WASHINGTON — Longtime Boston captain Zdeno Chara signed with the Washington Capitals on Wednesday, saying his former team had decided to move on from the towering defenseman who helped the Bruins climb back into the top echelon of the NHL and win the Stanley Cup in 2011. “I’m proud that we were able to return the Stanley Cup to Boston,” …
Zdeno Chara logged 1,023 regular-season games and 150 postseason appearances for the Bruins. But nobody could dispute how some of Chara’s other numbers — a 56.25 percent 5-on-5 goals share, 3:46 average power-play ice time per game, 3:22 shorthanded action per appearance — blended with how powerfully he dominated the eye test. Returning in Game 3 of the first round …
It’s possible that Zdeno Chara would have helped the 2020-21 Bruins, certainly at an inexpensive cost. What Sweeney couldn’t forecast with the clarity he wanted was how swiftly and accurately Chara would merge back onto the NHL highway. There’s a lot of factors in play about what makes sense for us and what makes sense for Zdeno.” The Bruins got …
