'Zee's Final Shift' brings Chara back to ice for tribute game

TRENCIN, Slovakia -- When Zdeno Chara symbolically took off his skates and walked off the ice in his socks, a truly stellar group of honorary guests paid homage to him on his way to the locker room. The list of players who showed up at Pavol Demitra Ice Stadium in Trencin, Slovakia for the game called "Zee's Final Shift" on Friday demonstrated the significance of Chara in the world of hockey.

"Most of his former teammates came here today from different parts of the world, which is a thing they would not do for just anybody," Marian Hossa, former NHL forward and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, said.

"The goodbye evening was a beautiful event, and I am glad that we could meet here at Trenčín again after three years," Hossa, who had had his own "Goodbye Game" on the same ice on Aug. 18, 2023, said. "I believe someone will make a movie about Zdeno one day because there would definitely be a lot to talk and film about."

Hossa was not the only Hall of Famer on the ice on Friday. Aside from Chara himself, who was inducted in November 2025, Ray Bourque and Mark Recchi were also in attendance. Chara's former Boston Bruins' teammate Patrice Bergeron, who will be inducted this November, was also there.

U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame member Tim Thomas, who was the goaltender for the Stanley Cup-winning Bruins in 2011 with Chara as captain, was also in attendance. Anze Kopitar, who finished his own NHL career after playing 20 years for the Los Angeles Kings and could be invited to the Hockey Hall of Fame, was also there to support Chara.

"What a great event for a great person and a champion. He deserves all of it," Kopitar said. "He's always so humble, he's always a team guy. For once he was in the spotlight. I know he doesn't like it, but he deserves every second of it."

Jaromir Jagr, who has still not officially ended his playing career and is still open to the possibility of lacing up his skates for Kladno of the Czech Republic's top professional league next season, was there with David Pastrnak. The Bruins' star forward was the only current NHL player in Trencin because Florida Panthers' forward and Chara's longtime teammate Brad Marchand could not take part due to injury.

Other former players from Slovakia such as Peter Bondra, Miroslav Satan, Marian Gaborik, Jozef Stumpel, Michal Handzus and Jaroslav Halak also could not miss this event. Chara's 10 year old twin sons Ben and Zack were on the ice too, enabling their dad to play his first ever hockey game with them.

"I was skating here as a young boy and now they are those young boys," Chara said. "Time has passed so quickly. I will never forget this moment and I believe they will have some nice memories as well."

Before the game, a ceremonial puck drop featured three former Bruins captains in Bourque, Chara and Bergeron. The 65-year-old Bourque, an NHL all-time leading scorer among defensemen with 1,579 points in 1,612 games, took the ice and played the entire game.

"He is impressive. Still out there doing his thing," Bergeron said. "Ray was a consultant in my first few years (in Boston), he would get on the ice after he retired. He must have been 45 at the time, and he was still the best player on the ice. He is obviously a legend of the Bruins, legend of the game and an amazing person as well.

"When (Bourque) came here, that speaks by itself," Hossa said. "Everybody was here to show respect to Zdeno. It is unbelievable what he has accomplished during his career. He never gave up. Not when they were sending him to play basketball instead, not when his gear was too small for him, not when they assigned him to a B-team. Despite all those things, he was able to get to the top. It is admirable, especially because he did not have as much talent as we did. But it was his dedication and hard work, intensity and doggedness that got him there."

Chara played his last NHL game April 29, 2022, with the New York Islanders, where he had started his career as the No. 56 pick in the 1996 NHL Draft. The 6-foot-9, 250-pound defenseman finished it with an NHL record for games played among defensemen (1,680), a Stanley Cup championship with Boston in 2011 and a Norris Trophy as the League's best defenseman in 2009. He also played for the Ottawa Senators and Washington Capitals, serving as the Bruins' captain for 14 years in between.

His work ethic, attention to detail and preparation on and off the ice became legendary.

"(My first memory of him), ironically, was in the gym," Bergeron recalled. "I don't think it surprises anyone. He was working out, the first time meeting him in person. I was really impressed with how kind he was and also how intense he was and how hard he worked. He was never satisfied. From that day on as a team, things changed because of him."

During Chara's captaincy from the 2006-07 through 2019-20 seasons, Boston had the fourth-best record in the NHL, with 615 wins and 1,364 points, and played in the Stanley Cup Final three times (2011, 2013, 2019), winning in 2011 when Chara became the first captain born and raised in a country behind the Iron Curtain to ever hoist the Cup. 

"I was very lucky I was able to share the locker room for 14 years with him," Bergeron said. "Learned a lot from him. I was 21 years old when he came in, so I was still young and needed his guidance and to learn from him. It was nice for me, or a nice bond, over time. He started as a mentor and (our relationship) finished as a great friendship. He was a big influence on my career.

"You never tried to be like 'Zee' because you'll be disappointed. I was always trying to be myself. I was lucky enough to look up to him, having him as a mentor and a friend for 14 years. When I got the captaincy, I had a lot of experience and learned a lot of things from him, so I was ready at that point because of that. So I owe a lot to him." 

The only player at the event who had no hockey memories with Chara was soccer legend Petr Cech. A former Chelsea FC and Arsenal FC goaltender, Cech took up hockey as a goalie on a semi-professional level after retiring from soccer and was one of the goalies on Friday.

Although he did not know Chara as well as the others did, his level of admiration was the same.

"I think that his path to greatness is extremely interesting since he had a hard time breaking through with his body," Cech said. "Many people thought that he was too tall, that he wouldn't have the agility and skill and that hockey would not be the game for him, but he has shown us all that hard work and diligence are more than (agility and skill), and he has worked his way to becoming one of the best defensemen in the NHL. This makes him a perfect example to follow for everybody."