Zdeno Chara will be sticking around with the Boston Bruins for a little while longer. The Bruins announced that they have inked their captain to a one-year contract extension. The deal will carry a base salary of $2M with the opportunity to earn another $1.75M in performance bonuses. Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports that Chara will receive $1.25M for playing in 10 games, $250K if the Bruins make the playoffs and $250K if they win the Stanley Cup in 2020.
The 42-year-old is currently in his 21st NHL season and the 11th with Boston. While he is no longer the high-end top pairing anchor he once was, he has still proved himself to be a valuable member of their back end. This season, Chara has played in 55 games, collecting just 11 points but is still averaging nearly 21 minutes a night, third-most among Bruins rearguards.
In his career, Chara has played in 1,478 games between the Islanders, Senators and Bruins, which ranks fourth among all active players. His next goal will be the 200th of his career and will make him just the 22nd defenseman all-time to reach that plateau.
The deal actually represents a sizable pay cut from his current contract, which carries a $5M base salary with the same bonus structure as this new pact. While his offense has tailed off, this type of contract is certainly fair value for a mid-tier defender, which is probably the best role for Chara at this stage of his career.
With the contract, the Bruins now have five of their top seven defenders locked up for next season with a total cap hit of $13.9M guaranteed (not including the likely $1.25M for Chara playing in 10 games or Dennis Seidenberg’s buyout cost of $1.167M). That amount will go up considerably this summer with youngsters Charlie McAvoy and Brandon Carlo slated to be restricted free agents. Even so, Boston should be able to bring back its entire defense corps for next season, one that has been quite effective as its 186 goals allowed is the third fewest in the NHL.
By: Brain La Rose
