BOSTON -- The Boston Bruins added a little new blood to their coaching staff on Friday.
It came in the form of a very familiar face.
Patrice Bergeron dropped in to Warrior Ice Arena, taking time to do on-ice work with forwards Fraser Minten and Morgan Geekie ahead of the full team practice. It’s not the first time the former Bruins captain, who retired after the 2022-23 season, has worked with the current team under coach Marco Sturm.
“I try to get him in here once in a while, just to give those guys a few tips and work on stuff,” said Sturm, who played with Bergeron from 2005-10. “Today he worked on a few things with 'Geeks' and 'Mints' and some other guys behind the scenes. I think that’s just great. I just want to take that opportunity to pick his brain because he is the best.”
Minten was all ears.
“It’s unreal,” Minten said. “He’s one of the best. Anytime you can learn from one of the best you’re going to try to.”
The 21-year-old forward aspires to be exactly the kind of player Bergeron was, a high-IQ, 200-foot center. So he was more than willing to be tutored on the finer points of being the bumper on the power play on the ice, in addition to watching face-off videos behind the scenes.
Bergeron, a six-time Selke Trophy winner voted as the NHL's best defensive forward, is third on the Bruins' all-time scoring list with 1,040 points, third in goals (427), fourth in assists (613), third in games played (1,294) and fourth in power-play points (326). The 40-year-old, who played his entire 19-season NHL career with Boston from 2003-23, won the Stanley Cup with the Bruins in 2011.
“He knows a lot more than I do," Minten said, "so I’m just trying to listen and learn.”
He wasn’t alone.
“He was a staple on the bumper for a long time here,” Geekie said. “At least for me, he kind of revolutionized how that was played, being a threat to score as well as kind of supporting all over. Just a different way to think about it and add some tools to our game.
“It’s always good when you have a legend like that teach you some things.”
So would Bergeron ever be interested in taking a more formal on-ice role, in becoming a part of a coaching staff? Sturm demurred, acknowledging that question should be directed to Bergeron, who is enjoying spending time with his family and doing some media work with Boston following his long career.
But when pushed?
“My feel, I would say yes,” Sturm said. “Just not now. He’s way too busy.”
