Brad Marchand's career might've taken him to the rival Florida Panthers, but as his Instagram story said after Patrice Bergeron's Hall of Fame induction, "Once a Bruin, Always a Bruin." Unfortunately, injuries have hampered the twilight of Marchand's career, but there is something about the fact that his rehab has allowed him to be there side-by-side with Bergeron for the induction.
It was a reunion of the last two decades of Bruins hockey in Toronto for Monday night's induction, with a group that included Marchand, Zdeno Chara, David Krejci, Tuukka Rask, Torey Krug, Marco Sturm, David Pastrnak, Charlie McAvoy, and plenty more. It was a testament to Bergeron's leadership and his teammates' love that he had such a massive group to support him, right down to the team's old videographer.
Despite all the support Bergeron had, a massive piece would've been missing if Marchand hadn't made it. For one night, you could throw aside the fact that he was a Panther, and it felt like he was a Bruin for one more time, which he will surely do much more once his career ends.
Marchand isn't afraid to stir things up on social media regularly, but Monday night was the time to show his other side when he honored his longtime linemate with a tribute on Instagram.
Marchand will have to go back to being a Bruins rival after this event, and fans will root against him when the Panthers return to TD Garden in what could be an interesting matchup, given what happened this past weekend. However, I'll be intrigued to see whether his injury lets him return to the Garden a bit sooner for one more chance to honor his old linemate.
Bergeron's successor to the captaincy will still be out for some time with his injury, and the Panthers don't seem in any rush to put him in harm's way as long as they stay within striking distance of the playoffs. While he has to be careful about being away from his team too often, it'd be fitting if he made the trip up to see the #37 go to the rafters on December 1.
Andrew Ference will be the MC, and Tuukka Rask, Chara, and Krejci will surely attend, along with other members of the 2011 team. Fans will relish the chance to see them all again, but no one will get a bigger ovation than Marchand if the Panthers let him come back for it.
With Marchand's Bruins tenure ending abruptly after an injury kept him out until the trade, it'd be a great chapter-closing moment.
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