BRIGHTON, Mass – Patrice Bergeron made a little news the other day when he mentioned on Toucher and Rich that he wasn’t full of burning desire to go to NHL All-Star weekend. Instead, Bergeron wanted to stick around home and spend time with his newborn son, which obviously seems like a great reason to skip the late January exhibition weekend.
“No, not really," Bergeron told 98.5 The Sports Hub's "Toucher & Rich" when asked if he cared about going to All-Star weekend in San Jose. "I just had a newborn baby boy. He's a month old, so obviously that time would be nice to be home.”
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Bergeron further clarified those comments when speaking with the media after morning skate Thursday at Warrior Ice Arena. He stressed that he would be going if he was indeed voted as the “Last Man In” for the Atlantic Division. The new league-created online vote ends on Thursday. Bergeron said he meant “no disrespect” to the All-Star selection process and wouldn’t be pulling an Alex Ovechkin or a Carey Price and skipping the festivities if chosen.
Of course, he also said he’d appreciate the “non-votes” too.
“Obviously, it was with no disrespect when I said that,” said Bergeron, who has 14 goals and 38 points in 27 games despite missing a month with a chest injury. “It’s obviously always an honor to be going there and be chosen, whether it’s by the league or by the fans it means a lot. This situation is different. Every year if you’re asked to go then you’re going to go.
“But this is more the reality that I’m in right now. I don’t know if it’s an issue more than with a couple of guys that go every year. I know Washington won the Cup and with the short summer maybe that’s the reason behind it. But where I stand, it’s always an honor and you want to be there in any given year. But this year is different. It should be something you’re proud of, but there can be different reasons why you wouldn’t be able to attend.”
Bergeron then wrapped it up with a gentlemanly request that you pick somebody else from the Atlantic Division, which is likely given the Toronto voting power and Morgan Rielly’s candidacy for the All-Star team as well.
Boston Bruins
“It’s not a good way to make a sales pitch, I guess. We’ll see what happens. If that’s what the fans want then I guess I’ll be there, and if not I’ll appreciate their non-votes.”
So there you have it, fans. Feel free to skip Bergeron with as many votes as you want and leave David Pastrnak as the sole Bruins All-Star representative later this month.
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