Before Monday, only two Boston Bruins members had played at least 1,000 games with the team and had never played for another National Hockey League team in their careers. Wayne Cashman played 1,027 games over 17 seasons, all with Boston, from 1964-1983. Cashman played one game in 1964-65 and his first full season in 1967-68. Patrice Bergeron is the other player to accomplish the feat, playing 1,258 games with the Bruins and counting.
On Monday, Bergeron’s longtime teammate becomes the third player as David Krejci reaches 1,000 games. The playmaking center will reach quadruple figures in an afternoon matinee against the Philadelphia Flyers at TD Garden. Krejci is in his 16th season with Boston after spending last year playing in his native Czechia.
The Bruins have welcomed Krejci back with open arms as the former second-round pick in the 2005 NHL Draft has given Head Coach Jim Montgomery a more balanced offensive attack back at his second-line pivot position. Krejci has played 37 of the team’s 42 games, scored 11 goals, handed out 20 assists, and helped push Boston’s power play to third in the NHL with 10 points on the man advantage.
At the end of the 2020-21 season, the Sternberk, Czechoslovakia native used his unrestricted free-agent status to go back to his native land to play for Olomouc HC in Czechia, where the right-shot center registered 20-26-46 in 51 regular season games and five points in five playoff appearances. Krejci returned to the Bruins on an incentive-laden deal similar to Bergeron, who elected to remain with Boston.
As Krejci reaches his 1,000th game, he is now just 23 games away from former teammate Zdeno Chara for sixth all-time on the games played list for Boston. With 535 career assists, Krejci stands sixth in Bruins’ history, has 18 assists behind Hall of Famer Phil Esposito, and sits ninth in points with 761.
Krejci might be best known for his postseason performances over the years. In 156 playoff games, Krejci has totaled 42-82-124 and led the NHL playoff leaders with 12 goals and 23 points as the Bruins won the Stanley Cup in 2010-11. The previous season, Krejci had four goals and four assists in nine games before getting injured in the second round against Philadelphia, a series the Bruins lost after leading the Flyer three games to none. When the Bruins lost to Chicago in the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals, Krejci led all players with 17 assists and 26 points in that postseason.
David Krejci is entering free agency again at the end of this season, which the Bruins organization hopes end in another Stanley Cup for Krejci, Bergeron, and Brad Marchand. It is yet to be seen whether the outcome of this year’s playoffs will determine Krejci’s decision to continue to play, but if it is indeed David Krejci’s last season, the slick-passing center will go down as one of the best players to play for the Boston Bruins.
