The Brad Marchand era with the Bruins appears to be coming to a close (for now), and it sounds like he’s joining one of Boston’s biggest rivals.
The Bruins, according to multiple reports, struck a deal with the Florida Panthers moments before the deadline, sending the captain south to their division rival. Elliotte Friedman was the first to float the possibility of Marchand to Florida, and TSN’s Pierre Le Brun reported the same moments later.
The return is still unknown.
It’s unclear when Marchand will make his debut with his new team, though. He suffered an upper body injury on March 2 against Pittsburgh and is week to week. When he returns, though, he’ll bring some needed depth to the defending Stanley Cup champions. He could loom large later in the year if and when the injured Matthew Tkachuk returns, strengthening an already strong Panthers team.
Marchand was the lone remaining Bruins player from the 2011 Stanley Cup champions. He spent parts of the last 16 seasons in Boston, logging nearly 1,100 regular-season games in the Spoked-B. Assuming Marchand, a pending unrestricted free agent, doesn’t return to Boston this summer, he leaves the franchise at or near the top of just about every offensive stat. Only Johnny Bucyk, Phil Esposito and Patrice Bergeron scored more goals, and Marchand would leave as No. 5 on the club’s all-time points list.
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Coincidentally, the move to Florida reunites Marchand with his two linemates from the 2011 team. Both Shawn Thornton and Gregory Campbell work in the Florida front office.
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This story is developing and will be updated as details become available.