Tuukka Rask talks Patrice Bergeron & David Krejci’s futures, Bruins’ centennial season
"All the good things come to an end and we all know as athletes that our careers don't last forever."
Tuukka Rask is enjoying retired life.
After hanging up his goalie gear in February 2022, the 36-year-old Rask’s schedule now is far less demanding than his days between the pipes for Boston.
“Just the same as last year,” Rask, now an ambassador for the Bruins, said of his current day-to-day routine. “Lots of golf, lots of family time. A little bit of work during the winter, but not a whole lot. It’s good.”
It remains to be seen if two of Rask’s longtime teammates in Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci will join him on the links in short order.
An ailing hip injury forced Rask to halt a comeback attempt and call it a career after 15 seasons in Boston.
Such misfortune hasn’t befallen Boston’s two-headed monster down the middle in Bergeron and Krejci.
Bergeron secured his sixth Selke Trophy and thrived as Boston’s top-line center in 2022-23. Krejci didn’t show much rust following his one-year trek to his native Czechia, posting 56 points in 70 games in his usual perch as the Bruins’ second-line pivot.
But given the mileage that both 37-year-old centers have tacked onto their bodies, coupled with other commitments outside of the rink, there’s no guarantee that Bergeron and Krejci grace the TD Garden ice once again in 2023-24 — beyond joining Rask as recently retired legends during the franchise’s centennial season festivities.
And in the wake of both Don Sweeney and Cam Neely’s comments regarding Bergeron and Krejci’s uncertain future, Rask said that the decision to walk away from the game is not something the veteran centers will take lightly.
“Mine was fairly easy — I had an injury, so that made it easier,” Rask said of the decision to retire. “But it’s never easy to retire, you know? You’ve done this sport your whole life. Everybody’s gonna get to that point where you have to make a decision.
“Whether it feels easy at the moment, it’s gonna create some bumps on the road. That’s just life. All the good things come to an end and we all know as athletes that our careers don’t last forever. That’s just life.”
As for any advice he has for both Bergeron and Krejci as they mull their decision?
“I’m the last person to offer any advice [on] if they play,” Rask said with a smile. “I’ve seen them. I’ve talked to them. They seem to be in good spirits.”
Rask, speaking before Tuesday’s Boston Pride Hockey scrimmage at Warrior Ice Arena, doesn’t usually spend much time on the ice these days.
His days in the crease are long gone. During Tuesday’s scrimmage, he switched to forward — dishing out a few silky backhand feeds and even finding twine with a few wristers.
“Personally, I’m just looking to get a sweat nowadays,” Rask said. “This is actually awesome, getting a little skate in.”
Rask’s new schedule usually doesn’t necessitate daily check-ins on the latest news around the NHL.
But the former Vezina Trophy winner did praise Linus Ullmark after the Bruins netminder became the third Boston goalie in the last 15 years to take home the Vezina Trophy.
“It’s awesome,” Rask said of Ullmark’s win. “I did not watch last night but I learned about it this morning. I just texted him a few hours ago and congratulated him. It’s great to see. It speaks a lot about what this organization has done and how the play has been and how everybody kind of has evolved in their position and Linus is a great example of that.”
The 2023-24 season will be a busy one for Rask and the Bruins.
With Boston unveiling a number of “Era Nights” and other initiatives as part of its centennial season, Rask will likely factor heavily into multiple festivities.
Despite his polarizing presence in the Boston sports sphere, expect Rask to draw plenty of cheers when he’s honored as a cornerstone of this fruitful chapter in the Original Six franchise’s history.
“You play for an Original Six franchise — it’s a great honor to begin with, and then you have a long career with them and you kind of make your mark,” Rask said. “You don’t really realize the thing when you’re playing. But then after you retire, you look back and with the centennial season coming up. Personally, I’ve been part of that for over a decade.
“It’s a great honor and a great privilege as a hockey player. It’s great that I’m retired and I get to celebrate on the other side and I’m local, so I get to participate in a lot of the celebrations, probably. So it’s awesome.”
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