Adam McQuaid Thrilled to Continue His Career in Boston

Adam McQuaid has seen parts of six seasons with the Bruins. Despite missing a lot of time due to injuries, McQuaid has established himself as a tough defenseman who has for years stepped into the “Big Bad Tough Guy” role that Boston needs.

He was set to become a free agent on Canada Day and the veteran defenseman knew it was possible that he would have to move on from Boston. That wasn’t the case. The 28-year-old defenseman was sitting down to watch the NHL Draft when he received a call from the front office. His four-year, $11 million dollar contract was soon to come.

“I didn’t expect it to come together that quick,” he said, regarding his deal with the Bruins.

McQuaid knew that the Bruins’ brass had options, including letting him walk. While having to move on sat in the back of his mind as a possibility of a harsh reality, McQuaid knew that he wanted to come back to Boston.

“The closer and closer it got to that timeframe, I had to prepare myself for it, so I wasn’t completely taken off-guard by the situation,” McQuaid said. “It was different to try and picture myself in other places and where I might be a good fit….When Boston came back with trying to get something done it was hard to picture myself going anywhere else.”

Adam McQuaid has seen his ups and downs in Boston, and has been plagued by injuries more than one time. However, he’s played an important role for the Bruins on quite a few occasions.

His most memorable Bruin moment my have come in 2013, when the Bruins swept the Penguins in the Eastern Conference Finals. McQuaid scored game four’s only goal midway into the third period, which eventually put Boston into the Stanley Cup Final.

All things considered, McQuaid feels lucky to be involved with the Bruins organization, the same one that traded for him coming out of junior leagues, and stuck with him through several injury-plagued seasons.

“They traded for me coming out of junior, gave me opportunities to develop and stuck with me through some unfortunate period of times where I wasn’t able to play,” McQuaid said. “I feel like I owe a lot to that organization and that team.”

While nobody is expecting McQuaid to come out and score a ton of goals next season, the Bruins will be relying on him to play consistently solid defense.

Despite the various moves that Boston has made this offseason, McQuaid thinks that the Bruins will be right in the midst of the playoff battle.

“Even though there’s been some changes made . . .  I think we’re still a group that is capable of doing good things and is going to be competitive. I wanted to make sure I was in that type of environment,” McQuaid said.

“It’s a short career and a short window of opportunity. I’ve been fortunate enough to win before and I want to do it again.”

Boston will continue to make moves, and Adam McQuaid may even have some new friends on the blueline come fall.