It was always going to be weird to see Brad Marchand wear anything other than a Boston Bruins uniform. But last year, the Bruins traded Marchand to the Florida Panthers as they held a fire sale. Marchand was a huge contributor to Florida repeating as Stanley Cup champions. Immediately after winning his second Stanley Cup, he opted to sign a six-year contract with the Panthers.
Tuesday was Marchand's first official return to Boston. The Panthers visited Boston once after last year's trade deadline, but Marchand wasn't there as he dealt with an injury. Marchand admitted he didn't know how Bruins fans would react to him during his first visit, considering he plays for a division rival.
During pre-game warm-ups, Marchand was welcomed with a bunch of positive signs made by Bruins fans. Marchand was the last player to leave the ice for the Panthers, and once he walked to the tunnel, TD Garden erupted with cheers from Bruins fans.
Video comes courtesy of Black N Gold Productions.
Brad Marchand is the last one off the ice. Good pop from the #NHLBruins crowd pic.twitter.com/YL1yNoM8NI
— Jack Studley (@jackstudley13) October 21, 2025
Brad Marchand receives huge ovation from Bruins fans in first return to Boston
The cheers continued during pre-game introductions, as Bruins fans cheered once Marchand's name was introduced by the Bruins public address announcer. Evan Marinofsky of the New England Hockey Journal provided video of the pre-game introductions.
Brad Marchand gets a big ovation in the starting lineup pic.twitter.com/D5EGdxJ3MD
— Evan Marinofsky (@EvanMarinofsky) October 21, 2025
The cheers continued into the first period. Marchand assisted on the Panthers' opening minute goal by Mackie Samoskevich after he was tripped by Tanner Jeannot of the Bruins. Once the PA announcer said Marchand's name, cheeers erupted in TD Garden, even though he helped put the Bruins at a 1-0 deficit.
During the first commerical break, the Bruins aired a video tribute to Marchand, highlighting the top moments of his 16-year career with the team. ESPN had a side-by-side reaction of Marchand, who was incredibly emotional and tearing up. Marchand skated on the ice to salute the crowd as they cheered him on.
Marchand admitted on Monday that he wasn't sure how Bruins fans would react to his return, considering he played for a rival in the Panthers, who also aren't the most beloved team across NHL fanbases.
“I’m sure it’s going to be tough. Some people, they won’t be able to cheer because I know they don’t like the Panthers very much, but maybe they’ll like me enough to give a little ‘Yay’ out there or something,” Marchand said, h/t NHL.com. “But yeah, I think that there will be a little bit of love there, maybe if I do something good. If I do something bad, they’ll probably boo me pretty quick.
“But they’re pretty passionate here, so they might have forgot already and treat me like any other Panther player.”
Even though Marchand now plays for a Bruins rival, the fans aren't holding it against him. Maybe the warm welcome cools off in each visit back to Boston, but thus far, Bruins fans still hold Marchand in a special place of their hearts.