Dennis Seidenberg and his much deserved extension

photo via Rantsports.com

Just an hour or so before the Bruins dropped the puck on another NHL campaign, it was announced that defensemen Dennis Seidenberg signed a four-year extension that will keep him in Black and Gold through the 2017-18 season.

It's a terrific deal, as Seidenberg has proven to be one of the premier defensemen in the entire NHL. Locking him up on a cap-friendly deal for presumably the rest of his career is a home run for the Bruins. Seidenberg is the ultimate stay-at-home-defensemen and fits flawlessly into Claude Julien's system.

GM Peter Chiarelli lauded Seidenberg's style of play and what he's meant to the team since arriving at the deadline in 2010.

"Dennis has been in the league a while. The year before we made that trade, you heard me say around when we made that trade about his hockey sense improving, and it's only improved since he's been with us...He clears the lane, he's a really really strong, strong player. Again, hard to find those guys. Hard to find the guys with strength like that, that can clear pucks like that and still make plays."

Seidenberg is a machine of a player in today's NHL. He's only missed four regular season games due to injury the past three years. During the Cup run in 2011 he averaged 27:38 in ice time, and this past year's playoffs averaged 25:59, but I'll give him the extra second and call it 26:00 even.

B's captain Zdeno Chara and Seidenberg are arguably the best pair of defensemen in the league. He would fetch a much higher price tag on the open market, so keeping him in Boston at a manageable number is a steal.