Bergeron ready to tee it up

PLYMOUTH -- While he was still drawing his paycheck from the Ottawa Senators, Peter Chiarelli would watch a forechecking Patrice Bergeron plow into his best defensemen -- including one who is now Bergeron's teammate -- with no fear. Chiarelli would turn to his front-office colleagues and offer his assessment on the young Bruins center.

``Geez, I'd like to have a player like that," Chiarelli, speaking yesterday at the third annual Boston Bruins Golf Tournament, recalled saying. ``He's a competitive, competitive player. He can be a game-breaker. He was a pleasure to watch. I really liked the way he competed. He could take charge without the puck. He's obviously got ability and skill, which is first and foremost, but it was his intangibles that I really liked."

So it's no surprise that on Tuesday, the Bruins guaranteed they'd enter training camp without a holdout, committing $23.75 million to Bergeron over five seasons. It's a deal that has drawn praise within the industry for benefiting both camps, as Bergeron's annual average salary ($4.75 million) is higher than Stanley Cup winner and 100-point scorer Eric Staal ($4.5 million) of the Carolina Hurricanes, while the Bruins locked up one of their core men, eliminating the threat of arbitration and buying one year of the forward's unrestricted free agency.

``After the lockout and the year the Bruins had, I think it's finally gotten to a point where everybody says, `Hey, we've got to turn it around and get back to where the organization should be,' " said Hall of Famer Cam Neely, who played in the tournament at Pinehills Golf Club. ``I think things are changing from what's happened in the past. I think it sends a message to the fans that [the Bruins] realize they need to make some changes around here. What's happened in the past is not going to be what happens in the future. I think that's the message they're trying to send. From what I'm hearing from people, they're at least seeing a step in the direction they think is the right direction."

Bergeron, who plans to return to Quebec to gather his things and come back to Boston within a week, said he never felt nervous about the contract stalling this summer despite the delay in Chiarelli becoming the Bruins' general manager. Bergeron told his agent, Kent Hughes, that he wanted to stay in Boston, and after seeing the Bruins pluck Zdeno Chara and Marc Savard in the opening hours of free agency, he pictured a five-year duration -- Chara signed for five seasons and Savard for four -- where the club could contend for the playoffs.

``Boston's the place I wanted to be the whole time," said Bergeron. ``There's no doubt that five years was the perfect timing for me. Things are looking great with the new guys coming in."

Bergeron, the club's leading scorer last season (31-42--73 in 81 games), is a candidate to captain the 2006-07 squad. Chiarelli said he's had discussions with coach Dave Lewis about who will wear the ``C" but a decision has not yet been made.

Bergeron acknowledged he's not a rah-rah leader, a statement seconded by goalie Tim Thomas, but said he'll lead by example, learning from teammates he's known from his two NHL seasons.

``He's not that vocal, but he doesn't have to be," said Thomas. ``He can be a leader without being vocal. I wouldn't change anything if I was Patrice. I'd just keep doing the same thing. Just by showing up at the rink and doing the same thing, that's leading. Then he goes out on the ice and does it every night. That's being a leader right there."

Thomas will enter training camp with an NHL deal, new territory for the career journeyman. Thomas (12-13-10, 2.77 goals-against average, .917 save percentage last season) is under contract for the next three seasons, one of the last acts of former GM Mike O'Connell.

But Thomas, who'll compete with Hannu Toivonen for time between the pipes, isn't letting his contract status affect his approach heading into the season.

``I look at it as showing all over again that I can play," Thomas said. ``Every time one of the Red Sox steps up to the plate, he has to prove himself over and over again, and that's the way I'm looking at it. I just don't want to take anything for granted."

Thomas will play behind a revamped defense (Chara and Paul Mara in, Hal Gill and Nick Boynton out) that will be bolstered by the signings of Jason York and Nathan Dempsey.

``Zdeno Chara himself makes such a big difference," Thomas said. ``There's not anybody else in the league like him. He's one of a kind in the league."

Perhaps it wasn't a deciding factor (a $37.5 million offer most likely is a bigger sway than a phone call), but Neely was fine with picking up the phone and speaking to Chara on the club's behalf when the Bruins made their pitch. ``I was happy to help," Neely said. ``I'm glad they called me to make that call. I was happy to do so because I want nothing more than the Bruins to win hockey games and ultimately a championship." . . . Chiarelli didn't rule out trades or signings before camp. ``I'm always looking to improve the team, but I'm very satisfied with the way the team is now," said the GM . . . Other Bruins participating yesterday were Mara, Mark Mowers, and Bobby Allen . . . Nate Greenberg, longtime assistant to former president Harry Sinden, reported that his boss was in Scotland with wife Eleanor, retracing his family's roots . . . Bergeron arrived wearing a green Reebok polo, politely declining an invitation to swap it for a Pinehills shirt. Can't upset the sponsor.

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