Boston Bruins

Boston Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron is hanging up his skates.

The 38-year-old announced his retirement from the NHL after 19 seasons in Boston on Tuesday.

Bergeron released a lengthy statement in which he thanked the Bruins, their fans and the many people who had a hand in his long and successful career. In part, he wrote:

"For the last 20 years I have been able to live my dream every day. I have had the honor of playing in front of the best fans in the world wearing the Bruins uniform and representing my country at the highest levels of international play. I have given the game everything that I have physically and emotionally, and the game has given me back more than I could have ever imagined.

"It is with a full heart and a lot of gratitude that today I am announcing my retirement as a professional hockey player."

The announcement comes as something of a surprise, as Bergeron appeared to have enough gas left for at least one more season.

However, there was some speculation about his future in Boston, as he only returned to the Bruins on a one-year deal for the 2022-23 campaign and took time after the season to determine his fate.

Before Bergeron put pen to paper on his contract for last season, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said he had spoken with Bergeron about a contract extension and that the length of his remaining time with the Bruins would be his call.

The Bruins selected Bergeron in the second round of the 2003 draft, and he has gone on to become one of the greatest players in franchise history. He tallied 427 goals and 613 assists for 1,040 points in 1,294 games.

He also had 50 goals and 78 assists for 128 points in 170 career playoff games, and was a key part of the Bruins' Stanley Cup-winning team in 2011.

Bergeron was still one of the most consistent players in the NHL as recently as last season, when he tallied 27 goals and 31 assists for 58 points in 78 games. It was his 10th straight season with at least 20 goals.

In addition to winning a Stanley Cup in 2011, Bergeron is a six-time Selke Trophy winner, given annually to the NH:'s best defensive forward. He also won the 2012-13 King Clancy Trophy and 2020-21 Mark Messier Leadership Award.

The Bruins named Bergeron their captain on Jan. 7, 2021, after the franchise let Zdeno Chara walk in free agency. He ranks third in Bruins history in games played, goals and points, and fourth in assists.

Veteran winger Milan Lucic is returning to the Boston Bruins, with TSN's Pierre LeBrun reporting Saturday he agreed to a one-year, $1 million deal with the team.

Lucic began his NHL career in Boston and spent eight seasons with the team. He's coming off a four-year run with the Calgary Flames.

The 35-year-old finished with fewer than 20 points for the first time in his career in 2022-23. He scored seven goals and assisted on 12 more.

That continued a prolonged trend as Lucic last hit 30-plus points in 2017-18. ESPN's Greg Wyshynski was blunt when he described the 2011 Stanley Cup winner as "an average defender and a below-average offensive player whose physicality could be what keeps him in the league."

But the Boston Globe's Matt Porter laid out Thursday why a reunion made sense for the Bruins. Lucic's experience could be invaluable depending if David Krejčí and Patrice Bergeron both retire, and he has remained durable, missing just seven games across his entire Flames tenure.

Fans in Boston will be happy to see Lucic back as well.

Trading Taylor Hall to the Chicago Blackhawks was a sign of how limited the Bruins were financially this offseason with Tyler Bertuzzi hitting free agency. They had to offload Hall's $6 million salary cap hit to have any realistic hope of retaining Bertuzzi, and his return is far from assured.

General manager Don Sweeney can't take many big swings this offseason, so a short-term, low-cost pact with Lucic makes a lot of sense.

The Philadelphia Flyers' teardown continues with James van Riemsdyk.

Van Riemsdyk agreed to a one-year, $1 million contract with the Boston Bruins in free agency after five seasons with the Flyers, according to Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff.

With the Flyers entering a full-scale rebuild, van Riemsdyk's departure this summer was more than expected, especially as the franchise was shopping him around the 2022-23 season's trade deadline.

The 34-year-old had a solid five seasons in Philadelphia, though his production has declined every year since he joined the team in 2018-19 and re-signing him this offseason wasn't worth it for Daniel Briere.

In 61 games during the 2022-23 season, van Riemsdyk tallied 12 goals and 17 assists for 29 points. It was his lowest point total since he tallied 29 points in 40 games during the 2015-16 campaign.

The Flyers selected van Riemsdyk second overall in the 2007 draft and he spent three seasons with the franchise from 2009-12 before being traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs ahead of the 2012-13 season.

In eight total seasons with the Flyers, van Riemsdyk tallied 146 goals and 151 assists for 297 points in 527 games. In 413 games across six seasons in Toronto, he notched 154 goals and 140 assists for 294 points.

While van Riemsdyk is past his prime, he still figures to still be a key contributor for the Bruins in 2023-24 and beyond alongside Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak, assuming the latter returns in free agency.

The Vegas Golden Knights won the 2023 Stanley Cup title with a 9-3 victory over the Florida Panthers in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Tuesday night at T-Mobile Arena, but oddsmakers already have their eyes on 2024.

The Colorado Avalanche and Boston Bruins opened as the favorites to win the 2024 Stanley Cup at +800, according to DraftKings Sportsbook. Here's a look at the 10 teams with the best odds:

• Colorado Avalanche: +800
• Boston Bruins: +800
• Toronto Maple Leafs: +900
• Edmonton Oilers: +1000
• Carolina Hurricanes: +1200
• New Jersey Devils: +1200
• Vegas Golden Knights: +1300
• New York Rangers: +1400
• Florida Panthers: +1400
• Dallas Stars: +1600 

The Avalanche have had one of the best rosters in the NHL over the last few seasons, and they last won the Stanley Cup in 2022. With Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen continuing to compete at a high level, it's no surprise Colorado is considered a top contender entering the 2023-24 season.

The same can be said for the Bruins even though they suffered an epic collapse against the Panthers in the first round of the 2023 playoffs. Boston will return a roster that features David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy, Hampus Lindholm and Brad Marchand next season, bringing the talent needed to lift the Cup for the first time since 2011.

Florida not having some of the best odds to win the 2024 title is somewhat odd, although the franchise is expected to open the season without some of its top players due to injuries suffered during this year's postseason run.

It's also hard to believe the Golden Knights don't have some of the best odds, though it is extremely difficult to repeat as champions.

The top-seeded Boston Bruins put together one of the biggest choke jobs in NHL history on Sunday night with a Game 7 loss to the eighth-seeded Florida Panthers at TD Garden, putting an end to a historic campaign that saw the franchise set single-season records for points and wins.

Just about every player on the team struggled in the first-round series, perhaps none more than potential Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark, who was benched for Game 7 in favor of backup goaltender Jeremy Swayman.

With the Black and Gold's season having officially come to an end, we are beginning to find out about what ailments the players dealt with in the playoffs.

Captain Patrice Bergeron said Sunday he played through a herniated disk in his back, and Ullmark played Games 1-6 with "a debilitating & painful injury that limited his mobility and technique," according to ESPN's Kevin Weekes.

Ullmark had a phenomenal regular season, posting a 40-6-1 record with a league-leading 1.89 goals-against average and .938 save percentage, in addition to two shutouts in 49 games.

However, the 29-year-old had an abysmal postseason, going 3-3 with a 3.33 goals-against average and .896 save percentage before being benched for Swayman ahead of Game 7.

The last straw for Ullmark was when he allowed six goals on 32 shots in a 7-5 Game 6 loss to the Panthers at FLA Live Arena. With such an uncharacteristic performance over the team's first six postseason games, questions about Ullmark's health arose.

However, when asked by reporters how he was feeling after Game 6, Ullmark responded: "I feel good. Thanks."

At this point, it's abundantly clear that the Boston netminder was anything but "fine," and the latest update on his health status makes the decision to continue starting him even more puzzling.

Like Ullmark, Swayman had a strong regular season, going 24-6-4 with a 2.27 goals-against average, .920 save percentage and four shutouts in 37 games. His goals-against average and save percentage were the fourth-best in the NHL.

It's possible Swayman could've helped the Bruins close out the series when they were up 3-1, but instead the team continued to start Ullmark and went on to blow that series lead.

Boston's loss isn't entirely on Ullmark as the team in front of him also struggled mightily throughout the series, but now Bruins fans are left with even more questions about what could have been after a magical regular season.

The Boston Bruins were 59 seconds away from the Eastern Conference semifinals when the Florida Panthers scored on Sunday night.

Brandon Montour's late 6-on-5 goal tied the game in the last minute of regulation, stunning Boston fans and forcing overtime. Boston lost 4-3 on Carter Verhaeghe's goal and was eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs.

It was a rollercoaster Game 7 for Bruins enthusiasts.

The Bruins had lost only 20 total games this season, five of which came courtesy of the Panthers. Florida showed why by dominating early, putting the Bruins in a 2-0 hole just over a minute into the second period.

David Krejci cut the deficit to one in the second period when he beat Sergei Bobrovsky's blocker on a power play with his first postseason goal. However, blind passes, miscues and giveaways plagued the Bruins throughout the rest of the frame, entering the break trailing 2-1.

When the puck dropped for the start of the third, it seemed the momentum had shifted.

The Bruins overwhelmed the Panthers on an early power play, and Tyler Bertuzzi scored to tie the game at 2. Suddenly, this looked like the Boston team that recorded an NHL record 65 wins during the regular season.

David Pastrnak earned the Bruins their first lead of the game by scoring on a long rebound off of Brandon Carlo's shot, making the score 3-2 with 15 minutes remaining. It looked like the team had done enough to take Game 7.

The Bruins held on to the lead for 14 minutes until Montour beat Boston goaltender Jeremy Swayman in the final sixty seconds to tie the game at 3.

In overtime, Swayman blocked a breakaway from Matthew Tkachuk and made a point-blank stop on Carter Verhaeghe to keep the Bruins alive, but it was Verhaeghe who got the last laugh. His goal at 8:35 of OT ended Boston's historic season.

Bruins fans were left stunned, especially given that this the last game of captain Patrice Bergeron's contract.

Boston became the first Presidents' Trophy winner to be eliminated in the first round since the Tampa Bay Lightning were upset by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2019 playoffs.

The Panthers, having come back from a 3-1 series deficit, will now advance to face the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals this upcoming week.

The Lightning went on to win two straight Stanley Cups. Bruins fans can only hope this team is destined for a similar journey.