Boston Bruins fans simply cannot ignore what former captain Brad Marchand is up to with the Florida Panthers in this year’s Stanley Cup Final.
When the Bruins traded Marchand away at the trade deadline, it seemed as though the club was saying, “Tag, you’re it!” to the Panthers. But after returning from injury toward the end of the season, it seemed that Marchand had taken a trip to Shangri-La.
Marchand didn’t look his best during the Tampa Bay Lightning series in the first round, but boy, something about facing the Toronto Maple Leafs brought out the best in Brad Marchand. He was every bit the nightmare every Toronto Maple Leafs fan feared, delivering grit and scoring.
In the series against the Carolina Hurricanes, Marchand and the Panthers didn’t break a sweat. They steamrolled the helpless Hurricanes who barely managed to avoid another painful sweep at the hands of the Cats.
Now, in the Stanley Cup Final, Marchand is at again. In Game 1 against the Edmonton Oilers, Marchand notched a power play goal to give the Cats a 2-1 lead.
Here’s a look at the goal:
Marchand was at the right place at the right time, just like he always is. His uncanny ability to come up huge in big games has been on full display, dazzling Panthers fans and frustrating the heck out of the Oilers’ faithful.
Brad Marchand exceeding expectations this postseason
The Florida Panthers can’t have imagined they would get such a remarkable performance from Brand Marchand this postseason.
In 17 games heading into the Stanley Cup Final, Brad Marchand put up four goals and 10 assists for 14 points.
That nearly a point-per-game pace is something that no one really expected. Sure, fans hoped that Marchand’s notorious reputation for being a pest would swing the momentum in their favor.
But it’s hard to imagine how anyone could have imagined that Marchand would experience a renaissance at this point in the season.
While Marchand may have gone a bit quiet in the Carolina and Tampa Bay series, he was huge in the Leafs series. His eight points in the seven-game affair, in particular his three-point evening in Game 7, proved that Marchand was worth the first-round pick Florida paid to get him.
Marchand now has a chance to get that second Stanley Cup he never got in Boston. He got as close as he could get in 2019 against the St. Louis Blues. It won’t be easy to knock off the Edmonton Oilers this time around, but Bruins fans must be feeling nostalgic about seeing Marchand thrive in another uniform.