It was a dream come true when veteran minor league forward Chris Bourque was named to Team USA for the Olympics in 2018. He just so happened to not be on an NHL contract at the time and was allowed to participate, a reward for a life spent in hockey battling for opportunity wherever it presented itself. That opportunity has now taken the forward to Germany, where he will play for EHC Munchen next season in the DEL.
Bourque, 33, has played in the AHL, NHL, KHL and NLA prior to this trip to Germany, and found great success at almost every level. While his professional career may not be as well-known as his father Ray’s, he is among the most productive scorers in AHL history with 746 regular season points in 794 career games. His 118 postseason points are also among the best ever, and has hasn’t lost a step even as he heads into the back half of his career. The dream of a real shot at the NHL may be long gone however, as Bourque last suited up for the Boston Bruins in 2012-13.
With three Calder Cup championships under his belt to go along with multiple individual awards, Bourque will go down as one of the best players the AHL has ever seen. If this journey to Germany ends that minor league career, he’ll have gone out on another great season. In his lone year for the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, Bourque recorded 54 points in 72 games.