Zdeno Chara will sign with the New York Islanders

Zdeno Chara is going back to the place where his NHL career began.

The former Bruin will sign a one-year deal with the New York Islanders, the team announced Saturday.

Chara, 44, was drafted by the Islanders in the third round of the 1996 NHL Draft. He made his debut with them in 1997, staying in New York until 2001, when he was traded to the Senators.

Shortly after the deal was announced, Chara took to Instagram to share the news.

“I had to get some dust off them, but sure they still looking good!” Chara wrote in a post with two old Islanders jerseys.

Chara played with the Capitals this past season, heading to D.C. after 14 seasons in Boston. He scored two goals and had eight assists in 44 regular-season games. Chara didn’t put up a point in the Capitals’ five-game first-round series loss to the Bruins.

Of course, Chara’s 14 years with the Bruins are the most memorable stretch of what’s about to be a 24-year NHL career. In Boston, Chara captained a Bruins team that won its first Stanley Cup in 39 years, defeating the Canucks in the Stanley Cup Final. He also helped the Bruins reach the Stanley Cup Final in 2013 and 2019, but both ended in losses.

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