Creativity, Poise Clinched David Krejci’s Spot On Bruins All-Centennial Team.
As part of the Boston Bruins’ centennial celebration, NESN will air a special “Ultimate Bruins Show” program honoring every member of the Bruins All-Centennial squad. Join us in honoring David Krejci on Thursday at 6 p.m. Eastern Time.
David Krejci, who wore the Spoked-B for 16 seasons, was selected to the Boston Bruins All-Centennial Team, which is made up of the 20 most illustrious players in franchise history, because of his unparalleled combination of inventiveness, poise, and perception on the ice. Find out more about Krejci’s choice this Thursday at 6 p.m. ET on NESN’s “Ultimate Bruins Show.”
Krejci hung up his skates following the Bruins’ historical 2022-23 campaign after playing his entire NHL career in a Bruins sweater. He amassed 231 goals and 555 assists for 786 points, which ranks him fifth in assists and ninth in points all-time for the Black and Gold.
Skating in 1,032 games for the Bruins, Krejci is one of three players, joining Patrice Bergeron and Wayne Cashman, to play at least 1,000 games while playing their entire NHL career in Boston. Krejci never wanted to play for any other team in his career.
“I didn’t want to play anywhere else for an NHL team,” Krejci told NESN. “This is the team. They have the whole package. The city’s great.”
Knowing the players that donned the Spoked-B before him, Krejci knew the Bruins’ culture was something different.
“Every year, I got to know the history a little bit more,” Krejci said. “What’s cool about this team is all those greats, Bobby Orr, Ray Bourque … you got Cam (Neely), (Don Sweeney), (Zdeno Chara); they’re still part of this family.
“That’s cool that the guys are not done and they’re around. They hang out. They know your name, which for young players, and Bobby Orr or Ray Bourque comes down and knows your name … that’s pretty cool. That’s something I remember most.”
From 2007–08 to 2022–23, the retired center recorded at least 20 assists in each season, with 53 assists in 2018–19. Even though Krejci’s regular season stats were impressive, he truly shone in the postseason.
With 23 points in 25 games, Krejci led all skaters in Boston’s 2011 Stanley Cup run. Even though the Bruins lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in six games in the 2013 postseason, Krejci again led the league in scoring with 26 points. Nevertheless, he had a significant role in Boston’s success that season. One may argue that he had a significant role in Boston’s three consecutive finals appearances (2011, 2013, and 2019).
With 128 playoff points in 160 postseason games, Krejci is tied for second all-time in Bruins history with Bergeron (170 games) and Brad Marchand (148 games). With 180 games played and 161 points, the trio is just behind Ray Bourque.
Completing the group of 12 forwards selected for the Bruins All-Centennial Team are him, Bergeron, Pastrnak, Marchand, Johnny Bucyk, Phil Esposito, Cashman, Milt Schmidt, Rick Middleton, Terry O’Reilly, and Bill Cowley.
Leave a Reply