RETURN OF THE RAT: Boston Bruins CAN’T ALLOW Brad Marchand, Floridan Panthers to Steal the Show

RETURN OF THE RAT: Boston Bruins CAN’T ALLOW Brad Marchand, Floridan Panthers to Steal the Show

Brad Marshon’s making an emotional return to TD Garden tonight as a member of the Florida Panthers. And while he should be celebrated with rousing ovations in a fitting video tribute, the Boston Bruins cannot afford to allow him to have big moments during the game. You’re Locked on Bruins, your daily podcast on the Boston Bruins, part of the Locked On podcast network. Your team every day. [Music] What is up Bruins fans and welcome back to the Locked On Boston Bruins podcast. I’m your host Ian McLaren and this is a daily show where we discuss all things spoke beat. Today is Tuesday, October 21st. Thank you so much for making Lockdown Boston Bruins your first listen every day. It’s part of the Locked Podcast Network your team every day. And on today’s episode, we are going to discuss the return of Brad Marshon to TD Garden for the first time since being traded last spring. He of course went on to win a Stanley Cup with the Panthers. It’s going to be a very emotional return and also kind of a game the Bruins can’t afford to drop. We’ll also touch on the Atlantic Division power rankings and uh preview tonight’s game by the numbers. Before we get into all that, today’s episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Download the FanDuel app now by visiting FanDuel.com and win $300 in bonus bets if your first $ five bet wins. You can also follow the show on socials, locked NHL Bruins. That’s on XB Blue Sky, Instagram, Threads, Tik Tok. You can find me, my hockey thoughts, and dad jokes at Ian C McLaren. I am a lifelong Boston Bruins fan. And I have been covering this team and the NHL for various outlets for almost 20 years now. And in my lifetime as a Boston Bruins fan, of course, Brad Marshon has been one of my favorite all-time Boston Bruins. He came up with not a lot of fanfare, made an immediate impact in his rookie season, was integral to the 2011 Stanley Cup championship. He of course developed a reputation early on for being a pest, a rat, earned several fines and suspensions, but then developed into one of the best left wingers in the NHL, putting up a bunch of points as his career went on. and he later became captain of this franchise. And his impact on the Boston Bruins over his 16-year tenure cannot be understated at all. He was the heart and soul of this team. He was the swagger, the attitude, the heart, often the mouthpiece. And it was devastating to see him be traded to the Florida Panthers last season. I can understand Charlie Coyle being traded, Brandon Carlo being traded, selling off Trent Frederick, Justin Brazo, Max Jones, but for it to be announced right before the trade deadline that Brad Marshon was being sent to the Florida Panthers of all teams and for a first round pick well in the future, it was heartbreaking. And this is a situation where you would have expected him to finish his career in black and gold. And there’s a very real argument to be made that Don Sweeney, Cam Neely, the Jacobs family should have rewarded him for all the things he had done up to this point in his career with a contract that would have allowed him to retire as a member of the Boston Bruins. Now, at the same time, these 37 uh diminishing returns over the past several seasons in terms of regular season uh production. Still a very good player, 60 points, off to a great start for the Florida Panthers, but you wonder about committing big money or term to a player at that stage of his career. And as I’ve mentioned every day will remember on the podcast, he’s certainly not the first captain to not finish his career in black and gold. Sado signed elsewhere after the Bruins made it known that they wanted to go a bit younger on the blue line. Joe Thornton was of course traded. Uh Jason Allison, who was captain for a minute, was traded. Ray Bourke was traded. only Patrice Berseron went out on his own terms and perhaps a bit earlier than we would have liked, right? All that to say, it’s complicated. It’s not black and white. It’s not a a situation where you say the Bruins messed up by trading him or Brad Marshon should have taken less to stay in Boston so that the team can be competitive. Would they be better with him in the lineup? clearly uh they miss his scoring, they miss his swagger, they miss his proficiency at both ends of the ice. And you’ve seen how good he has been for Florida since being traded. He was integral to their march to the Stanley Cup last season with 20 points in 23 playoff games. He ch has chipped in three goals, three assists through seven games so far this season with Florida. Of course, they went long on term with him, six years, which is a huge commitment for a guy who will be 38 at the end of this season. He’ll be 43 once the contract expires. He’s set on playing for as long as he can, and good on him. as long as you can, why not get out there and do something that you love? For the Bruins, at this point, they’re trying to track younger. Um, it would have been nice to have him around as captain during this transition period. And I said it before, a lot of people didn’t like it on X when I suggested that maybe his contract status last year was a bit of a hindrance for the Bruins. There was so much thrown into the pot that made the disgusting soup that was the 202425 Boston Bruins season far from the biggest issue, but that’s certainly something to be considered. If your captain, your longest tenur player is embroiled in kind of a not contract dispute, but an uncertain future with the team. uh maybe he won’t be around. So, do you defer to him still as the captain? Do you try to make your, you know, personality come out? Especially for guys like Elias Lindholm, Nikita Zidorov coming in as new guys looking to make their imprint on the team while also deferring to the current captain who may not be there long term. So, you want to make your presence felt. David Poshak trying to step up. You can’t say to me that it wasn’t a factor at all. And for tonight, the all the decision ultimately was Don Sweeny’s to trade him whether or not he was going to come back. He could have just held on to him and Brad Marshon walked for nothing. So, at least they got the first round pick in 2027 out of it. But it’s kind of a two-way street in terms of why he is a member of the Florida Panthers. And he was kind of joking that he wasn’t sure what the reception would be. Obviously, there’s going to be a huge ovation for Brad Marshand, a fitting video tribute. But the Boston Bruins can’t allow him to get under their skin. They can’t allow him to take over the game on the ice because they’re on a four-game losing streak. Uh, the Panthers not off to the strongest start either. So, this is a pretty big game for the Bruins in order to prove that they’re not the same pushover as they were last season. Florida right now, identical record of the Bruins, three and four. They have a minus5 goal differential compared to minus one for the Bruins. Both these teams are coming in on fourame losing streaks. So, it’s a big game on the ice and the Bruins, yeah, give Brad Marshon his flowers, have the fans, give him a rousing ovation between plays, but once that game play is on, every right to be right on the Florida Panthers, booing the crap out of this team and cheering for the Boston Bruins to take tonight’s game because they need these two points on a fourame losing streak. You either keep the Panthers down and extend their losing streak or you prove to everyone that you are no different than you were last season and belong in the bottom half of the Atlantic division. And speaking of the Atlantic Division, we are going to quickly update the power rankings before previewing tonight’s game by the numbers. That’s all coming up here as the podcast continues. The NFL season is here and FanDuel has an offer you do not want to miss. Right now, new customers can bet just $5 and get $300 in bonus bets if you win. That’s right. Pick a bet, put down five bucks, and if it hits, you’ll unlock $300 in bonus bets to use across the app. People love how FanDuel gives them so many ways to play. You can build parlays, try player props, even follow the live lines during games. Makes watching football even more exciting when you’ve got a little something riding on the action. And whether you’re a casual fan or love diving into the stats, FanDuel makes the game day experience so much better. So, what are you waiting for? Visit fanuel.com to download the FanDuel app today. get started with a $5 bet. 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It’s Tuesday here on Locked On Boston Bruins and that is when we update the Atlantic Division power rankings and there’s some surprising results here at the moment. Right now there are three teams tied with records of two and four. Actually two teams at two and four and one team at one three and two. And that is the Tampa Bay Lightning who have one regulation win so far through six games which is incredibly surprising. So they’re actually at the bottom of the Atlantic right now. They are tied in point percentage with the Ottawa Senators and the Buffalo Sabres. They are all at four points, 333 point percentages. I’m giving Buffalo the edge here over Ottawa because Ottawa’s gold differential is a division low minus 10 whereas the Sabres are a bit more respectable minus three. Tampa, of course, was expected to be one of the stronger teams and and they still probably will be even after this tough start. Ottawa was a playoff team last year. They’ve been hit huge by a Brady Kachchuck injury. Uh the Sabres started 0 and3, but they’ve actually looked pretty good as of late, even despite losing to Montreal last night. So, those are your bottom three teams right now. I’m putting Tampa down there because they’ve only got one uh win in regulation. Same with Ottawa actually. But one three and two compared to two and four for Ottawa. It’s a very close race there for the bottom. But Tampa I’m putting down there just because of the 1 three and two record. Ottawa seventh minus 10 goal differential. Buffalo at sixth this week with our Boston Bruins coming in at number five. Now, I mentioned earlier they are tied with Florida, identical records of three, four, and 0. Both of these teams have lost four in a row. I’m giving the Bruins a bit of the benefit of the doubt. They have a record of 1 and3 on the road, whereas Florida is only 0 and4. All three of their wins have come at home. So, the Bruins have a real opportunity tonight to extend both their losing streaks and their away record to 0 and5. Uh, Florida has a minus five goal differential. The Bruins are at minus one. You could put the Bruins up in fourth. I’ve given Florida the benefit of the doubt here as the reigning Stanley Cup champions, but tonight’s game is a big one and we’ll dig deeper into the numbers here later on in the podcast. In third, after a bit of a slow start, the Toronto Maple Leafs getting things going. They have a record of 32-1, seven points, a 583 point percentage with a plus two goal differential. The Montreal Canadiens are rolling right now. They have a record of five and two, 10 points with a 714 point percentage and a plus five goal differential. You would think that might be good enough for first place in the Atlantic, but no, that’s going to the redhot Detroit Red Wings, who are 5-1 in six games, an 833 point percentage, and a division leading plus six goal differential. In fact, Detroit sits uh tied with Montreal for points and tied for the best point percentage in the Eastern Conference with the Carolina Hurricanes. And they’ve won without Patrick Kane, who was injured and missed the previous one or two games for this team. So, a very impressive start here for the Detroit Red Wings, who are uh 833 point percentage, have the second best goal differential in the Eastern Conference. Carolina Hurricanes, of course, being the top team in the East and uh tied for third overall with Detroit and the Winnipeg Jets. The two top teams in the NHL right now are teams that the Bruins actually lost to last week. Colorado is 50 and one. The Vegas Golden Knights are 50 and2. So, and Utah, I should add, who the Bruins lost to last week as well, are at a 667 point percentage, which is in the top 10 in the NHL as well. So, there’s no real shame in the Bruins losing all three of those games on the road last week, but they can’t afford to allow that losing streak to keep growing. And it has to start tonight with that game against the Florida Panthers. And hopefully they’re able to uh turn things around here coming up beginning tonight. So, that’s just a very quick look at the Atlantic Division power rankings for you. Of course, it is still very early, but right now, Tampa struggling. Uh, the Senators dealing with a huge injury to their captain, Brady Kachchuck. Uh, he had surgery. He’s going to be out for a while. So, that’s a team the Bruins have to keep underneath them if they have any chance of jumping into a playoff spot. The Buffalo Sabres kind of improving after a rough start. They actually don’t look too bad anymore. Uh the Bruins Panthers right there in the middle. Tonight’s game is crucial. Toronto, Montreal, Detroit coming in 321 this week. Again, tonight’s game is huge and we’ll preview that one here as the podcast continues. Let’s be honest, most of us can’t even name all our financial accounts, let alone what they’re worth. Between 401ks, savings, and investments, it’s easy to lose track, and that can mean leaving money on the table. That’s why I started using Monarch, an all-in-one personal finance tool that brings your entire financial life together in one clean, easy to use interface on your laptop or your phone. It’s helping people organize their accounts, track their spending, and get a better handle on their investments without having to touch a spreadsheet. Monarch’s visual dashboards and smart tools make it so much easier to understand where your money’s going and how to make it work harder for you. Don’t let financial opportunity slip through the cracks. Use code lock.nhl atmon.com for 50% off your first year. That’s monarch monarch.com code locked on NHL for half off your first year. Panthers Bruins tonight. Couple nights ago, Marshon went out with Patrice Berseron, Sado, Tukar Rasque, Adam Mcuade, holdovers who are still in Boston from that 2011 Stanley Cup championship team. Can’t believe it’s going to be 15 years this spring since that team won the Stanley Cup. Everybody has moved on. There is nobody left on the roster from that team for the Boston Bruins. And of course, Marshon went on to win his second Stanley Cup with Florida this past spring after a couple good cracks at it with the Bruins in 2013, 2019, and 2023. And we can’t I can’t shake what could have been if Marshon had scored on Sergey Babski late in game five and the Bruins had just ended that series when they could have. Alas, now Marshon is a member of the Florida Panthers, and he actually leads this team in scoring. Three goals, three assists, all team highs for six points. Now, he is a minus six on the season. He’s taken eight minutes in penalties. He’s got 24 shots to lead the team as well. in the absence of Alexander Barov and Matthew Kachchuck, he’s a guy that they’ve come to rely upon to help keep things afloat. And they’re not really doing that because they’ve lost four in a row. And not even really to great teams. They lost to Philadelphia. Detroit, I mentioned, on a roll. Uh New Jersey is a very good team in the metro, but they also just lost to Buffalo. This is after winning three games to start the season against Philadelphia, Chicago, and Ottawa. Boston, of course, has lost four in a row. Tampa, Vegas, Colorado, Utah. So, those games less winnable than the ones that the uh the Panthers are coming off, right? Sergey Babroski three and two with a 202 goals against average and a 917 save percentage. Jeremy Swayman so far he’ll be getting the start two and two with a 917 save percentage. And they’re going to need him to be at his very best tonight to keep Brad Marshon at bay. The Bruins are led in scoring of course by David Posternok who’s got eight points in seven games, four goals, four assists. uh Charlie Makavoy with four assists to lead in that category as well or co-lead in that category over the past five games. Special teams always important. The Bruins have the 20th ranked power play right now at 16%. We would like to see that continue to improve under Steve spot. Penalty kill has been much improved though. their 90% success rate so far this season and that’s been a big reason why they’ve been able to stay in games. They can convert more on the power play might level things out or put them ahead. Florida’s power play is ranked 16th at 19.4% 83.3% on the penalty kill which ranks them 10th. An area that the Bruins can take advantage of tonight is in the faceoff dot without Alexander Barov in the lineup. The Panthers are the 25th ranked team in the dot. 47.2% success rate. The Bruins are the second best faceoff team so far this season. 55.9. win those faceoffs, get possession, and take it down the ice to put the pressure on uh the defense for the Panthers. Florida’s averaging only 2.14 goals per game, which is 30th in the NHL. And they’re allowing 2.86, which is 14th. So, middle of the pack there. Bruins offense is middle of the pack. Three goals per game ranks them 14th, but they’re allowing 3.14, which puts them at 20th. So, the Bruins need to continue to dominate in the faceoff circle. They need to take advantage of any power play opportunities that come their way. Continue to succeed penalty killing wise and yeah allow Brad Marshaw to have his moment in the sun with a video tribute and a rousing ovation from the Bruins faithful. But once the puck drops and in between plays, do everything you can to throw him off his game so that he’s not hurting the Bruins when it matters. Uh the Panthers right now five on five. They do have a positive shot attempt differential. The Bru and they also have a uh positive high danger shot attempt differential. The Bruins, as I mentioned yesterday, really struggling in that area, giving up like 62% of the high danger opportunities while they’re on the ice and giving up more shot attempts than they are generating. That’s where the faceoffs are really going to be important. Get possession, especially in the offensive zone, and just pepper Sergey Babski with as many pucks as possible. That’s going to be key. And of course, keeping Brad Marshon off the scoreboard. You don’t want to let him hurt you offensively. Um, you know, he’s going to be emotional. It’s probably going to be some tears. Uh, it’s going to be weird for him. You don’t want him to have a moment where he’s hurting your team in the standings. He said, you know, he’s had wonderful years in Boston. He was made to feel like it was home. So much gratitude to the organization, the opportunities that were given, and uh he’s going to not he’s going to want nothing more than to stick it to the Bruins tonight. Uh he said it’s going to be tough for some people. Bruins fans won’t be able to cheer because we don’t like the Panthers. Very true. But maybe they’ll like him enough to give a little yay or something. I mean, that’s understating it. He’s going to get a standing ovation, a huge uh cheer from the crowd, a lot of love. But if he scores, if he’s decking somebody, if he’s slashing anybody, then hopefully someone comes to that defense and is able to uh kind of put him in his place as a Panther. That’s it for today’s episode, my friends. We’ll be back tomorrow to fully recap anything that happens in tonight’s game. We will also uh do our weekly check-in on the Bruins in terms of the barometer, buy, sell, or hold, and bring you all the latest on the black and gold because that’s what we do here on the Long Dawn podcast network. Your favorite team every day. Everydayers will know that the best way to keep up on things is to uh subscribe on your favorite podcast app and on YouTube. Make it your first listen every day. Check out the Locked On NHL game night podcast next. Every game, every night until a Stanley Cup champion is crowned. Local analysis on a national scale. Find it on the Locked On NHL YouTube channel or wherever you listen to podcasts. It’s all part of the podcast. Lockdown Podcast Network. Your team every day. Take care of yourselves, friends. Take care of each other. We’ll talk to you again here on the next episode of Locked On Boston Bruins.

Brad Marchand returns to TD Garden as a Florida Panther, stirring emotions for Boston Bruins fans.

Today’s Locked on Boston Bruins podcast explores Marchand’s impact during his 16-year tenure with the organization, his trade to the Florida Panthers, and the complexities of his departure.

Host Ian McLaren emphasizes the need for Boston to balance honoring Marchand’s legacy with focusing on winning the game.

The episode also updates Atlantic Division power rankings, highlighting surprising starts for teams like Detroit and Tampa Bay.

Plus, a preview of the Bruins-Panthers matchup, analyzing key stats and strategies for both teams.

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