Legendary Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara was officially inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on Sunday.
Chara played 24 seasons in the NHL, with 14 of them with the Bruins. He served as Boston’s captain for all 14 years and helped Boston win the Stanley Cup in 2011.
During his Hall of Fame induction speech, Chara reflected on his time with the Bruins and his decision to sign with Boston.
“I made the decision to sign with the Boston Bruins,” Chara said during his speech on Sunday. “Mr. Jeremy Jacobs, Charlie Jacobs, and the entire organization welcomed me and trusted me with the responsibility of leading one of the most iconic Original Six franchises. …
“Being named captain was a tremendous honor, and I was incredibly proud to lead such an amazing group of teammates to the 2011 Stanley Cup championship. We all wanted the same thing. We battled alongside each other for months, and we knew we had a team to do so. We had a very tight group of players in the Bruins’ room – a bunch of guys who didn’t want to disappoint their teammates.”
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Chara believes he and his teammates created a special culture in Boston, which helped them have so much success.
“We wanted to go hard each and every night,” Chara said. “I can tell you, everyone on that Bruins team knew their role. We had a very, very special team. We came in every day and stuck up for each other, played for each other, sacrificed our bodies, and refused to let the bench down.
“We had a great relationship with each other, but also a great relationship with our fans. Boston loves their Bruins, so thank you, fans.”
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Chara played in 1032 career games with the Bruins. He finished his NHL career skating in 1680 career games, recording 209 goals and 471 assists for 680 points.
He was a six-time NHL All-Star and won the Norris Trophy as the top defenseman in the NHL in 2009.
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