Bruins extend general manager Peter Chiarelli
GM Peter Chiarelli has signed a four-year extension with the Bruins. (Dave Sandford/NHL/Getty Images)
The Bruins have signed general manager Peter Chiarelli to a four-year contract extension through the 2017-18 season, according to the team. CSN New England reported the team was working on a deal in June.
Chiarelli, who had one year remaining on his current contract, was named the Bruins' GM before the 2006-07 season. After overcoming a shaky start that included the hiring and firing of coach Dave Lewis, Chiarelli has managed the Bruins to six straight playoff berths including a Stanley Cup championship in 2011 and last season's finals lost to the Blackhawks. The Bruins have produced a 291-187-62 regular-season record and a .596 win percentage under Chiarelli.
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In the wake of the Bruins finals loss to the Blackhawks, president Cam Neely admitted that he didn't always agree with Chiarelli and coach Claude Julien, but that he expected the team to extend the GM.
From CSNNE:
"I think the job that both Pete [Chiarelli] and Claude [Julien] have done since they’ve been here is something that we certainly hope would happen where we get the team back to relevance, and give us an opportunity to compete for championships. Ultimately, we did win one,” said Neely. “We got to the Finals, and it’s very disappointing to lose in the Finals, obviously. But to acquire the types of players, and draft and develop the types of players that are going to help us win championships is what Peter and Donny [Don Sweeney] and Jim Benning have done. “Claude [Julien] and his staff to be able to get those players and have them understand the type of style Claude [Julien] wants them to play. It helps make us successful by playing that style, but it speaks volumes of the group as a whole and the type of character we want to have here to put on that Bruins jersey. [It speaks to] the staff and the coaching staff, being able to get [the players] to play a style that is going to give us an opportunity to win every night.”
