Haggerty: Marchand ‘on a mission' to carry banged-up Bruins

Share

BOSTON – In a miraculous turn of events, the Bruins have not lost a single game since Patrice Bergeron, Charlie McAvoy and now David Backes have all exited Boston’s lineup. Clearly it’s about an entire team that’s stepped up in the absence of three very important members of the Bruins roster, but it’s also about one 5-foot-8 superstar that’s stepped up and begun carrying the B’s on his shoulders in the meantime. 

Brad Marchand scored his third straight game-winning goal in Boston’s 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers at TD Garden when he jumped all over a loose puck in the crease with just 22 seconds to go in the third period. It wasn’t a breathtaking blend of skill and puck possession like some of the overtime winners that Marchand has scored this season, but it did show a player paying the price for difference-making offense by going to the net. 

MORE BRUINS

“I would have scored on that,” said smirking Tuukka Rask at the close range goal. “Nah, he’s got the nose to the net. That overtime goal last game was pretty much just all him. Individual effort. When you’re hot, you’re hot, that’s what we say. We seem to find those loose pucks. But definitely he’s a battler, he never quits on a play so it’s good that he gets rewarded for sure.

“With Bergy [Patrice Bergeron] being out from their line and [David] Backes being out, he wants to be a difference-maker even more [than usual] and the past few games he’s been that. So it’s great for him. He’s even got the letter on his chest.”

It also marked the fifth goal and ninth point for Marchand in the five games since Bergeron exited the Bruins lineup with a fractured right foot, and continues a rampant scoring binge that’s covered for a Bruins team that’s playing at quite the efficiency that they were in a dominant middle of the season. 

“[Marchand] just keeps on ticking. You know, him and Pasta [David Pastrnak] have done a nice job without Bergy [Patrice Bergeron], and so has Riley Nash filling in there, and Krech [David Krejci]; we switched it up a little bit late. But that’s Brad,” said Bruins head coach Bruce Cassidy. “He seems like he’s on a bit of a mission with Bergy out and that he wants to pick the team up in the offensive part of it. 

“He got frustrated tonight with a couple calls [where] one went against him and one didn’t. He thought he was held on [Philly’s shorthanded goal], but at the end of the day, just kept plugging away, refocused, and [doing] a good job for us.”

It still may be a tad premature to toss Marchand in the Hart Trophy race as he’s still tied for 16th in the NHL with his 67 points on the season, and tied for 14th in the league with 29 goals scored in 62 games for the Bruins. But the Bruins agitator is third in the NHL with his 1.29 points per game that’s good enough for ranking fourth in the NHL with just Hart Trophy candidates ahead of him in Nathan MacKinnon, Evgeni Malkin and Nikita Kucherov.

Marchand will have to remain healthy and out of trouble with the league over the last month if he wants to really push up into the conversation and perhaps siphon some of the support that his partner Bergeron had built up prior to falling victim to injury. But the seven game-winning goals and counting could certainly be a sign that Marchand is ready to clutch up down the stretch for the Bruins, and keep the B’s right in the thick of everything.

MORE BOSTON SPORTS:

It isn’t really surprising given Marchand’s standing as one of the NHL’s best players, one of the most high pressure performers for the Bruins and now a player with enough experience and seniority that he was wearing the ‘A’ on his sweater on Thursday night. Clearly the Bruins miss some leadership when guys like Bergeron and Backes are missing from Boston’s lineup, but a high-motored Marchand has been able to make up the difference. 

“I think we all have to carry the load a bit. I think we’re all feeling that. You know, it’s very hard missing a guy like [Bergeron] and [Charlie] McAvoy, and now Backs [David Backes] for a few games. It’s tough to replace them, so you know, I think we all feel that a bit and have to step up,” said Marchand. “[The letter on the sweater] was nice. It shows the confidence that they have, and you know, it’s a great honor. So anytime you’re allowed to put that on it feels really good, but I wish I would have played better with it on. Hopefully I’ll be better next game.”

Certainly the Nose Face Killah couldn’t have been a little more disciplined after taking a couple of penalties, against the Flyers, but the Bruins left winger also has three game-winning goals in three straight games, and nine points in his last five games while playing without injured partner-in-crime Patrice Bergeron. If Marchand is “much better next game” then it will be difficult to top, but will also give the Bruins exactly what they need at this time of year. 

Contact Us