By: Garrett Haydon | Follow Me On Twitter @thesportsguy97
Bruins Captain Zdeno Chara confirmed today during the end of season media availability that he indeed played through a broken jaw and in fact played through multiple fractures in his jaw after blocking a Brayden Schenn shot in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final. The expected recovery for Chara is 5-6 weeks.
Zdeno Chara, meeting with reporters during the #NHLBruins end-of-season media availability, confirms he had multiple fractures to his jaw. Expected recovery is 5-6 weeks. pic.twitter.com/Sa07lcZkOh
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) June 14, 2019
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Chara made a miraculous return to the lineup just days after suffering the injury, as he didn’t miss any time in the lineup. He, however, only played 16:42 in the Game five loss as the Bruins decided to play seven defensemen. The 42-year-old then played 22:15 in the B’s 5-1 win in Game six which was the second-highest time on ice total on the team. With his goal in Game six, Chara became the oldest player to score in a Stanley Cup Final game, and with his appearance in Game seven, he broke the record for most Game seven appearances with 14.
Did You Know? @NHLBruins captain Zdeno Chara has missed only 4 of his team’s 184 playoff games over the course of his 14 postseason appearances dating to 2002.
Game 6, 2002 CSF w/ OTT
Game 7, 2002 CSF w/ OTT
Game 2, 2011 CQF w/ BOS
Game 4, 2019 CF w/ BOS#NHLStats #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/66LK2xPje8
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) June 7, 2019
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Chara signed a one-year extension on March 28th as he was set to go into this offseason unsigned. There’s obviously no guarantee he does indeed come back as it would be feasible for him to retire as well. Knowing him, however, I would be very surprised if he chose to hang them up. It will be interesting to see if his minutes decrease next season considering his age and considering the capable young defensemen on the Bruins roster already.
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