Patrice Bergeron still serving as a valuable resource for Bruins amid deadline drama
"I’m trying to beg him to come back. He’s looking good."
Patrice Bergeron officially hung up his skates over the summer, but the former Bruins captain’s influence is still felt in Boston’s dressing room.
While Bergeron’s steadying presence and words of encouragement are no longer broadcast from Boston’s bench, the 38-year-old ex-Bruin kept tabs on his longtime teammates during the stressful stretch of days leading up to the NHL trade deadline last week.
Speaking on Saturday after the deadline passed, Bruins netminder Linus Ullmark admitted that Bergeron reached out to him last week as trade rumors hovered over him.
Jake DeBrusk found himself on similar unsteady ground last week. With no progress achieved in contract talks with Boston and the 27-year-old winger set to his free agency in July, DeBrusk stood as one of the few viable trade chips available on Boston’s roster.
Speaking on Monday, DeBrusk noted that Bergeron also reached out to him over the last few days as the winger mulled his future.
“It’s been nice to see him around the rink, just talk to him a little bit,” DeBrusk said of his former linemate. “He has reached out and just kind of sent some messages. I miss that guy. It’s one of those things I was waiting for at trade deadline was wanting him to come back because anytime he’s around the room, I’m trying to beg him to come back. He’s looking good.
“But no, it’s obviously someone that I lean on a lot when we’re together, and it just speaks volumes of his character. Just out of the blue, getting a text from that guy – it’s like you’re getting a text from your first date.”
DeBrusk expressed a “sense of relief” with staying put in Boston, at least through the end of the 2023 season. Some of that consolation might be reflected in his recent performances on the ice — with DeBrusk recording six points (two goal, four assists) over his last five games.
Charlie McAvoy isn’t surprised whenever players trudging through the anxiety of the trade deadline regularly settle into a groove after rosters are locked into place for the postseason.
“Once you get out the other side of that, whatever outside noise is swirling around, and wherever your mind will take it, you can just be at ease now,” McAvoy noted. “So everybody that’s in here, right now, this is our team. And I’m excited. I’m excited for what the future is here. And for the rest of the season, how we can build and we can round into form for the playoffs.”
It still remains to be seen if DeBrusk will remain in Boston beyond this spring. Ullmark is still under contract through the 2024-25 season, but could be dangled in trade discussions once again this summer, especially if Boston signs Jeremy Swayman to a long-term extension.
But for now, DeBrusk and the Bruins are trying to stay focused on the task at hand. After all, a strong playoff run for DeBrusk might offer the fastest avenue toward a nice pay raise — be it in Boston or elsewhere.
“I’ve had uncertainty before in different ways. … Obviously, I definitely thought my year would be different in certain ways,” DeBrusk said. “So at the end of the day, I think that it’s stuff that we always talk about — there’s only certain things that you can control and certain things that you can really focus on.
“And it’s inhuman not to think about those things, to be honest. But there’s lots of good support around here for me. I have guys that are on this team that I lean on, guys that were on this team that I lean on [who] reach out and all that stuff. … You just got to go out there and play.”
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