Bruins' rich history celebrated at Centennial game

BOSTON -- At the conclusion of a yearlong celebration of their century in the NHL, the Boston Bruins passed the puck on Sunday.

Twelve of them, to begin their second century.

With the current team sitting on its TD Garden bench, a 20-minute ceremony before Boston’s 6-3 victory against the Montreal Canadiens paid tribute to the life of the Bruins, who joined the NHL in 1924 as the first United States-based team.

The team’s rich history has been saluted during a year of special events and signature game nights. On Saturday, a slap shot from the arena, the Bruins’ Centennial Legacy bear monument was unveiled, a 3,500-pound bronze colossus that was created to reflect the spirit and resolve of the team and the city it calls home.

Bruins chief executive officer Charlie Jacobs asked fans at the unveiling to start a new tradition of rubbing the bear’s foot to bring the team good luck. Throughout Sunday morning, a long queue of fans waited for their chance to do just that.

Later Sunday, the Bruins’ history was sliced into five sections in a scoreboard tribute that brought to the ice 11 former stars, current captain Brad Marchand and family members of four late legends from the team’s formative years:

The Early Years, 1924-70; Big, Bad Bruins, 1970-85; Lunch Pail A.C., 1977-85; New Blood New Beginnings, 1985-2000; and Return of a Champion, 2001 to present.

With sticks specially made for the occasion, the 16 guests walked to a black carpet that filled the center-ice face-off circle, arriving in small groups following a video tribute to each era.

Boston Bruins legends and family members on TD Garden ice for the opening ceremony of the team’s Centennial game. From left: Wayne Cashman; Willie O'Ree; Pamela Coburn, granddaughter of the late Lionel Hitchman; Terry O'Reilly; Greg Theberge, grandson of the late Dit Clapper; Jason Allison; Phil Esposito; Brad Marchand; Patrice Bergeron; Nancy Sommer, daughter of the late Milt Schmidt; Ray Bourque; Cam Neely; Bobby Orr; Johnny Bucyk; Ted Shore, son of the late Eddie Shore; and Rick Middleton.

It was a remarkable group that began with trailblazing pioneer Willie O'Ree; Nancy Sommer, daughter of the late Milt Schmidt; Pam Coburn, granddaughter of the late Lionel Hitchman; Greg Theberge, grandson of the late Dit Clapper; and Ted Shore, son of the late Eddie Shore. The modern-era stars began with 1970s icons Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, Johnny Bucyk and Wayne Cashman. From 1977 through 2000: Rick Middleton, Terry O'Reilly, Cam Neely, Jason Allison and Ray Bourque. And onward from 2001 to today: Patrice Bergeron and Marchand.

Bruins architect Harry Sinden offered an essay on “What It Means to Be a Bruin,” touching upon the cornerstone qualities needed to wear the black-and-gold jersey and bleed only those colors.

And then the Bruins turned the page “to the next century,” 12 youth-league players skating onto the ice and taking their place a short distance inside both blue lines, taking a pass from those assembled on the carpet.

Legendary Canadiens goalie Ken Dryden, not even a rookie when he drove a stake through the heavily favored defending-champion Bruins’ hearts in the first round of the 1971 Stanley Cup Playoffs, represented Montreal for the ceremonial face-off, Bucyk dropping the puck for Boston.

Boston Bruins icon Johnny Bucyk and Montreal Canadiens goaltending legend Ken Dryden, with two youth hockey players, prepare for the ceremonial Centennial game face-off between the Bruins’ Brad Marchand (left) and Nick Suzuki of the Canadiens on Sunday.

“I think the pregame ceremony was terrific,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said following the first period, Bruins fans then in a party mood with a 3-0 Boston lead.

“When you think about all the activities that were conducted honoring prior captains, prior players, honoring the fans, showing how much and how well-connected this team is to the community … it was a remarkable year, but this is a remarkable franchise. Everything that went on here in Boston for the Bruins is a testament both to the organization and to the amazing fans.”

For a few hours before the game -- held on the 100th anniversary of the Bruins' first NHL game, a 2-1 home victory against the Montreal Maroons -- a Fan Fair on Canal Street across from the arena brought together a huge crowd for hands-on activities and two superb photo opportunities:

In from the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto was the Stanley Cup, an obvious draw for fans; the Art Ross, Norris and Selke trophies were displayed nearby, as were six showcases filled with historic Bruins artifacts from the shrine.

Two Boston Bruins fans pose with the Stanley Cup during a Fan Fair event on Canal Street in Boston on Sunday.

Team alumni happily posed for photos with fans who didn’t mind a bit the brisk temperatures on the first day of December.

Bergeron laughed at the idea that he might try to make off with the Selke, which he won six times as the NHL’s best defensive forward.

“Think anyone would notice?” he joked.

Being included in the Centennial game celebration touched Bergeron, a silky-smooth captain of the Bruins from 2020 through his retirement in 2023.

“I mean, it’s special, just to be a part of it means a lot to me,” he said before the game. “You think of all the history that this franchise has had, the legends who have been through these doors. It’s very meaningful to me to be part of the celebration, especially against Montreal and their history as well.”

Bergeron, a native of L’Ancienne-Lorette, Quebec, said he didn’t know much about the history of the Bruins when he arrived in 2003 to begin his 19-season NHL career, all of it with Boston.

“But as soon as you walk in and see the legends walking in at any given time, from John Bucyk, Wayne Cashman, who was an assistant coach back then, Ray and all the amazing players, Cam,” he said. “You understand it very quickly. It makes me realize what it means to wear that jersey and the pride you have to wear it.”

Boston Bruins legends Terry O’Reilly (left) and Rick Middleton make a fan happy with a photo during a Fan Fair event on Canal Street on Sunday.

Bourque, another French-Canadian whom Canadiens fans grudgingly loved with the Bruins, raved about all that the Bruins have done the past year to celebrate their centennial.

“It’s been a phenomenal year. The Bruins organization has done a great job,” he said. “I got to come back two or three times last year for some of the celebrations. They were fantastic, just reuniting with some of the guys you played with during my time here and people who came before me.

“It was a lot of fun, this being the final chapter, closing the book on 100 years. It’s amazing how the history and everything that’s happened in 100 years for the Boston Bruins. It’s quite a feat. It’s been amazing to be a part of this for almost 21 years. To this day I’m a big fan. I bleed black and gold. My family and I are all still here in Boston. This is another special day to be part of.”

Bucyk has been a member of the Bruins family since he arrived by trade in 1957. He loves the city, its proximity to the ocean so he can go fishing, and the relationship the team forever has had with its community.

The icon known as Chief laughed about the intense rivalry between the Bruins and Canadiens, saying that no matter how wild the on-ice battles were, grudges were never held away from the rink and a cold beer might be shared between opponents after the final siren.

TD Garden viewed from the ninth floor during the opening ceremony for the team’s Centennial game on Sunday.

“We used to play physical and have a lot of fights, but that’s the way the game was,” he said. “And the fans loved it, so we had to keep them happy. The fans in Montreal were great. They respected us. They used to boo us all the time when we came in. I’d look at them and say, ‘You can boo us all you want, I’ll thank you in the summer when I’m spending your money.’

“The Bruins celebration has been unbelievable. It’s been good for me to see a lot of the players I played with, and I played with a lot. Just to see that they’re OK, having fun … we’re all enjoying this whole thing.”

O’Ree, who broke hockey’s color barrier with the Bruins in Montreal on Jan. 18, 1958, was delighted it was the Canadiens who were Boston’s Centennial game opponent.

It would be a big game “for me to see [the Bruins], you know, beat the Canadiens,” he said. “When I scored my first goal in the NHL, it was against the Montreal Canadiens here in the Boston Garden on Jan. 1, 1961. So those two (moments) really stick in my mind.

“When I went to their training camp in 1958, I became a Bruins fan. And since then, everything has been just absolutely fantastic for me. This is a great organization and I'm proud and very happy to be a part of it, really.”

O’Ree would get his wish with a Boston victory, a bit of revenge for the Bruins’ 5-1 loss to the Canadiens on Dec. 4, 2009, in Montreal when the latter franchise turned 100, its birth in the National Hockey Association predating the NHL by eight years.

In Boston on Sunday, the message of the afternoon was clear with the passing of a dozen pucks by legends to eager young players: the Bruins will not forget their past, but their eyes are now sharply focused on their future.

Top photo: Youth hockey players join a select group representing the Boston Bruins for Sunday’s Centennial game ceremony at TD Garden. From left: Wayne Cashman; Willie O'Ree; Pamela Coburn, granddaughter of the late Lionel Hitchman; Terry O'Reilly; Greg Theberge, grandson of the late Dit Clapper; Jason Allison; Phil Esposito; Brad Marchand; Patrice Bergeron; Nancy Sommer, daughter of the late Milt Schmidt; Ray Bourque; Cam Neely; Bobby Orr; Johnny Bucyk; Ted Shore, son of the late Eddie Shore; and Rick Middleton.