TORONTO – Brad Marchand couldn’t help himself after scoring two goals in the third period and dominating the final stanza against the Maple Leafs in a 4-2 win for the Bruins at Scotiabank Arena.
For his two-goal performance in the annual Hall of Fame Game, the Bruins agitator was handed the “Player of the Game” trophy from the legendary Lanny McDonald and then Marchand took a hilarious, celebratory lap around the Leafs home rink holding up the trophy up high for all of Leafs Nation to see on their way out the door.
Never mind that Marchand is considered Enemy No. 1 in pretty much every arena he goes, but he and his Perfection Line teammates have torched Toronto in the playoffs the past few seasons as well. So seeing Marchand prancing around the ice with a trophy in his hands had to be salt in the wounds for Toronto fans and No. 63 seemed to be enjoying every minute of it.
“I thought they were expecting me to do a lap, so I just did a lap,” said Marchand with a smirk on his face. “The fans seemed so excited that I got it, so I thought they would enjoy a little half-lap there. I showed it off and got lots of good cheers. It was fun.”
The real story for Marchand after his two third-period daggers, a pair of plays where he followed his shot and made his offense happen, is that he’s now on pace for 56 goals and 138 points this season after a tremendous start. He came through in the clutch again and has his teammates wondering how much better he can possibly get after hitting 100 points last season.
Boston Bruins
“You have to rely on some of your best players to be your best players. Obviously, he showed why he’s a best player not only on our team, but in the league,” said B's captain Zdeno Chara. “[Marchand] scored some big goals, Tuukka made some big saves and we played well defensively.”
And then Marchand got Hall of Fame Game hardware for his trophy room that he was able to show off postgame for all of his good friends in Toronto.
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