Two former Colorado Avalanche defensemen who won Stanley Cups a decade apart will reunite for Zdeno Chara’s farewell game later this month.
Ray Bourque and Johnny Boychuk are among the players taking part in “Zee’s Final Shift” on Aug. 21 in Trenčín, Slovakia, an event celebrating the career of the longtime Boston Bruins captain and Hall of Fame defenseman.
Bourque is an Avalanche legend in his own right. After spending more than 20 years in Boston, the Hall of Fame defenseman was traded to Colorado in 2000 with hopes of achieving his goal of winning the Stanley Cup.
He got his wish the following year, lifting the Cup with the Avalanche in 2001 before retiring shortly after and later becoming the first player to get his jersey number retired by the Avs. Bourque finished his career with 1,579 points in 1,612 games, the most by a defenseman in NHL history.
Boychuk’s time in Colorado was much shorter, at least when it comes to actual games played.
Drafted by the Avalanche in the second round of the 2002 NHL Draft, Boychuk appeared in just four games with Colorado during the 2007-08 season. He was traded to Boston that summer in exchange for Matt Hendricks and went on to become a key part of the Bruins’ 2011 Stanley Cup championship team, captained by Chara.
He was a teammate of Chara’s from 2008-09 to 2013-14.
Both Bourque and Boychuk will play for Team Boston.
You can find the full rosters below.