Boston Bruins player outlook 2018: Zdeno Chara will continue to defy time

Boston Bruins captain Zdeno Chara continues to be an ageless wonder. At 41-years-old he still is able to be a quality defenseman in the NHL.

Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara is an absolute beast. Standing at 6’9″ he is one of the most intimidating players to ever play the game. The fact that he doesn’t injure a player in every game he plays in is a testament to his kindness.

Chara’s career is as impressive as it gets. He has been playing hockey since I was born. A 20 year NHL career isn’t something you see every day.

Big Z has made a home in Boston. He has spent more than a decade with the Bruins and may even end up getting his number retired by the organization (better not be before Patrice Bergeron).

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Chara had a solid season last year. He played in 73 games and scored 7 goals and 17 assists. Even as he gets older, Chara continues to be a solid defenseman. Thanks to a 100 MPH slapshot, Chara is still a threat in the offensive zone and can rifle amazing slap passes to teammates.

In the postseason Chara wasn’t as special. He did have a goal and 2 assists but struggled in the defensive zone. With the Bruins playing some quick teams, Chara looked like he needed a walker on the ice. He looked slow as molasses and struggled to keep up with players.

Prediction time:

This season Chara will be a serviceable defenseman, but I’m not expecting him to have amazing numbers. Even though he has continued to defy time I think he will be taking a backseat to Charlie McAvoy.

Chara will continue to be a leader on and off the ice, but that will be the only thing he is leading. He probably won’t be lighting the lamp too often.

This offseason has been an intriguing one for Chara. He has proven to be an interesting follow on Instagram and is doing workouts in what looks like an abandoned high school gym.

I expect Chara to score 5 goals and 10 assists. Bruins fans shouldn’t have their expectations sky high. Chara is nearing the end of his career and will have more of an effect outside of the stat sheet.

Chara also had a rating of +22 last season. This season I think Chara will be much closer to even. I don’t expect Chara to somehow get faster, so I think Chara’s lack of speed will be pretty evident.

Hopefully Chara will continue to defy expectations and have a great season, but it is time for Bruins fans to realize Chara’s best days are behind him.