New Florida Panthers winger Brad Marchand choked up several times on Monday when talking about his time in Boston but said he had no ill will toward the Bruins management group that traded him.
The trade of the Bruins captain after 16 years with the team was the biggest shocker of Friday’s trade deadline day. He won a Stanley Cup with Boston in 2011, went to two other finals and was part of the group that set an NHL record with 65 wins just two seasons ago.
Marchand confirmed that there was ‘a gap’ between the two sides as they tried to negotiate an extension before his contract expired this summer. They discussed a contract until Thursday night, he said, but not on the day he was traded.
‘It was very disappointing that things didn’t get done because obviously I love the organization,’ he told reporters. ‘I wanted to stay there but at the end of the day, I also know that business is business and every player has a shelf life.’
Marchand praised general manager Don Sweeney, saying he worked hard and that things might have been different if Boston had been in a playoff spot. Instead the Bruins were sellers at the deadline, moving Marchand, Trent Frederic, Charlie Coyle and others.
Marchand said Sweeney gave him an opportunity by moving him to the defending Stanley Cup champions. There, he’ll join fellow Team Canada 4 Nations Face-Off champions Sam Reinhart and Sam Bennett for a chance at another title.
‘I feel rejuvenated coming here,’ he said. ‘They’re a completely different mindset from where we (Bruins) were as a team and the things we were going through and now coming in and seeing that the path that these guys are on and the way they’re preparing for playoffs.’
The Panthers also added defenseman Seth Jones and faceoff specialist Nico Sturm before the deadline to join a team that has reached the final in back-to-back seasons.
‘When you match the drive with the experience and the depth of the group, it’s a very dangerous combination,’ Marchand said.
When he suits up for Florida depends on when he recovers from an injury that has him out week-to-week. The Panthers play in Boston on Tuesday, but Marchand won’t. Instead, he’ll use the opportunity to say goodbye to former teammates who were on the road when the trade went down, see his family and pick up some things.
Marchand was wearing Panthers gear at Monday’s news conference – ‘Brings out my eyes,” he said – and first put on the hat when he was FaceTiming with his kids after the trade.
‘There was a hat on the table and I said, ‘Before you go, look at this’ and I put it on,’ he said. ‘It was a weird feeling … but reality is setting in here and I’m starting to feel like I’m part of the group.’
