' Aleksander Barkov and Calgary Flames' Elias Lindholm.
Bergeron also offered some additional news during his video conference Sunday, sharing how he had offseason surgery on his elbow. He joins a list of Bruins players to have had offseason procedures.
