BOSTON — Brad Marchand stepped on the ice for the 1,000th time Tuesday night when the Boston Bruins hosted the Tampa Bay Lightning at TD Garden. He became the eighth Bruins player to reach the milestone with the organization, and the night was special from start to finish.
Despite the 3-2 shootout loss, Marchand’s kids were on the bench during warmups and they read the lineup prior to the game. The 35-year-old was visibly emotional as Todd Angilly wrapped up the national anthem and made sure to salute the TD Garden crowd as they gave Marchand a standing ovation after a video tribute in the first period.
“I know how fortunate I am to be part of this organization and one organization your whole career,” Marchand said after the game. “That’s part of what I love so much about being here is how much fans care, how much they embrace the team. “It’s really special, and it flies by. You really have to enjoy every day and make the most of every moment. … I can’t believe how fast it’s already gone and it’s something you want to make last forever.”
BetMGM BET $5, GET $158! BONUS BETS
STATES: MA, KY, AZ, CO, IA, IL, IN, KS, LA, MD, MI, NJ, NY, OH, PA, TN, VA. Visit BetMGM.com for Terms and Conditions. 21 years of age or older to wager. MA Only. New Customer Offer. All promotions are subject to qualification and eligibility requirements. Rewards issued as non-withdrawable bonus bets. Bonus bets expire 7 days from issuance. In Partnership with MGM Springfield. Play it smart from the start with GameSense. GameSenseMA.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-327-5050 or visit gamblinghelplinema.org.
Marchand was selected by the Bruins in the fourth round of the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. In the beginning of his career, he had a reputation as a player who was scrappy, but often found himself in trouble with the league, getting fined or suspended for questionable hits. Marchand cleaned up his act, though, and has become an elite player, a potential Hall of Famer and a leader on the Bruins.
Marchand admitted he was trying not to think about Tuesday being Game 1,000 because he wanted to focus on the game at hand.
“There’s moments, things that happen through the night, that you do get to try and embrace,” Marchand said. “My kids were in before the game and read the lineup, which was special. Getting the montage and looking back on it all, It is a very special thing, and it’s not something that everybody gets to do. As much as I was trying to block it out and be focused on the game, I was trying to balance back and forth and just be grateful for the moment because it is really special.”
He’s still playing at a high level and watched Zdeno Chara play into his 40s. Marchand isn’t sure if that’s what his NHL future holds, but said as long as his body holds up, he can continue to compete at a high level. But he doesn’t know if that’s what he’d want even his body allows him to do so.
“I live my dream every day. There’s a long time between now and then,” Marchand said. “There’s a lot of things I want to do before then. So, we’ll see.”
The Bruins will honor Marchand with a pregame ceremony Monday afternoon when they host the Dallas Stars. It’s unclear what the ceremony will entail, but it’s likely he’ll receive gifts, including the NHL’s silver stick for reaching 1,000 games. He was there to celebrate Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci and Zdeno Chara when they reached the 1,000 game threshold when they were all teammates. And now he’ll receive that same honor as he continues to be one of the NHL’s best players.
- All betting sites in MA will have promo codes for signing up. Don’t forget to check out BetMGM Massachusetts and DraftKings Massachusetts.
