From a team that was limping to the finish line to one that’s bursting with energy. That’s the change of pace that Brad Marchand is getting used to as he begins to settle in with the Florida Panthers following his month-long injury hiatus. Because while the Boston Bruins were on life support, the Florida Panthers are full of verve and energy and are constantly champing at the bit. A fact that Marchand is well aware of, in light of their latest win against the Detroit Red Wings and his first goal for the team.
When asked about his experience during the post-game interview, Marchand said graciously to cut the Red Wings some slack, “I mean, it’s just such a hard game to play against the way that this team plays, and you know, we could have played a little bit better at times, but you know, for the most part, we were good and came up at the right times, and then when we broke down, Bob (Sergei Bobrovsky) had a great game back there to kind of hold the fort down. So you know, when you have all those weapons, it can get frustrating.”
It seemed that Marchand was hinting at Florida’s classic bad-boy style of intense physical playing, especially when he said, “It’s just such a hard game to play against the way that this team plays.” So the interviewer pushed further and asked about Florida’s well-known physicality. “It’s a very aggressive style,” Brad Marchand added in response, “I mean, that is, you know, kind of how I play.”
It’s true, the Florida Panthers have, since 2022, developed an extremely intense style of play, bringing back memories of the eras of enforcers, and adding Brad Marchand to that lineup can’t be a mistake! But the team hadn’t always been like this; in fact, before 2022, the Panthers had a slower, more gentle style, but since Paul Maurice took over and oversaw the shocking trade of Jonathan Huberdeau for Matthew Tkachuk, everything changed!
The Panthers have long been honing their physicality, even before Brad Marchand entered the picture
Soon enough Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Bennett became the heart of Florida’s “bad boy” identity, with both of them playing physical, agitating roles on the team. Bennet added to Tkachuk’s playing style by scoring 20 goals and 21 assists for 41 points through 69 games, with 100 penalty minutes in total! In fact, in 2024 Florida led the NHL playoffs in both hits (632) and penalty minutes (191), so they were making their new identity clear.
In 2024, when the Panthers lost Bennett briefly to injury in game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Tkachuk was pushed to refine his game, and Anton Lundell was pushed into wearing Bennett’s skates, figuratively, meaning that that aggressive camaraderie built between Tkachuk and Bennett was now taking force in a more widespread fashion within the team.
Then came the fated day, the Stanley Cup finals, where the Panthers were going to be holding the cup after 30 years. Little did they know that at the start, but Matthew Tkachuk led with his signature physicality, Sergei Bobrovsky held down the net, and Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Reinhart, and Aleksander Barkov followed suit, holding things down at the offensive end. The Florida ‘bad boys’ then lifted the Stanley Cup as they ushered in a new era for Florida hockey. One that even Brad Marchand acknowledges is “hard to play against.”
It’s no wonder that Brad Marchand, also known for his intensely physical style of play, seems to feel right at home in Florida. And it is no wonder that he was acquired around the time Bennet’s contract is set to expire. Because it certainly seems that the Panthers are putting together a roster as formidable as the ones in the Marty McSorley and Tie Domi times!
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