Player Discussion Brad Marchand X- Return of the Rat

DKH

Worst Poster/Awful Takes
Feb 27, 2002
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So good to see Brad is not a shell of self as expressed here about 10 minutes before his natural hat trick vs Columbus

We will eventually hate Brad and turn on him here when he does get old and regress but it looks like it’s probably 2-3 years away

As for now when it comes to Brad - ‘peace, love, and understanding’
 

Chelis Chili

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Dec 26, 2002
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BRUINS AND CANADIENS BEND, BUT DON’T BREAK
The Bruins (30-9-9, 69 points) and Canadiens (20-21-7, 47 points) held two- and three-goal leads respectively before the Senators and Islanders each scored late game-tying tallies in the third period, but Brad Marchand (1-0—1) and Cole Caufield (1-1—2) ensured their teams would leave Thursday night with two points.

* Marchand, who was already the franchise leader in overtime goals, added another under his belt to help Boston earn its 30th win of the season in their 48th game. The Bruins have reached the mark in 48 or fewer contests for the 17th time in franchise history – five more than the next-closest club (MTL: 12).

Marchand_Media-25113255.png


sauce: https://media.nhl.com/public/news/17635
 

Over the volcano

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Gee Wally

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Barring, say, an unpredicted event of nature, Brad Marchand will play his 1,000th regular-season game Tuesday night when the Bruins face the Lightning at TD Garden.

An unpredicted force of nature since soon after he made landfall on Causeway Street during the 2009-10 season, Marchand, 35, will become only the eighth player to suit up 1,000 times for the Black and Gold. That’s an impressive feat for a guy initially sized up by most of the Hub of Hockey’s vulcanized cognoscenti as a fourth-line stocking filler (guilty hand raised here). Remember, for all his boundless energy, he contributed all of one assist in 20 games that first season in what was a remarkably unremarkable debut.

Brad Marchand? That guy, 1,000 games? Sure, and Evgeni Ryabchikov for the Black and Gold’s All-Century team. These were the days talk show host and one-time Bruins beat reporter Michael Felger called Marchand “Marchmant” on air and no one much cared. These were days when coach Claude Julien, though appreciative of the little guy’s gargantuan effort, mostly buttoned him into bottom-six and penalty-killing roles. Power play? Marchand? What the hell do ya mean, power play?!


As first impressions went, Marchand was the 5-foot-9-inch misfit toy who appeared destined to be a guy packaged into a trade as a sweetener in order to get a front-line player, a difference-maker, maybe a bigger, stronger, elite, legit NHL forward. Size matters and all that, right?



“I mean, his career is amazing, really, because he’s not the guy that went first overall, that you thought was destined for greatness,” said an admiring Charlie McAvoy, Bruins defenseman and alternate captain. “I think that’s part of the reason why his story is just so incredible. Because he worked for everything that he got and what he is now is a product of that work — and you know, sort of finding what he could do and then never being satisfied with that.”


In 2011 at The White House,
“Brad Marchand went into the season playing on the fourth line,” duly noted the then-Commander in Chief, struggling initially to locate the then 23-year-old winger standing to his right (off wing), “but the Little Ball of Hate shook off the rookie jitters and … uh … what’s up with that nickname, man?”

The audience, with then-Boston mayor, Tom Menino, sitting in the front row, chuckled over both the nickname and the president’s impeccable comedic delivery.

“And,” added Obama, “he scored five goals in the last five games of the Final series.”




Marchand, in fact, was the Bruins’ fourth pick, No. 71 overall, in the 2006 draft, following Phil Kessel (5), Yuri Alexandrov (37), and Milan Lucic (50). He grew up in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and played two more seasons years in the Quebec League before turning pro with AHL Providence in the spring of ‘08. Though he was never his junior team’s top scorer, he produced more than a point per game his final two seasons in the Q.

“What makes him tick is, he doesn’t accept being [typecast]. He wants to be great,” said Bruins coach Jim Montgomery. “That inner belief that he can work himself into being more than what other people may perceive. You know, his whole life he’s had a chip on his shoulder and I think that chip on his shoulder has allowed him to become one of the greatest Bruins of all time and one of the best leaders of our team.”

Montgomery, at 5-10, has lived the chip life.

“All of us short guys” are accustomed to it, he said, with a knowing chuckle.

“The chip that , ‘You don’t think I’m as good offensively as I am.’ That, ‘You don’t think I’m as tough as I am,’ ” added the coach, describing the mentality and accompanying motivation. “He personifies it to the best degree possible. People ask me all the time, and I’m like, ‘When you have guys like Marchand that start every drill, start the drill the right way, everyone else follows suit.’ They understand the standard and that standard he sets as our leader is invaluable.”

“Yeah, everyone knows of Marchy,” said Coyle, these days Marchand’s pivot on the club’s No. 1 line. “You hear all the talk … highlight-reel goals and this and that … the antics. But getting to know a guy like that, and getting to play with him, and seeing how hard he works, where he’s kind of come from and how he’s worked for everything, and now he is such an established player — one of the best players in the league. It’s great to see that.”

Marchand, noted Coyle, comes with an added bonus.

“When you see people get success, and you meet ‘em,” Coyle said, “and they’re such great people and they have work ethic, they compete … and they’re great teammates, just love rooting for those people, makes you root for ‘em even more.”

“For someone like me, you want to chase that,” said McAvoy when asked how Marchand has influenced his game. “You want to be remembered in the same way. And you don’t have to look any further, [if asking], ‘OK, how?’ Well, he works harder than everybody else, so I have to work as hard as him. And someone who can lead by example like that is just special, it’s a very special trait, extremely special. He makes me want to be better. He makes us all want to be better.”
 

Gee Wally

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A No. 63 banner perched alongside other Causeway Street royalty in the TD Garden rafters wouldn’t surprise most Bruins fans in the not-too-distant future.
But what about an embossed plaque in Toronto?
No, Brad Marchand isn’t exactly a cherished figure in that market.
But ahead of the pugnacious winger’s 1,000th career game on Tuesday night against the Lightning, Bruins coach Jim Montgomery didn’t mince words when asked about his captain’s candidacy for the Hockey Hall of Fame.


“I do, yeah,” Montgomery said, noting the veteran forward has held court as one of hockey’s top two-way talents throughout his 30s.
“The offensive production every year — points every year, dominant player,” Montgomery said. “You had to be aware of him. Just a dominant player, impacted every game.”

Those post-whistle antics and a lengthy rap sheet penned by NHL disciplinarians usually stand at the forefront of any discourse regarding Marchand’s legacy — at least outside of New England.

“I think it takes a special player to play 1,000 games, no matter who you are,” Jake DeBrusk said. “And I think his road, as we all know, is obviously different than other guys that probably have played 1,000 games. I think everyone’s got different journeys, but his is probably one of the most impressive, I would say.”

While Marchand is still in search of another Stanley Cup before he hangs up his skates, his résumé already warrants praise.

Along with his role in Boston’s 2011 Cup triumph, Marchand ranks fifth overall in Bruins franchise historywith 910 points. He’s tied with longtime teammates Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci for second place in franchise history in postseason scoring (128 points) — a deadlock he should remedy in April.

He’s tied for ninth overall in NHL history with 35 shorthanded goals, while also boasting two World Junior Championship gold medals, an IIHF World Championship win, a Quebec Major Junior Hockey League title, and a victory with Canada in the 2016 World Cup of Hockey.

Along with getting the only NHL franchise he’s ever played for over the hump once again, Marchand still has his sights set on representing Team Canada in the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.

But what about a Hall of Fame nod?

“I think that’s the ultimate recognition that a player can get is to be in the Hall of Fame,” Marchand acknowledged. “It is achievable? I don’t know. I see the amount of time I feel like I can still play.”

As appealing as the prospect of getting enshrined as hockey immortality might be for Marchand, it’s a forward-thinking exercise the 35-year forward tries to avoid.


“It’s very easy to get complacent in this game and it’s very easy to get comfortable,” Marchand said. “And it’s probably one of my biggest fears in this game . . . You never know when your last day is going to come in this league. And I feel like when you start looking at things you’ve accomplished, you might start thinking it gets easier. As you get older, it only gets harder.

“You need to put more time in and dedicate more effort. You only have a certain amount of time to play this game and every day that I’m in it, I’m gonna leave it all out there and try to get better.”
 

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