Zdeno Chara is leaving Boston Bruins after 14 seasons and signing a one-year free agent contract with Washington Capitals.
Chara, 43, will earn $ 795,000 under Washington’s salary cap. He said the Bruins decided to take a different direction, and the unrestricted free agent was not in his plans.
“Boston Bruins informed me that they plan to move on with their many younger and more talented players and I respect their decision,” Chara wrote in a statement posted on Instagram.
Chara, the captain of the Bruins, played 1,023 games for Boston after arriving as a free agent in July 2006. He had 148 goals and 333 assists and was a plus-240 for the Bruins, serving as the base for one of the most successful defenders. dominant league teams in the past decade. He was captain of three Bruins teams until the Stanley Cup final, winning the championship in 2011.
The 1.90m defender was a five-time finalist in the Norris Trophy with the Bruins, winning the prize once in 2008-09.
“Unfortunately, my time as the proud Captain of the Bruins has come to an end. First of all, I would like to thank the passionate and loyal fans of the Bruins, who have shared the ups and downs of each season for the past 14 years. I am proud to be able to return the Stanley Cup for Boston and celebrating with all of you in Boston, New England and around the world, it was a moment I will never forget, “he wrote.
“As I begin this next chapter, I want the people of Boston to know how proud I was of being a Bruin and how grateful I am for all the support over the years. ‘Thank you’ does not seem appropriate to express my sincere gratitude. I will always be a Bruin. I will always love Boston. “
Chara joins a team from the Capitals who lost in the first round of the playoffs in two consecutive seasons after winning the Stanley Cup for the first time in 2018. The Capitals hired coach Peter Laviolette in an effort to encourage their veteran team; adding Chara, one of the NHL’s most feared and respected captains, reinforces that effort.
“We are extremely pleased to have Zdeno joining the Capitals organization,” said senior vice president and general manager Brian MacLellan. “We feel that your experience and leadership will strengthen our blue line and our team.”