Twelve Rare Fun Facts About Zdeno Chara
In honor of his 1,000th game as a Bruin
1. When he first came to North America to play in the WHL after being drafted by the Islanders, he had the above haircut. Isn’t it glorious?
2. As a rookie player abroad for the first time, he’d never tasted Jello before coming to play hockey in Canada. When his billet mom offered some to him, he had no idea what it was.
3. The team Chara played for in his rookie year was the Prince George Cougars, and they didn’t have any jerseys big enough for him. He had to wear a Frankenstein-like jersey stitched together from pieces of other jerseys.
4. The bed at his WHL billet house wasn’t big enough for him, and his feet hung over the edge. His billet parents offered to buy him a larger bed, but he declined.
5. Almost immediately after his draft, Chara was asked the Islanders’ then-GM Mike Milbury if he could fight. Chara’s response? “Better not to fuck with me.”
6. Chara did end up in his fair share of fights on the ice in his rookie year, and the Cougars’ medical room was right by the home dressing room. Chara would see opposing players being stitched up after their fights with him and ask if they would be okay. “He didn’t have a mean bone in his body,” said the Cougars then-owner and president Rick Brodsky. (Source here–it’s a cute story!)
7. To finance his stay in Prince George, B.C. during the summer between his rookie and sophomore seasons, he earned money by working at the car wash of the local Wood Wheaton car dealership.
8. Little kids in Prince George absolutely loved Chara and would flock to him, as seen in the above photo.
9. During his youth, Chara was frequently encouraged to choose basketball over hockey due to his height, and while it’s obvious that he didn’t, he is a reasonably talented basketball player. During his time with the Ottawa Senators when he and a few of the other players were waiting at an arena for a bus to the rink, they began tossing shots into the basket. Basketball Hall of Famer Chris Mullin spotted Chara playing and approached then-GM Peter Chiarelli and complimented Chara’s basketball talent. Meanwhile, Chiarelli was too busy freaking out about Chara risking a broken an ankle to appreciate Chara’s skills.
10. In 2008, Chara climbed all 19, 341 feet of Mt. Kilimanjaro to support the Right to Play organization. In the descent after their summit, he gathered together all the cooks and porters to sincerely thank them for their work during the journey, letting them know that they never would have reached their goal if not for them.
11. While the 2016 Hockey World Cup was in its planning stages, both the NHL and the NHLPA reached out to consult with Chara about their Team Europe roster. They wanted advice from Chara about the logos and national anthem they should use. Picture that–Chara actually had national committees asking for his input.
12. He was among the first NHL players to welcome gay athletes into the sport and endorse the “You Can Play” movement that encourages their acceptance, releasing a video in support less than a week after the campaign launched. You can watch it here.
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