Boston Bruins coach Jim Montgomery is in the habit of checking how many minutes Patrice Bergeron has played after every period. He checks David Krejci's time on ice, too.
Montgomery understands the value in managing the playing time of his top two centers, especially Bergeron, who at age 37 and in his 19th NHL season has plenty of miles on his skates.
You have to go all the way back to Bergeron's rookie campaign in 2003-04 to find a lower average time on ice than the 17:48 he has recorded this season. The Bruins captain played a season-low 12:54 this past Saturday in a blowout win over the New York Islanders and the game prior to that against the Nashville Predators, he eclipsed just over 14 minutes.
But in a narrow win over the Ottawa Senators on Monday, Bergeron was on the ice for over 19 minutes, and those adjustments in playing time are by design.
"I guess when you have a lead like the Islanders game I'm very conscious of it. When it's close game like the Ottawa game, I really use him in key moments," Montgomery told reporters following practice Wednesday, per team-provided video. "The tight games he's going to play his minutes. He's like my pacifier out there. Just make sure everything's OK and I'm OK behind the bench."
Montgomery said Bergeron, who has 20 goals and 21 assists for 41 points, hasn't given him a hard time when he plays a lesser amount. In fact, it's the opposite from the aging star.
"'Whatever best for the team.' That's what he always says to me," Montgomery said. "I remember one game earlier in the year, I think we were in Colorado. He only played 14 minutes. It was him and (Brad Marchand), they played 14 minutes and they never look back. There's never any negative body language about not playing the minutes their accustomed to.
"I was just saying I appreciate that because they do it everybody follows suit. He says, 'I'm never going to complain to you about ice time.' And that's just his mentality."
Even though his minutes are down, Bergeron hasn't missed a game this season. Not even after taking a puck to the face earlier this season against the Islanders that left him bruised and battered.
Bergeron said Bruins management discussed with him about sitting out a game or two after the incident, but he felt he could keep playing. He also conceded the two sides will probably have another conversation as the regular season winds down, especially with the Bruins having six back-to-backs still remaining on their schedule.
While the Bruins keep piling up wins at a historic rate, keeping Bergeron fresh for an elongated playoff run is a clear priority, too.
"I think whatever is there for me," Bergeron told reporters, per team-provided video. "I'll never be one of those guys that looks at minutes and gets frustrated with it. I understand those type of games and situations. It's a long season as well. Every line is contributing and playing well. It's just a great thing to have as a team when you're able to do that."
