Nikita Zadorov understood what the Boston Bruins built from his years on the outside before signing with the franchise on a six-year deal this summer.
Through five games, Boston’s latest large addition to the defensive core is ingraining himself in that culture. He’s embracing physicality, posting points and now backing up his teammates. Zadorov stepped up after Matt Poitras took a high hit to drop the gloves with Colorado Avalanche center Matt Stienburg to protect his Bruins teammate.
Zadorov reflected on his assimilation with the Bruins after Wednesday’s 5-3 win over Colorado.
“It’s been unbelievable to watch it,” Zadorov shared on TNT’s postgame coverage. “You only hear it when you’re on other teams. When you come in here, how hard guys work, how they care about each other, how they buy into the system and the Bruins organization, mentality and culture.”
Zadorov feels there’s still levels to reach with the Bruins as his transition process into an entirely new system improves over time.
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“It still takes time to adjust,” Zadorov explained. “For me personally, I want to feel comfortable on the ice in every situation. It’s just the reps, the patterns every day you get there. You get to use your teammates. You get to use the forwards, linemates and D-pairs. It’s gonna take some time. Usually for me, it takes 10 games to get used to it, then I should be fine. The guys work super hard in here, so it’s extremely easy to make that transition for sure.”
Zadorov also took the opportunity in the national TV interview to discourage the use of the “Big Z” nickname that was intertwined with Zdeno Chara from his time with the Bruins.
“You can call me just Z, I guess,” Zodorov said with a laugh.
Zodorov found his moments to step up through five games. If he’s right, the Bruins should be in for a treat after another five games.
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