Back in 2019, former New York Islanders head coach Butch Goring spoke with Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe about Zdeno Chara. It was just after Chara’s 42nd birthday and Dupont wanted to get to why Chara has been able to be a force at this advanced (for the NHL) age.
Goring spoke of Chara’s ability to stack up to the opponent’s top players from a very early age. But he also talked about a chat he had with former majority owner Charles Wang where he warned him not to trade the now returning Islander.