Dennis Bonvie
Registered User
If Marchand doesn't return, whoever it is will get it by default.
Zadorov would be near the bottom of my list.
Next Captain: Pasta or Mac?
- Thread starter BigGoalBrad
- Start date
If Marchand doesn't return, whoever it is will get it by default.
Zadorov would be near the bottom of my list.
BiteThisBurrows
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Troublesome 85
Proud Girl Dad
Pasta and McAvoy are not captain material and Zadorov hasn't been there long enough to justify the C! So for me it's 3 assistant captains.
I still vote Pastrnak. I still have no idea what I'm talking about.
Ultimately, I trust the players and coaches to sort this out. They've got a much better handle on the situation than any of us.
Ultimately, I trust the players and coaches to sort this out. They've got a much better handle on the situation than any of us.
DKH
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Sacco encouraged him to take a leadership role and he’s taken off impressing the staff, front office, and players
He has no ego and makes new guys feel part of the team immediately
The team is uber young with Elias Lindholm basically the oldest forward at 30. The Geekie-Lindholm-Pastrnak line all have children born recently and Geekie said they are close off the ice.
With Marchand gone and McAvoy out Pastrnak has taken the leadership as one of the longest tenured Bruins.
Sacco who preceded Pastrnak and has been with him his entire career under Cassidy & Monty has a very good relationship.
Pasta with Monty 20 GM 8 G 9 A
Pasta with Sacco 58 GM 32 G 48 A ~ 80 PTS
Pastrnak has always been a star a bit maddening at times
He’s a superstar & a leader now whether he wears the C or not
He has no ego and makes new guys feel part of the team immediately
The team is uber young with Elias Lindholm basically the oldest forward at 30. The Geekie-Lindholm-Pastrnak line all have children born recently and Geekie said they are close off the ice.
With Marchand gone and McAvoy out Pastrnak has taken the leadership as one of the longest tenured Bruins.
Sacco who preceded Pastrnak and has been with him his entire career under Cassidy & Monty has a very good relationship.
Pasta with Monty 20 GM 8 G 9 A
Pasta with Sacco 58 GM 32 G 48 A ~ 80 PTS
Pastrnak has always been a star a bit maddening at times
He’s a superstar & a leader now whether he wears the C or not
BMC
Registered User
Pasta. His growth as a person, player & leader has been nothing less then phenomenal IMO.
Bruinaura
Resident Cookie Monster
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I'd go with Pasta. Beyond that.... 
Even if Marchand returned, I wouldn't give him the C. Not sure he'd take it if offered. He had his time, and Pasta has already stepped up, by all appearances.
Even if Marchand returned, I wouldn't give him the C. Not sure he'd take it if offered. He had his time, and Pasta has already stepped up, by all appearances.
FrankerC
Registered User
This year, Pasta solidified that he IS the Bruins. He has been their most valuable player for a couple of years now. This year alone, he has contributed to 47% of all Bruins goals. The hate this guy gets is absurd. He does what he is paid to do every night. I would be onboard with putting the C on him.
I would be good with Pasta getting the "C" but because he IS the leader. Sometimes the best players are not leaders.
What can Bruins fans look forward to? David Pastrnak as the team’s next captain. - The Boston Globe
In a season of little growth, and stunningly deep regression, Pastrnak has emerged helmet and shoulder pads above everyone else on the $80-something-million roster.
www.bostonglobe.com
The vacant “C” sweater on the Bruins’ roster, last worn by Brad Marchand on March 1, would find its best fit next season draped over David Pastrnak’s shoulders.
No. 88 is the guy, clear as day to be the next captain. Bring in Beyoncé for opening night and have her put a “C” on him.
OK, fine, we’re getting a little ahead of ourselves. The Black and Gold still have four games to go this season, including Tuesday night’s matchup in Newark vs. the Devils. It’s admittedly a bit hard on a fan’s battered psyche right now, with the Bruins sitting in the fetid mess of their 31-38-9 season, to conjure what things will look like six months down the road … even if, you know, Beyoncé is gonna be in the house.
In a season of little growth and stunningly deep regression, Pastrnak has emerged helmet and shoulder pads above everyone else on the $80-something-million roster. The magic-making right wing picked up three more assists in Sunday’s 6-3 loss at Buffalo to boost his season production to 40-57–97, and has upward of 90 more minutes of ice time to rattle off his third consecutive 100-point season.
Before we go on here about that “C” thing, please note: only 22 players in NHL history have strung together three consecutive 100-point seasons. Pastrnak is about to join that illustrious bunch, the vast majority of whom have their names on Hockey Hall of Fame plaques in Toronto. At this rate, Pastrnak, 28, is on track to join them in the HHOF in about 12-15 years.
Now, back to the “C” subject.
Of everyone currently on the payroll, the only realistic candidate other than Pastrnak is Charlie McAvoy, the talented defenseman still recovering from his 4 Nations Face-Off setbacks of injury and bad luck. McAvoy, slightly younger (27), also is an impact player — a beast out there at times — and would be a worthy and fitting captain.
Frankly, if McAvoy’s the guy, no one’s going to blink.
Well, this might be news to the many who fell asleep or blacked out while watching the Bruins this season, it’s time to bleepin’ blink.
No disrespect to McAvoy, but he has yet to deliver the goods like Pastrnak.
For three seasons, Pastrnak has been at the peak of his game. He hasn’t commanded the room, not in the sense of having a captain’s voice, but he has commanded the stage, firing the puck more than anyone here since Ray Bourque and putting up points with consistency and term not seen since the days of Phil Esposito and Bobby Orr.
Pastrnak’s game today is where we think McAvoy will get to some day, perhaps even as soon as next season. Without question, he has the talent and tools and hockey IQ.
Three coaches into “C-Mac’s” career, we just haven’t seen it fully emerge yet. It’s possible that awarding him the ‘C’ could get him there faster. It also could prove to be the weight that keeps him from getting there.
Is it worth the risk with McAvoy? No, no … 73 times no. Keep him in the ‘A' and let him focus on emerging, once and for all, as the franchise backliner who is worthy of being mentioned in the group of Orr, Brad Park, Bourque, and Zdeno Chara.
It’s a Bruins franchise today that needs that from McAvoy far more than it needs him sporting that “C” on his sweater.
It may be a struggle for some to think of Pastrnak, ever smiling and a bit goofy with his clothing choices (WARNING!: aged Boomer now critiquing fashion), as the lead player voice in the room.
No question, he does have kind of a kid’s way about him. But a lot of that, I believe, is because he arrived as a kid, age 18, in 2014-15, in a room of impressive elders such as Chara (then captain), Patrice Bergeron (later captain), and the irrepressible Marchand (most recent captain, since moved to Sunrise, Fla.).
As Pastrnak’s elite scoring prowess emerged, and his command of English improved, he became more of a voice in the room. His game now in full voice, he has the goods and the standing for the Bruins to be branded as Pasta’s team.
In a quiet moment prior to the 4 Nations break, with the club’s lineup intact, a playoff bid still possible, Pastrnak mused over my question about how important it would be to him again to reach 100 points. No one at the time was aware that the roster would be gutted in the days and hours leading to the March 7 trade deadline.
He would be disappointed not to get there, Pastrnak said then, because as the guy paid to lead the team in scoring, “It means I wouldn’t have done my job.”
Here he is, 100 points at his fingertips and his fingerprints on the club’s last 11 goals (team record), delivering and playing to the season’s last whistle.
None of that makes him the only candidate as the next captain.
It just makes him the best.
mikelvl
Registered User
The Hockey Tonk Man
Registered User
I'd be fine with either Pasta or Chuck. Wouldn't lose any sleep and both would look beauty with the C.
Obviously the end to this season Pasta has looked like a real leader out there & thrown the team on his back.
But let's not forget how McAvoy is willing to make a hit that can change the momentum of games.
Obviously the end to this season Pasta has looked like a real leader out there & thrown the team on his back.
But let's not forget how McAvoy is willing to make a hit that can change the momentum of games.
Willing to make a hit doesn't make a leader. You need someone who can speak to players, coaches and stripes, set up plays and command the room.
The Hockey Tonk Man
Registered User
I'm not in the room, but McAvoy seems like a guy who does all that too. He seems like a leader to me.
But again, I'd be fine with either. Both seem like they can throw the team on their back and the team will go to war with them.
I wouldn't complain if it were Mac but from where we sit Pasta has always been more of a leader.
Bruinaura
Resident Cookie Monster
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That is very bizarre.
Just a couple years ago there were probably half a dozen guys on the team who easily could have had an A.
yep. Even when they have the pre-season games there is always 3 players wearing letters.
DangleCity
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I would have said Mac last year, but everyone has seemed to sour on him. I don't see Marchand coming back, so I guess it goes to Pasta by default. Don't feel great about that either 
I don't think people have soured on MacI would have said Mac last year, but everyone has seemed to sour on him. I don't see Marchand coming back, so I guess it goes to Pasta by default. Don't feel great about that either
I like Charlie M a lot! I am looking forward to his return.It isn't by default if Pasta gets the "C"...he IS the leader....unless Brad comes back
Pasta. Even if Brad comes back, still Pasta. Marchand could wear an 'A', but I see no point going back to a 37 year-old as captain when a younger, better player is there who can hopefully lead the team for years to come.
McAvoy has obviously had less opportunity lately, but what we've seen in the past hasn't done much to convince me he's captain material. Part of the leadership group, sure, but captain is a stretch and David looks the better bet.
McAvoy has obviously had less opportunity lately, but what we've seen in the past hasn't done much to convince me he's captain material. Part of the leadership group, sure, but captain is a stretch and David looks the better bet.
