Patrice Bergeron is back for another year with the Boston Bruins.
Bergeron signed a one-year deal with Boston worth a $2.5 million in base salary with incentives that could earn him another $2.5 million, the Bruins announced Monday.
Back for year his 19th season in the Black and Gold, the reigning Selke Trophy winner expressed excitement when speaking with reporters at his Monday press conference.
“I want to say I’m extremely excited to be back for one more year with the Boston Bruins,” Bergeron said, per team provided audio. “Obviously, it’s an organization that means the world to me. I’ve started here and been extremely loyal, and I’ve learned a lot over the years, being a part of the organization. I feel like I’ve grown immensely. Boston is my home, my family is excited to be back alongside myself in Boston. I can’t wait to go over there.”
Bergeron’s deal can accurately be placed in the “team-friendly” category, as he and fellow Bruins lifer David Krejci signed within minutes of each other on low cap deals. Boston’s captain believes this iteration of the Bruins is ready to make another run.
“I’m really confident and I believe in this team, I believe in management and I think we’ve made those decisions this summer. Obviously, I want to play, but I wanted to play with the Boston Bruins because I believe in this team and I believe in the organization,” Bergeron said. “That’s never going to change. You’re right, there’s going to be some adversity at the start of the year, but to me, that’s probably a good thing. Obviously, you’d rather have (Brad Marchand) and Charlie (McAvoy) and (Matt Grzelcyk) from the get-go on the ice, but that being said, it’s a better and bigger opportunity for other guys to work on their game, but also so show what they have and what they can bring. Make them better players and make us a better team ultimately. I think when there’s challenges, there’s always positives that can come out of it. That’s how I see it, and I think that adversity can make you an even stronger team down the stretch.”
Boston is set to open up training camp in Sept. and the captain says he’ll be ready to lead the Bruins into the 2022-23 season.
