Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron refuses to answer questions about his future in Boston

Boston Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron has certainly earned the respect of his organization, his peers and NHL fans with his stellar two-way play over the course of his 17-year NHL career.

Thinking of Bergeron as anything other than a Bruin at this point seems illogical, however, a series of replies to NHLdotcom's Amalie Benjamin on Wednesday has certainly created a bit of concern over whether or not Bergeron will be back in Boston after the 2021-22 season.

Bergeron is set to enter the final year of an 8-year, $55M deal with the Bruins this season and is coming off of a very strong 2020-21 season that saw the veteran forward record 48 points in 54 games.

Benjamin, who had spoken with Bergeron Wednesday about his current contract status, asked whether the four-time Frank J. Selke Trophy winner would entertain the idea of signing a new deal this season. The response she was met with was riddled with uncertainty.

"I'm going to play out this year, and then talk about that after," said Bergeron.

While this isn't a particularly uncommon response from players who are entering the final year of a deal and wish to focus on hockey during the season and not on contract negotiations, one need only consider the fact that Bergeron will have played 18 seasons when the 2021-22 season concludes and has a Stanley Cup ring to show for his efforts. On top of that, the 36-year-old has a pretty lengthy injury history and just watched one of his closest friends in David Krejci depart the Bruins organization this summer as well.

While nobody truly knows what Bergeron is thinking at this point except the player and his family, I think it goes without saying that the Bruins will welcome their captain back with open arms if Bergeron and his camp decide that he'd like to return following the conclusion of his deal.

Nevertheless, the comments he made on Wednesday must be at least a little concerning for those who are not ready to see Bergeron either hang up his skates or move on to another team.

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