Only for Guild Members » Sweeney said Chara’s influence

Boston Bruins defenseman Zdeno Chara signed a contract that will take him through his 42nd birthday Mike McGlinchey Jersey , and he’s already anticipating the next one.

”I believe, myself, that I’m going to be playing beyond this contract,” he said on Wednesday after agreeing to a one-year deal that will pay him at least $5 million.

”No matter how long you want to continue to play, you have to perform. You have to back up your status,” he said. ”So I know I need to go out there every night and do my job, perform and play hard and work hard and be a great example for my teammates. (The) rest of it, it will fall into place.”

A five-time All-Star who was the league’s best defenseman in 2009, Chara turned 41 this month but still leads the Bruins in time on ice with an average of 23 minutes per game. He has seven goals and 16 assists this season, his 20th in the NHL, and is the franchise’s third-leading scorer for a defenseman, behind Hall of Famers Ray Bourque and Bobby Orr.

”He’s been a dominant player this year,” Bruins general manager Don Sweeney said. ”He takes all of the hard matchups still, doesn’t shy away from any situations and has embraced the role that he’s kind of emerged into. … He’s indicated that he wants to perform at a high Lamar Jackson Jersey , high level, he expects to perform at a high level, and he’s backed that up.”

Chara was in the final year of a seven-year, $45 million contract that reportedly paid him $4 million this year. His new deal guarantees him $5 million but also has incentives that could pay him $1.75 million more.

”I will not be surprised if we’re sitting here (again),” Sweeney said, ”because he’s indicated he wants to continue to play.”

Sweeney conceded that Chara had leverage if he went to the free agent market. But the 6-foot-9 Bruins captain said he wanted to stay in Boston and help develop young players such as Charlie McAvoy, Jake DeBrusk and Anders Bjork.

”I believe in this team,” Chara said. ”It’s very exciting to be a part of this team. I think this team has a chance, and that’s all you can ask for. The rest of it is up to us to do on the ice. So, yeah, that was my priority, to stay in Boston, to be a Boston Bruin.”

Sweeney said Chara’s influence isn’t just on the younger players.

”It really is a ripple effect through our whole hockey club,” the GM said. ”Every player realizes the bar is set so high with a player that has accomplished as much as he has Nick Chubb Browns Jersey , yet he shows up every day. … At times, when we’re trying to get him off the ice, he wants to be on it more. So, I think the example for excellence starts with Zdeno.”

Chara played in the Bruins’ first 68 games this season before an unspecified injury that has sidelined him since March 13. Boston has also played without Patrice Bergeron, David Backes, Rick Nash, Torey Krug, McAvoy and DeBrusk this month, but is just one point behind the Tampa Bay Lightning for the best record in the Eastern Conference heading into Thursday night’s matchup.

”I’m so proud of the team, and what the guys have been able to do with so many guys being out of the lineup,” Chara said. ”Just a great indication that this team has a never-give-up attitude and willing to fight till the last whistle.”

—

鈥?Zach Ertz went out wide in the formation in yet another play-calling twist by Philadelphia coach Doug Pederson, facing one-on-one coverage from New England safety Devin McCourty with the Patriots leading the Eagles by one point late in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl.Ertz cut inside on a slant pattern, causing McCourty to stumble and trail the route, and moved into perfect position to catch the pass from Nick Foles and launch his body across the goal line with 2:21 left .The NFL’s frequently contested and often confusing process-of-the-catch rule left some doubt for the Eagles Cheap Carlton Davis Jersey , with a nerve-wracking wait for the replay review to confirm the touchdown before the Eagles were officially in the lead.There’s no mystery about this, though: Ertz has turned himself into one of the league’s elite tight ends.“He just really had a solid year, all the way around,” right tackle Lane Johnson said. “He really improved on his blocking this offseason, took a lot of things to heart. Just became a better football player, man, and caught that touchdown there at the end. I just couldn’t be happier for him. He works his tail off.”Ertz had seven catches for 67 yards to help Foles and the Eagles outlast the Patriots 41-33 in a Super Bowl that featured the most combined yardage gained in the history of the NFL in the modern era.The most important of the nine times Foles threw his way was that play that culminated with the ball popping up in the air after Ertz landed on the green Eagles paint in the end zone.Ertz caught it on the ricochet, but the key for the legality of the play was going to be whether he turned himself into a runner before crossing the plane or if he was still in the process of making the catch. The former was the ruling.“That seemed like an eternity over there. I mean, if they overturn that, I don’t even know what’s a catch anymore,” Ertz said.“I had three steps in the ground. I extended for it. My back leg dragged on the ground. The city of Philly would’ve been hot if they’d have overturned that. Luckily for our city they did not.”With a career-high eight touchdown catches with 824 receiving yards in 14 games during the regular season, Ertz came through with the kind of performance that he needed after a trying year for both him and the team in 2016.During a December defeat that season in Cincinnati, Pederson said afterward that not all of his players gave maximum effort. Ertz was caught on camera sliding through a pair of Bengals defenders , including hard-hitting linebacker Vontaze Burfict Joe Thomas Jersey Elite , during one play while quarterback Carson Wentz scrambled out of bounds.“I never really shied away from that situation I had to endure. There were some people that would say it was definitely just. It was tough. I love that the fans never gave up on me,” Ertz said. “I told them at the time that they would never question my effort again, and I’m lucky to be in this situation playing for this city, and I never take it for granted.”With Rob Gronkowski on the other side, Ertz was automatically going to be the bridesmaid tight end in this game , despite his emergence as one of the NFL’s best.Now Ertz will not only have the Super Bowl ring that Gronkowski already possessed in double, but he’ll be able to catch up in the trophy case at home. His wife, Julie Ertz, has a World Cup championship from 2015 for the U.S. national soccer team . They were married last March.“She’s just so happy for me,” Ertz said, adding: “Our marriage is extremely strong even though we’re pulled in 1,000 different directions.”.