Chara becomes 5th defenseman to play 1,600 NHL games

Zdeno Chara joined some elite company on Saturday.

The Washington Capitals blue-liner became the fifth defenseman in NHL history to reach the 1,600-game mark.

Zdeno Chara will play in his 1,600th career game tonight against the New York Islanders. Chara, who turned 44 on March 18, joins Chris Chelios as the only defensemen to reach the 1,600 game mark at the age of 44 or older (Chelios: 46 years old at the mark). pic.twitter.com/KlZmRgqQP3

- CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) April 24, 2021

Chelios, Stevens, Murphy, and Bourque are all enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The veteran signed a one-year deal with the Capitals in the offseason after spending 14 campaigns with the Boston Bruins, with whom he won a Stanley Cup, Norris Trophy, and Mark Messier Leadership Award. Before his run with the Bruins, he spent four years apiece with the Ottawa Senators and New York Islanders.

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