At six-foot-nine, perennial Norris Trophy contender, Zdeno Chara is accustomed to standing out. However, in Game 7 against the Montreal Canadiens, Chara stood out for all the wrong reasons.
The Bruins captain was held pointless, shotless, took two penalties and had the backbreaking third Canadiens goal bounce in off his leg late in the final period.
“I don’t know what happened to Chara. He looked old; he looked tired; [he took] stupid penalties,” Cherry told Brady and Walker on Sportsnet 590 The Fan Thursday. “He was awful. That was the worst he’s ever played was in that series. He just looked like he was 50 years old, I hate to say it.”
Don Cherry talks Bruins, P.K. Subban, Sidney Crosby and Dion Phaneuf
The 37-year-old registered just four points and took seven minor penalties in 12 post-season games.
Some feel the big blueliner wasn’t 100 percent healthy in the series. According to James Murphy of the Boston Herald, Chara was playing injured and needed treatment prior to Game 7.
Cherry has close ties to the Bruins organization — he coached the team from 1974 to 1979 — and he was disappointed to see how things unfolded in the seven-game series between bitter Original Six rivals.
“The Bruins learned an awful lot in that series, that you can’t play stupid and win anything,” Cherry said. “That was a stupid series for them, as far as I’m concerned.”
One player who did perform well for the Bruins was Jarome Iginla. The 36-year-old is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, but Cherry believes he’ll re-up with Boston.
“He’ll stay with the Bruins, there’s no doubt about that,” Cherry surmised. “[Claude Julien] really likes him and he plays him to death. That’s the best year he’s had in about five or six years, so he’ll stay with the Bruins.”
Iginla led the team in playoff goals, with five, and was tied for the team lead in regular-season goals with 30 — the 12th 30-goal campaign of his NHL career. Iginla registered 61 points in 78 games and had a career high plus-34 rating.
