Former Bruins Thank you, Brad Marchand

[Alicat]

Marchand per Eliot Friedman said he was offered 3 years without a pay cut ~ $6.3 M per believed

Bruins going 3 not smart & the amount is not $2 or $3 M as twitter took to streets

7 M fair but not outrageous $6.3 especially giving him 3 years

If this is true on Friedman interesting

This right here.

People need to put the pitchforks down

 

[Si Hopkins]

Heartbreaking. Bring him back July 1.

Have to believe the door is wide open for a return.

Also, talk about serious LOVE to Sweeney/Neely/Bruins. I'm pretty done with them personally, but really interesting to hear this level of praise from a player of that stature.

 

[veganbruin]

I can’t believe this still. Truly heartbroken.

 

[pgm16]

Have to believe the door is wide open for a return.

Also, talk about serious LOVE to Sweeney/Neely/Bruins. I'm pretty done with them personally, but really interesting to hear this level of praise from a player of that stature.

I am on the Panthers band wagon for this run with him !!

 

[nORRis8]

They didn't treat him like crap. Bruins compromised on term and offered him his current salary. He obviously wants more $ which is his right. That said, I'm not giving an aging forward any more than 6.5 and especially not for 3 years.

I still think he'll be back. Give them some breathing room and then re-visit it.

Listened to Friedman's podcast.
Him saying "I believe" and "I think" taints the theory of offering his current salary.
Dudes guessing

 

[Mione134]

I know this is the wrong place to post this so please move....

This seems to be the only page I can get to and reply

This logging in and getting logged out, not being able to respond or post to really needs fixing ASAP

I get a notification but can't see it because now I am logged out

I see someone posted something recently but I can't see it

It is impossible to have a thread discussion

Help !

I'll quote your post and put it in the issues thread since you can't get on it.

 

[Thirty Seven]

Nice to see Marchy working on his tan

 

[Bruin4]

 

[Boston Bandit]

Heartbreaking. Bring him back July 1.

He needs to comeback and retire a Bruin

It’s the right thing to do

He cannot be replaced

 

[LouJersey]

Listened to Friedman's podcast.
Him saying "I believe" and "I think" taints the theory of offering his current salary.
Dudes guessing

EF and Chiclets are only right when they make management look good, haven't you realized this yet?

 

[Mad-Marcus]

I still believe the conversation included, go win a cup at a destination of your choosing, provided we get a decent return. Then, over the summer, decide if you want to continue playing, give us 1st crack. (Unless he realizes the grass is greener the closer to retirement)

 

[Gee Wally]

Brad Marchand returns to Boston with Panthers, reaffirming an end to an era - The Boston Globe

The former Bruins forward's return lacked in pomp and circumstance, largely because he was not in the Panthers lineup.

www.bostonglobe.com

Brad Marchand’s No. 63 should be duly hoisted to the Garden’s rafters one night in the future, his tenure of 1,247 games in Black and Gold, his name on the Stanley Cup (2011), and his nearly two years as Bruins captain all among the achievements to be honored and remembered with the franchise’s best.

It was, of course, Marchand’s drive and determination, his utter will to compete, his engine in that 5-foot-something body that just wouldn’t quit, that most set him apart.

In a different era, in a different game, it was also what endeared Terry O’Reilly to Bruins fans, who have had to learn not to measure their favorite stick-lugging sons solely by the number of times their names have been etched onto a big silver mug.

Marchand was defined by his battle, and Bruins fans long have appreciated, or been made to settle for, battle in all its forms.

Abruptly dealt away Friday afternoon after 16 seasons in Boston, Marchand was back here at his old Causeway Street workshop Tuesday night, albeit with his new team, the Florida Panthers. The moment lacked in pomp and circumstance, largely because the injured Marchand was not in the Panthers lineup, but it nonetheless was a chance for the Hub to bid “Marshy” adieu.

“We dropped the ball on that one,” recalled a blunt Marchand, the Bruins falling to the Panthers in Game 7. “That was our year and [management] went all in years leading up to that and that season. And when you look at an opportunity like that, it doesn’t come along very often. And [management] did everything they could to put us in a position to succeed. And ultimately it was on the players. “We didn’t do our jobs and didn’t come through when we had to.”

Marchand’s illustrious tenure with the Bruins came to an end a week ago Saturday in Pittsburgh while chasing down a puck in the corner. He fell awkwardly into the boards, in a collision with Penguins defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph, and ultimately needed assistance to leave the ice. Good pal David Pastrnak helped to get him on his feet and steer him across the ice. He disappeared down the tunnel at PPG Arena. Boston career finished.

“I just kind of got crunched,” said Marchand, speaking for the first time about the injury. “Everything kind of got hurt.”

He later added he was initially told the recovery period could be as long as six weeks, adding substance to rumors in recent days that he suffered a shoulder injury, akin to the one that has kept Charlie McAvoy sidelined since the 4 Nations Face-Off. He skated in the Panthers’ morning workout, but could not guess how soon he might be ready to play.

Little did we know in that moment that it would be the last look any of us would see of the L’il Ball O’ Hate in that Black and Gold 63. On Friday afternoon, he was dealt away by GM Don Sweeney, part of the biggest one-day dumpster run in team history.

In return, the Bruins will net at least a second-round pick, perhaps a first, for Marchand. They need help. They need draft picks. In recent years, they saw their top talent leave (Zdeno Chara) or retire (Tuukka Rask, Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci), all bringing back nothing in return.

That talent drain, in part, led to the roster that this year struggled to find a foothold in the East and led Sweeney to part on deadline day with Charlie Coyle, Brandon Carlo, and Marchand.

“I mean, I think we’re not naive,” said Marchand, reflecting on whether he saw the changes coming. “I think you can kind of see the way things are going. Anytime you don’t achieve what you’re expected to or what you set out to, they’re going to make changes. And I mean ultimately changes come when you’re doing well, too. Whether you’re going to try to add or subtract, changes need to be made. And unfortunately when it’s not going the way you want it to, they’re usually bigger.”

There is the chance that Marchand, on target to be an unrestricted free agent July 1, will be back here in the fall, re-signed to a new deal with the Bruins. He did not rule out the possibility, but mostly he downplayed it, saying his focus now is getting fit again and helping the Panthers. It sounded like he had moved on, to a new city, a new team, a changed state of mind.

“You don’t get to be part of a team like this very often,” he said.

It was something Marchand frequently said here, too, when times were better, when battling for the Cup very much defined the Bruins. His time here didn’t match the era of the Big Bad Bruins from decades ago, but it was entertaining, often exciting. For years, the building was filled to the brim.

Now, once again, it is time to rebuild the Bruins, with worn-out tools and without Marchand as one of the building blocks. Two fans, sitting in front-row seats across the ice from the Panthers bench, wore Marchand’s No. 63 sweater. They were not Black and Gold sweaters, but instead Florida red.

Ready or not, an era has ended, the time has come to move on.