In the dead of summer, at least for hockey, one of the true gentlemen has called it a career. A day after blowing the candles out on his 38th birthday, all-time Bruin Patrice Bergeron announced his retirement from the NHL.

When I think of great two-way players, Bergeron is at the top of the list. Selected by the Bruihs number 45 in the famed 2003 NHL Draft, the center from Quebec became a staple for Boston. As a teenage rookie, he showed promise by recording 16 goals and 39 points in 2003-04.

Following the lockout, he showed what he was capable of in 2005-06. In 81 games, Bergeron put up 31 goals, 42 assists, and 73 points. That included his first shorthanded goal. An area he would excel at over two decades. A complete player, he was always a shorthanded threat on the penalty kill. Once sidekick Brad Marchand arrived, they became a fixture together. Whether it was at even strength, the power play, or penalty kill, Bergeron and Marchand were inseparable.

Not coincidentally, they played big roles in helping the Bruins end a 39-year drought by winning the Stanley Cup in 2010-11. Bergeron posted 20 points (6-14-20) with a plus-15 rating and two shorthanded goals during the run. Marchand scored 11 goals and added eight assists for 19 points as a 22-year-old. Along with the contributions of David Krejci, Nathan Horton, Milan Lucic, Mark Recchi, Michael Ryder, Chris Kelly, Zdeno Chara, Dennis Seidenberg, Johnny Boychuk, Rich Peverly, Andrew Ference, and Tyler Seguin, the Bruins proved they were the best team that year.

It wouldn’t have been possible without Tim Thomas. The Vezina winner was incredible by posting a 16-9 record with a 1.98 GAA, .940 save percentage and four shutouts. That brilliant performance earned him the Conn Smythe as the MVP of the playoffs. The Bruins rallied from an 0-2 deficit to beat the Canucks in seven games to win the Stanley Cup. After winning Game 6 at home, they easily took Game 7 in Vancouver 4-0 to win the championship.

Despite fielding good rosters with the team making two more appearances in the Stanley Cup Finals, they never won again. In 2013, they lost to the Blackhawks in six games. It’s a bitter memory for Boston fans. They went from forcing a deciding seventh game to allowing consecutive goals to Bryan Bickell and Dave Bolland in a 17-second span. It stunned the Boston crowd. Instead, the Blackhawks celebrated their second Cup in four years.

It took six years for the Bruins to get back to the Finals. After going through the Leafs, Blue Jackets, and Hurricanes, they met the Blues in the Stanley Cup. In a back and forth series that saw the road team victorious in five of seven games, Boston went from a dominant 5-1 win in Game 6 to a disappointing 4-1 Game 7 defeat on home ice. That’s the kind of series it was. The Blues won their first Cup by celebrating at TD Garden.

At that point, with Bergeron, Krejci, Chara, and Tuukka Rask at the later stages of their careers, it looked like that was the end of the Bruins competing for Cups. However, they turned back the clock last season. With Krejci returning from the Czech Republic, he again formed a potent 1-2 punch with Bergeron at center. New coach Jim Montgomery balanced the lines with Pavel Zacha and leading scorer David Pastrnak playing on an all Czech line with Krejci. That allowed Bergeron to center Marchand and Jake DeBrusk. Charlie Coyle had Taylor Hall on the third line.

They even added Tyler Bertuzzi and Dmitry Orlov to the mix. This team had everything. It led to a record-breaking season that saw the Bruins win 65 games against only 12 regulation losses with 5 defeats in overtime/shootout. They finished with a record 135 points. In a year where Pastrnak was runner-up to Connor McDavid for the Hart, with Linus Ullmark winning the Vezina, and Bergeron capturing a record sixth Selke as the game’s best defensive forward, the Bruins crashed out in shocking fashion in the first round.

They blew a 3-1 series lead to lose to the eighth seeded Panthers, who were carried by Matthew Tkachuk. It was his hustle that led to Carter Verhaeghe scoring in sudden death of Game 7 to stun the Bruins.

In an emotional scene following handshakes, Bergeron fought back tears as he waved goodbye to the Bruins fans, who gave him a standing ovation. Close friend and teammate Marchand shed tears as he left the ice. Deep down, I think they knew it was over. That moment was special. It wasn’t the ending they had in mind. But you could see how much Bergeron meant to his teammates and the city.

With Bergeron, it was more than just statistics. He might never have reached the 80-point mark in his Hall of Fame career. He didn’t have to. One of the greatest five-on-five players who made teammates better through his high hockey IQ and instincts, the center won two Olympic gold medals for Canada, a Stanley Cup, six Selke Trophies, and a Mark Messier Leadership award. He even was fifth for the Hart in 2013-14 when he went 30-32-62 with a plus-38 rating, seven power play goals, a shorthanded goal, and seven game-winners. He was the consummate team player.

Stats didn’t matter. Bergeron was all about the team. He finished a brilliant 19-year career with 427 goals, 613 assists for a total of 1,040 points, and a plus-289 in 1,294 games. He had 22 shorthanded goals and 81 game-winners. One of the league’s premier face-off men, Bergeron concluded his career with a 59.3 percent winning percentage in the dot. That included 62.2 percent in his final season. He won 1714 and lost 1043.

Bergeron was also a good playoff performer. Over 170 postseason games, he had 50 goals and 78 assists for a total of 128 points. He had a knack for the clutch. The most memorable was when he tied and beat the Maple Leafs in a memorable Game 7 on May 13, 2013. It was a game the Bruins trailed 4-1 with less than 15 minutes remaining in the third period. Goals from Horton and Lucic pulled them within one. After Lucic scored, Bergeron tied the game with 51 seconds left. Fittingly, he won it at 6:05 of overtime. For his career, he scored four OT winners. That made him clutch.

Bergeron ranks high amongst the Bruins all-time greats. His 1294 games are the third most, trailing Johnny Bucyk (1436) and Ray Bourque (1518). He’s also third on the all-time franchise goal scoring list with his 427 placing behind Phil Esposito (459) and Bucyk (545). Bergeron ranks fourth on the all-time Bruins list in assists with 613. Bobby Orr (624), Bucyk (794), and Bourque (1111) are the top three. He is also behind Bourque (1506) and Bucyk (1339) in points with 1040. Plus/minus on the all-time Bruins list features the incomparable Orr (574), Bourque (493), Dallas Smith (331), Esposito (306), Marchand (290) and Bergeron (289).

Bergeron also ranks fourth in even strength goals (274), power play goals (131), and shorthanded goals (22). His 81 game-winning goals place second behind Bucyk (88). Only Bourque recorded more shots (5950) than Bergeron (3974) as a Bruin.

The bottom line is that Patrice Bergeron is an all-time Boston Bruins player who’ll be remembered forever. He’s had an outstanding career. Best of all, he did it with one team. He did it with class. You’ll never hear a bad word about Bergeron. One day soon, his number 37 will be retired. It’ll take its place among Boston legends.

I have been pretty vocal about how much I appreciated Bergeron. He was my favorite player from this era. An honest, hard-working man who always brought it. He played through numerous injuries, including during the first round when he was limited to three games. He was a gamer. He battled concussions. Bergeron is doing what’s best for his family. I understand completely. It’s a sad day not just for Boston but for hockey. He will be missed.

I felt similarly when Pavel Datsyuk decided to leave the Red Wings to return home and play in the KHL. If you look at both Datsyuk and Bergeron, they were complete two-way centers that were easy to like. Datsyuk was a bit more breathtaking with his speed and dangles. He topped 80 points four times, including posting back-to-back 97-point seasons. He won three consecutive Selkes. Between them, they have nine. Datsyuk is eligible for the Hall of Fame. I won’t hold my breath.

In my lifetime, the three best two-way centers I saw were Sergei Fedorov, Pavel Datsyuk, and Patrice Bergeron. All were great players. If he retires, Jonathan Toews would be fourth in that list. He remains unsigned.

Congratulations to Patrice Bergeron on a great career. Number 37 will always be remembered fondly in Boston. A class act.