Brad Marchand returned to Boston Bruins territory on Tuesday night and found himself the center of a deeply emotional moment. At the start of the game, the crowd at TD Garden rose to their feet, banging their sticks on the ice as Marchand skated off the visitors’ bench and saluted the fans. Overcome with emotion, he tapped his heart and wiped away tears as the highlight reel of his Bruins career played on the scoreboard. “I knew it was going to hit me the way it did. It was extremely touching,” Marchand said after the game.
Having spent 15 seasons in Boston, the former Bruins captain acknowledged that the city and franchise will always hold a “very, very dear” place in his heart even after being traded to the Florida Panthers last season. “When you go from being a kid, with a dream, and then you grow up and you have a family, you become a man and you build an entire life in a city, it’s just different. Of course, it’ll always be in my heart and always be a special place,” he reflected.
Despite the warm reception and the personal significance of the night, Marchand didn’t let sentimentality dominate his performance. He registered two assists in the Panthers’ 4-3 win and contributed to the play that put his new team ahead. Yet, as Panthers coach Paul Maurice noted, “Those tears are real. He just wears his heart on his sleeve.”
