Brad Marchand – 47 Games – 17 Goals, 26 Assists, 43 Points – ATOI: 19:09
What hasn’t been said about Brad Marchand over the last year? He had an unreal 37-goal campaign last season, topped off with a successful World Championships victory with Canada. Following that, he went on to play for Canada again at the World Cup of Hockey, where he dominated the tournament. After leading the tournament in scoring, Marchand also scored a short-handed goal to win Canada the World Cup.
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His success has been well documented. For a (very) brief time, there was even talk about Marchand leaving Boston to join Sidney Crosby due to their chemistry at the World Cup. These murmurs proved to be unfounded, of course, as Marchand soon signed an eight-year contract extension with the Bruins coming with a team-friendly $6.125 million.
New Season, Same Marchand
This season, Marchand picked up right where he left off last season. From pest to a first-line stud, Marchand currently leads the Bruins in points with 43 in 47 games played. He’s on pace for 30 goals and 75 points this season, which would be another improvement on his season from last year. What’s most impressive about Marchand this year is that he’s been able to produce more assists. While he’s still scoring goals, his total point production is better than it’s ever been.
Marchand is ranked second in the NHL with a 61.16 CF% and has shown that he can take over a game when he’s hot. This was demonstrated most recently with his two-goal, five-point effort against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday.
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Marchand plays in all situations for the Bruins as well. He often starts the game alongside Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak. He gets time with the man-advantage and is one of the best penalty killers in the entire NHL. No player has scored more short-handed goals than Marchand since he debuted. There aren’t many players like Marchand in the league who can do it all, and he’s been far-and-away the team’s best forward at the mid-way point of this season