There have officially been 94 players to score at least 1,000 points in NHL history with Patrice Bergeron being the latest player to join the illustrious scoring club. The Bruins’ captain would hit the milestone following the Boston Bruins 5-3 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning, making Bergeron just the fourth player in Bruins’ history to hit the mark, joining Ray Bourque, Johnny Bucyk and Phil Esposito. In typical Bergeron fashion, the assist served to be a clutch one as it was recorded on Brad Marchand‘s game-winning goal; Marchand getting the goal on Bergeron’s 1,000th point was also incredibly fitting.
Bergeron wasn’t immediately sure that he had touched the puck and recorded his 1,000th point, but he was quickly embraced by the entire Bruins’ lineup as they all took to the ice to celebrate alongside their captain. This was certainly a surprise to Bergeron, but a welcome one nonetheless.
“No, I didn’t know,” Bergeron said in NESN’s postgame coverage when asked if he knew his teammates would all take to the ice to celebrate. “I just saw (Brad Marchand’s) reaction. That’s when I kind of realized that I touched it, so I got it. It was kind of a surreal moment. It actually was cool to see everyone jump on like that and very thankful for you know all those guys — a big part of what makes it fun to play this game.”
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Marchand would discuss the celebration in the postgame coverage as well.
“We talked about it as a group. Obviously, we’ve seen in the past where guys get to celebrate with him, and it is a special moment. It doesn’t happen often, and obviously couldn’t be with a better guy. So, just a great opportunity to be out there and have the whole group celebrate with him. We were happy to be there, be part of it, and just so happy for him. It’s just another milestone in such an incredible career. Obviously, a Hall of Famer, so it’s fun to see.”
To honor the veteran forward, six of the seven other active players to achieve 1,000 career points would also give their well-wishes and congratulations to Bergeron in a video. Included in this video message was Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, Patrick Kane, Anze Kopitar, Eric Staal and Nicklas Backstrom.
In scoring his 1,000th point, Bergeron would also further cement his legacy in not just Bruins’ history, not just NHL history, but in hockey history. It’s clear that Bergeron has put together a career worthy of being a bonafide first-ballot Hall of Fame inductee given his contributions to hockey history.
Bergeron is a First-Ballot Hall of Famer
While recording 1,000 points wasn’t a necessary addition to his career to solidify his legacy or make him an iconic figure in Boston sports history, this is still an accomplishment that Bergeron should be incredibly proud of. This is even more impressive when considering Bergeron’s struggles with concussions earlier in his career which could have very easily derailed his on-ice future and taken away an all-time gentleman of the sport from the hockey world far too soon. Instead, Bergeron has gone on to become one of the most decorated players in NHL history and he’s currently the captain of the NHL’s leading team and is in search of at least one more Stanley Cup before he calls it a career on his own terms.
When people look back at Bergeron, many will refer to him as one of, if not the greatest defensive forward the game has ever seen. This is true and Bergeron’s record five Selke Trophy wins can back this claim up. Still, this statement by itself doesn’t paint the full picture. Though Bergeron should be recognized for his defensive prowess, his 409 goals and 591 assists show that he’s so much more than a defensive-minded player. In fact, Bergeron would score upwards of 20 goals in each of the past nine seasons, and 10 of the last 11 with the only exception coming in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season. Taking it a step further, Bergeron would score 30-plus goals six times in his career entering the 2022-23 season.
Yes, Bergeron is an excellent defensive player, but his offensive contributions deserve way more credit than people account for. With 1,000 points under his belt, it will be hard to ignore moving forward – not that Bergeron seems like the kind of player who would really take it too personally anyway.
