‘The best I’ve ever scouted’: The talent and work ethic that make Marvin Harrison Jr. special
-
Pete Thamel, ESPN
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The tall tales of Marvin Harrison Jr.‘s work ethic have followed him throughout his Ohio State career.
They began with the predawn workout sessions as a freshman, which often were bookended by return trips to the facility that led to Buckeyes coaches tossing him out after midnight.
They continued with a practice temperament so fierce he once threatened to boycott team workouts after slipping in a speed workout and losing the top spot in an offseason competition. (He returned the next day and went 17-0 in his races to reemerge as No. 1.)
The crown jewel of Harrison Jr.’s competitiveness anecdote compilation came at the hotel lobby of a bowl site, when the staff set up a Jugs machine for him to get extra work.
Halfway through what’s presumed to be Harrison Jr.’s final season at Ohio State, he has taken his prototype wide receiver frame and the Hall of Fame tutoring from his father, Marvin Harrison Sr., and nurtured those gifts in the Ohio State wide receiver room, the country’s best incubator for future NFL pass-catching stars.
The confluence of raw talent, unmatched mentorship and elite collegiate coaching isn’t the reason Harrison Jr. is considered a generational NFL prospect, however. What has impressed throughout his three seasons in Columbus is the way he has maximized all the raw talent and inherent advantages of his father being one of the best receivers of all time.
“Many times, the more talented you are, the harder it is to develop discipline and skill,” Ohio State coach Ryan Day told ESPN. “And when you take somebody who has a lot of talent, who has a lot of discipline, that’s when you have Kobe Bryant. And you look at this kid, he’s got a lot of talent. He’s got a tremendous amount of discipline.”
Harrison Jr.’s 31 receptions and 604 yards so far in 2023 have lived up to the lofty expectations, and he’s expected to be the highest drafted wide receiver since Calvin Johnson went No. 2 in 2007.
His 6-foot-4, 205-pound frame cuts the archetype of a classic NFL outside receiver such as Julio Jones, an outsized version of his Hall of Fame father’s 6-foot, 185-pound frame. But his father’s genetics showed up in his hips, scouts and OSU coaches say, giving him the quick-twitch traits of a slot receiver in an outside receiver’s body.
That has all been honed by Harrison Sr. forcing his son to play against older kids growing up, orchestrating a high school transfer to a better program and steering him to be surrounded by the best wide receiver room in college football.
“Some kids are bigger and stronger and faster,” Harrison Sr. told ESPN. “Determination and competitiveness is the difference in him.”
How far can Harrison Jr.’s Mamba Mentality take him? Younger scouts don’t flinch when they say he’s the best receiver they’ve ever scouted, a full package of speed, hands, circus catches and smooth jazz routes aided by those loose hips.
“I think he’ll be with his dad in Canton,” Ohio State offensive coordinator Brian Hartline, referencing the site of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, told ESPN before the College Football Playoff last year. “I’ve told people that, and there’s no point in keeping it a secret. That’s just reality.”
Harrison faces the reality of perhaps the biggest challenge of his career on Saturday — Penn State’s No. 1-ranked pass defense (121.2 yards per game) — when the No. 3 Buckeyes host the No. 7 Nittany Lions.
Those who’ve witnessed his rise remain confident: Marvin Harrison Jr. is built for these moments.
As the cacophony of Ohio State’s pro day unfolded around him, Harrison Sr. sat on a bench in the Ohio State football facility. He still found bracket coverage, even 15 years after retiring — old-timers came with items to sign, agents came in for a quick greeting and half-hug, and scouts and general managers paid their respects.
He watched his son put on a show in front of scouts. Even though Harrison Jr. wasn’t draft-eligible, he ran routes for C.J. Stroud to tease the dozens of NFL personnel gathered about what they could look forward to the following year.
When Harrison Sr. reflected back on his own rise at Syracuse to a first-round pick in 1996, he didn’t even remember the school holding a Pro Day. But he does recall every deliberate and calculated step to help hone his son into the top receiver in college football.
“You have to go where the competitiveness is,” Harrison Sr. told ESPN.
That began in high school. Harrison Jr. began his career at La Salle College High School in Philadelphia and transferred to St. Joseph’s Prep after his freshman year, in part to play with current Buckeyes quarterback Kyle McCord.
Harrison Jr. chuckles at the memory of La Salle students chanting “Overrated” at him before a game during his junior year. He took notice, and he happily recalls a performance that rendered the chanting observation incorrect.
“I was like, ‘Oh, all right, that’s not cool,” he said of the sing-song chants in pregame. “I think I only played a half a game and had like 222 yards and four touchdowns. So, I don’t think that’s overrated.”
Early on in his son’s high school career, Harrison Sr. got a call from then-OSU assistant coach Ryan Day. He was in charge of recruiting Philadelphia and claims no scouting genius when the coaches at La Salle gave an early scouting report. “They said, ‘You know, we have Marvin Harrison Jr.’ I said, ‘We want to check on that one.'”
Day laughs at the obvious interest because of the bloodline, but the early call to Harrison Sr. meant a lot. Day had been the Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterback coach in 2015 and was a familiar name when he first got on the phone with Harrison Sr.
“The biggest portion of the recruiting process was two words — Ryan Day,” Harrison Sr. said. “I’d heard of him, through multiple sources.”
Day was also recruiting McCord, who was one of the first big commitments after he took over the head coaching job in December 2018. And that meant the two eventual high school teammates took recruiting trips there and developed a comfort level.
To Harrison Sr., the big allure was the program’s NFL pedigree. He loved that wide receiver coach Brian Hartline played in the NFL and was in the process of developing six NFL draft picks at the position since 2019, including three first-round picks the past two years — Garrett Wilson, Chris Olave and Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Harrison Sr. appreciated Day’s NFL pedigree from his time with the Eagles and 49ers in 2015 and 2016, and chuckled like an old receiver when he noted his appreciation for a “greedy” offensive coach. (He compared Day to former Colts offensive coordinator Tom Moore.)
Harrison Sr. also appreciated that Ohio State produced a steady stream of high-end defensive backs. The opportunity to get pushed by his coaches, his teammates and in practice every day provided the biggest allure for Harrison Sr.
“It’s a competitive development,” Harrison Sr. said. “He had skills when he got here. He knew the game before he got here. He’s enhanced it and got better as you get older. But it’s, ‘Are you going to get here and get in the back of the f—ing line? Or are you going to go in the front of the line and say, ‘I’m going to kick your ass.’
“That’s a credit to the university and the school. The better competition they recruit, the better the kids are going to make each other. That’s the difference.”
Harrison Jr. showed up in January 2021 after the COVID-19 lockdown having grown three inches and put on significant weight, because he’d had extra time to work out. Mickey Marotti, Ohio State’s veteran strength coach, chuckled as he recalled him “showing up like a different person,” the physical changes were so stark.
The stories of the work ethic came soon after, as Harrison Jr. ended up being so dedicated that his work ethic pushed the veterans in the wide receiver room. Marotti said Harrison Jr. would bring groups in to catch balls before 6 a.m. lifts.
Harrison Jr. earned a small role as a freshman, broke out as arguably the country’s top receiver last year with 77 catches for 1,263 yards and 14 touchdowns and likely would have been the first wide receiver picked in the NFL draft last year. (His teammate, Smith-Njigba, went No. 20 to the Seahawks with the first receiver off the board.)
And on pro day in March, Harrison Sr. smiled when he pointed out the full-circle nature of the relationship that started nearly six years earlier. He sought out Day for a simple message: “I want to thank you from Day 1 for recruiting my kid. Thank you for everything that you’ve done for me and my family.”
Bill Polian vividly remembered Harrison Sr.’s private workout with the Carolina Panthers in spring 1996.
At Manley Field House at Syracuse, Harrison Sr. lined up in front of Panthers officials for a crew that included Polian, then the Panthers’ general manager, and coach Dom Capers. An assistant drilled Harrison Sr. in a drill called “Around the World,” where he fired the ball at “full throttle” from 10 yards away at every point on Harrison Sr.’s body.
“Our mouths were agape,” Polian recalled in a phone interview this week. “We’d never seen anyone with hands that fast. I certainly hadn’t.”
Polian, who became the Colts general manager in 1998, recalls someone in the group remarking: “He looks like a major league shortstop with those hands, the quickness, agility and softness. That’s Derek Jeter.”
Harrison Sr. crafted a comparable career in a different sport, as he went No. 19 overall to the Colts and finished his career with 14,580 receiver yards and 128 touchdowns. The yards put him No. 9 all-time in NFL history, and the touchdowns place him No. 5 in league history. So it’s revealing that he views his son as well ahead of where he was at this stage in his career.
“Absolutely, not even close,” Harrison Sr. said. “Obviously, things get better in time. Everything is more technical. More of this. More of that. More of everything now than it was in 1996.
“He’s been blessed to be around myself, Ohio State and Coach Day and Coach Hartline.”
Harrison Jr. recalled his father drilling in the nuances of the position from an early age. He said young receivers tend to want the ball to fall “in front of you” on routes, but he grew up understanding that the key to ball tracking is not necessarily running under it.
“You need to track the ball on the outside shoulder,” Harrison Jr. said. “You have to adjust the route not only to catch it, which is hard, but to catch it at a very specific spot.”
Hartline said a part of Harrison’s game that goes unseen is his “mad scientist” ability to learn a concept or see something executed on film and immediately apply it to the field. “Marv’s ability to apply his mental makeup to his physical mechanics is awesome,” Hartline said.
That translates to a prospect scouts say could end up as a top 5 pick in the NFL draft, with the third spot behind USC’s Caleb Williams and UNC’s Drake Maye a possibility.
One veteran NFL scout compared his body type to former NFL star A.J. Green and said he’s the best receiver he has scouted since Johnson went to the Lions No. 2 in 2007.
“What the fan wouldn’t notice is that when he runs his routes, he can really sink his hips and get out of breaks and cut without losing speed,” the scout said. “It may look like he’s blowing by someone, but corners can’t read his hips and doesn’t turn on the blink, as they say, to signal where he’s going.
“It’s not as good as someone like Tyreek Hill, but it’s the same thing. They don’t have to gear down to cut. He separates very easily for a tall receiver, which you don’t see.”
Another NFL scout called Harrison Jr. a “once-in-every-10-years-type” player. He noticed the same thing about the receiver’s hips and called his torso “long,” which gives him a “special change of direction and agility.”
Polian said he notices Harrison Jr.’s loose hips, which are the key to changing direction. A third scout summed up Harrison’s unique movement for his size this way: “He’s the best I’ve ever scouted,” he said. “That guy should be 5-11, but he’s 6-3. You don’t see guys that big do that. Ever.”
At some point this spring, a struggling NFL franchise is going to have a pre-draft workout with Harrison Jr. and likely come away with a similar impression Polian had of his father in 1996.
As Harrison Jr. hits the back half of what’s assumed to be his final season in Columbus, he’s aiming to get the ending right.
The consummate competitor finished last season with the ultimate motivator — sitting on the sideline as the Buckeyes squandered a 38-24 fourth-quarter lead and lost to Georgia 42-41 in the College Football Playoff semifinals. Harrison Jr. took a vicious hit from UGA’s Javon Bullard, suffered a concussion and has spent the offseason pondering what could have been.
“I definitely wish I could have been out there,” he said. “I think I definitely could have made a big difference — rewrote history if you look back at that game. If I don’t get hurt, I think Ohio State wins that game.”
Instead, the Buckeyes came achingly close to spoiling Georgia’s back-to-back title run with Harrison Jr. on the bench for the comeback. Harrison lobbied to return, but he is appreciative of Day and the medical staff looking back. “They’re looking at my best interests, not just as a football player, but as a person,” he said. “I can’t thank them enough for that, as bad as I wanted to be out there.”
Harrison Sr. said the first call he received the next day was from Day: “I said, ‘Coach, for not allowing him to go back in the game, I want to thank you again for protecting my son as if he was your own.'”
The close loss to Georgia, which wasn’t sealed until a missed field goal near the stroke of midnight on New Year’s, set the tone for Ohio State this past offseason.
Day emphasized the inches of the game, staying consistent because you never know where inches will show up. For Ohio State, they won at Notre Dame with a Chip Trayanum 1-yard plunge to secure a thrilling win, which personified Day’s focus.
With Penn State and its top-ranked pass defense coming to town in what’s expected to be another close game, the determining factor will again manifest itself in the smallest details. And for Harrison, it’s the type of stage he has been built for.
“Look at the inches,” he said. “We lost that [Georgia] game by inches on the kick, obviously. It’s just inches away from the [championship game]. How do we find those inches everywhere? Everything is coming down to the smallest of details.”
With a long-awaited ruling in the settlement of the House case expected this week, college sports are on the precipice of a major overhaul.
While Judge Claudia Ann Wilken still needs to issue a final approval on the long-awaited settlement, a decision is expected to arrive in the near future.
Changes will come quickly to the way college sports work if the settlement is formalized. Most prominent among them will be a change in how enforcement works, as the NCAA will no longer be in charge of traditional enforcement, and a CEO will soon be put in place with powers that never existed prior.
The CEO of college sports’ new enforcement organization — the College Sports Commission — will have the final say in doling out punishments and deciding when rules have been violated, according to sources, a level of singular power that never existed during the NCAA’s era of struggling to enforce its rules.
The CEO’s hire is expected to come quickly after the House settlement is finalized and has been spearheaded by the Power 4 commissioners from the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC. Their pick to lead the new agency will quickly become one of the most powerful and influential people in college sports. The hiring of a new CEO of the College Sports Commission already is deep in the process, per ESPN sources. The conducting of the search process before the job can officially be created is indicative of how quickly the entire billion-dollar industry will have to transform before games are played again in August. Nothing can happen formally until the judge’s decision, but the process is well underway.
The CEO of the commission will be one of the faces of this new era of college athletics. Sources have told ESPN to expect the person to come from outside college athletics and not to be a household name to college sports fans. The CEO is expected to make seven figures and, once the settlement is in place and they are hired, will have significant authority.
“All the institutions are going to have new membership agreements that we’re all agreeing to these new rules,” said an industry source familiar with the process. “The CEO is going to have responsibility to make sure everything is enforced and the governance model is sound. It’s a critically important role for the future of college sports and college football.”
The CEO is expected to report to a board, which is expected to include the power conference commissioners. The CEO will also be in charge of essentially running the systems that have been put in place — LBi Software and accounting firm Deloitte have been lined up to handle salary cap management and to manage the clearinghouse for name, image and likeness.
With the NCAA no longer involved with traditional enforcement, it will mark a distinct industry shift. (The NCAA will still deal with issues such as academics and eligibility.)
According to sources, a vision of what this leader could look like, and the extent of the position’s powers, is illustrated in drafts of so-called association documents that all schools are expected to sign to formalize the new enforcement entity. Basically, the schools need to agree that they’ll follow the rules.
While sources caution the documents that have been circulated are still in draft stage, sources say the draft includes language that the CEO will make “final factual findings and determinations” on violations of rules. The CEO will also “impose such fines, penalties or other sanctions as appropriate,” in accordance with the rules.
The schools have to accept these rulings “as final,” with the exception being if a school or athlete wants to challenge the discipline. They’d be required, per sources, “to engage in the arbitration process,” which is expected to be the sole recourse.
Per sources, when cases do end up in arbitration, under the procedures that govern arbitration, subpoena power is a potential option via the discovery process — an authority that was not available during NCAA investigations.
As college sports have zigzagged to where they are thanks to the direction of myriad lawsuits and rulings, the association agreement could also include a clause where the schools “agree to waive any right to a jury trial with respect to all disputes arising out of or relating to this agreement.” That notion would still need to be accepted by all the schools, and it’s not expected to prevent lawsuits from entities outside of the schools.
It’s worth noting that the lawsuits that have brought major changes to NCAA rules in recent years have started with attorneys general or with athletes. Congress is expected to still be needed to help create a legal framework for the new system to function without being tripped up by the current patchwork of state laws.
Enforcement has long been a thorn for the NCAA, which is now offloading one of its most controversial and least effective departments. All schools agree with enforcement as an ideal, but the issues come once the enforcement is enacted on them or their athletes.
Few coaches this generation have seen NCAA enforcement as an effective threat to follow the rules.
“It all starts with enforcement, and I’ve said this for a long time, ‘Until we have an enforcement arm put into place, we’re always going to be working sideways,'” Ohio State coach Ryan Day told ESPN on the “College GameDay” podcast recently. “I feel like before we set a rule, before we do anything, we have to put a structure in place where we can enforce rules on and off the field.”
The new organization looks to have expedited timelines and a highly compensated CEO to be the face of the decisions. (The NCAA used a committee on infractions.)
The drumbeat leading to the settlement is indicative of the past generations of behavior, as schools have been rushing to spend outside of the expected cap, with frontloading so significant that the highest-paid basketball roster is expected to have compensation totaling close to $20 million and football rosters are expected to be in the $40 million range.
Will schools fall in line once rules are put into place? Will the threat of enforcement be enough to settle down the landscape? It’s difficult for coaches to imagine player salaries going backward for 2026.
The ultimate deterrent will be stiff and consistent penalties to deter rule-breaking behavior, which have been elusive historically because of lack of NCAA enforcement prowess and the lengthy process of enforcement.
Purdue AD Mike Bobinski told ESPN in March that the punishments need to “leave a mark,” and he mentioned the New Orleans Saints’ Bountygate sanctions as an example of the type of punishment that changed behavior. (Then-Saints coach Sean Payton was suspended for the entire 2012 season as part of the penalties.)
“We’ve screwed this thing up now to the point where we have to be willing to draw a line in the sand, and that will create some pain,” Bobinski said. “There’s no two ways about it, and we’ll find out who’s just going to insist on stepping over the line. But if they do, you got to deal with it forcefully and quickly.”
He added that the Big Ten has put a lot of thought and conversation into this, as he said the mindset has to be changed to where coaches and programs can’t consider breaking the rules “worth it.”
Bobinski added: “People are working hard on this thing. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy or it’s going to be accepted right out of the box, but I’d like to think we’ve got a chance at least to do it well.”
ESPN reporter Dan Murphy contributed.
Following the Florida Panthers‘ Game 7 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Sunday, the NHL’s final four is official: The defending Stanley Cup champion Panthers will take on the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference finals, while the Dallas Stars face the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference finals.
This Eastern matchup is a rematch of the 2023 conference finals, won by the Panthers in a sweep. Can Carolina win this time, or will Florida head back to the Stanley Cup Final for a third straight year?
To help get you up to speed before the series begins Tuesday, we’re here with key intel from ESPN Research, wagering info from ESPN BET and more.
Paths to the conference finals:
Hurricanes: Defeated Devils in five, Capitals in five
Panthers: Defeated Lightning in five, Maple Leafs in seven
Leading playoff scorers:
Hurricanes: Seth Jarvis (four goals, six assists), Sebastian Aho (three goals, seven assists)
Panthers: Brad Marchand (three goals, nine assists), Eetu Luostarinen (three goals, nine assists)
Schedule:
Game 1: Panthers at Hurricanes | May 20, 8 p.m. (TNT)
Game 2: Panthers at Hurricanes | May 22, 8 p.m. (TNT)
Game 3: Hurricanes at Panthers | May 24, 8 p.m. (TNT)
Game 4: Hurricanes at Panthers | May 26, 8 p.m. (TNT)
Game 5: Panthers at Hurricanes | May 28, 8 p.m. (TNT)
Game 6: Hurricanes at Panthers | May 30, 8 p.m. (TNT)
Game 7: Panthers at Hurricanes | June 1, 8 p.m. (TNT)
Series odds:
Panthers: -125
Hurricanes: +105
Stanley Cup odds:
Panthers: +250
Hurricanes: +300
Matchup notes from ESPN Research
Hurricanes
The Hurricanes reached the conference finals for the sixth time in franchise history and third time in the past six years. Carolina’s three conference finals appearances since 2019 are tied with the Edmonton Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Vegas Golden Knights for the second most in the NHL. The Dallas Stars have gone four times in the past six years.
Logan Stankoven is expected to make his Eastern Conference finals debut, after he appeared in the Western Conference finals with the Stars last year in his first NHL season. He will join Ville Leino (2009 and 2010) as the only players to play in both the Eastern and Western Conference finals in their first two seasons in the NHL (since 1994).
The Hurricanes have lost 12 straight games in the conference finals round. Their last win was Game 7 in 2006 vs. the Buffalo Sabres, when now-coach Rod Brind’Amour scored the eventual winning goal on a power play with 8:38 left in the third period after a puck-over-glass penalty. That 12-game losing streak includes being swept by the Panthers in 2023.
Carolina won its 10th playoff series under Brind’Amour since 2019; only the Lightning (11) have more series wins during that span.
Andrei Svechnikov‘s series-clinching goal 18:01 into the third period is the second-latest series-clinching goal in regulation in franchise history. Eric Staal scored 19:28 into the third period in Game 7 of the 2009 first round at the New Jersey Devils.
With their series win over Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals in the second round, the Hurricanes became the first team to eliminate the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer since the 1997 Philadelphia Flyers, who ousted Wayne Gretzky and the New York Rangers in the conference finals. Brind’Amour, then with the Flyers, had the series-clinching goal.
Panthers
The Panthers advanced to their third straight conference finals with a 6-1 win over the Maple Leafs in Game 7 in Toronto. Florida joins the Dallas Stars in 2023-25, Tampa Bay Lightning in 2020-22, Chicago Blackhawks in 2013-15, Los Angeles Kings in 2012-14 and Detroit Red Wings from 2007-09 as the only teams in the salary cap era (since 2005-06) to make it to three straight conference finals.
Florida trailed 2-0 in the series before coming back to win 4-3, marking the first time in franchise history they’ve overcome a 2-0 series deficit in a best-of-seven playoff series (they had previously been 0-5). The Panthers are the seventh reigning Stanley Cup champions in the NHL’s expansion era (since 1967-68) to win a best-of-seven playoff round after facing a 2-0 series deficit.
The Panthers now have a 4-1 record in Game 7s, including 3-0 on the road, becoming the third franchise to win each of its first three road Game 7s (along with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Minnesota Wild).
Brad Marchand had three points for the Panthers (one goal, two assists), giving him 10 career points in Game 7s, moving ahead of Alex Ovechkin (eight) for the most Game 7 points among active players, and tied him with Paul Stastny and Jari Kurri for 10th place on the all-time list. Marchand’s three-point total gives him 37 career playoff points vs. the Maple Leafs, passing Alex Delvecchio (35) for the second most by any player against Toronto in their playoff history, behind Gordie Howe (53). Marchand improved to 5-0 against the Maple Leafs in Game 7s for his career, becoming the first player in NHL history to defeat one franchise in five winner-takes-all games.
Panthers coach Paul Maurice also stayed perfect in Game 7s as a head coach, improving to 6-0. He is one of two head coaches in NHL history to win each of his first six career Game 7s, along with current Dallas bench boss Peter DeBoer (9-0).
-
Greg Wyshynski
No player in Stanley Cup playoff history has tormented an opponent the way Florida Panthers winger Brad Marchand has tormented the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Panthers eliminated the Maple Leafs 6-1 in Game 7 on Sunday night in Toronto, advancing to the Eastern Conference finals against the Carolina Hurricanes. Marchand became the first player in NHL history to defeat the same opponent in at least five winner-take-all games. He moved to a perfect 5-0 in Game 7s against the Maple Leafs — winning with the Boston Bruins in 2013, 2018, 2019 and 2024, before winning with the Panthers on Sunday.
Marchand had a goal and two assists in the victory.
“I grew up a Leafs fan. I enjoy playing against the Leafs. I enjoy interacting with fans. Like, it’s fun. It’s not something I’ll forever get to do,” he said after Game 7, which was Toronto’s seventh straight loss in a Game 7.
Marchand said that he hadn’t historically played well against Toronto in Game 7s. “It wasn’t me that beat them, it was our team,” he said. But Marchand was anything but a bystander in Florida’s Game 7 win. Marchand set up two goals — including the primary assist on Eetu Luostarinen‘s critical third-period goal just 47 seconds after Max Domi scored for the Maple Leafs — and tallied an empty-net dagger for his third goal of the playoffs.
With his three-point effort, Marchand is now second all time in career playoff scoring against the Maple Leafs with 37 points, trailing only Hockey Hall of Famer Gordie Howe (53).
“I think the thing about Toronto is that their fans are very in your face. They’re aggressive. They let you hear it all the time. So it’s just fun to interact [with them]. I interact with a lot of fans and I enjoy that part of it,” said Marchand, who also passed Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin (8) for the most career Game 7 points (10) among active players.
Boston traded Marchand, its captain, to Florida at March’s NHL trade deadline, ending a 16-year run with the Bruins that included a Stanley Cup championship in 2011 and two other trips to the Stanley Cup Final.
“It was his personality that I didn’t know,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “He’s moved into that Matthew Tkachuk ‘hate them’ [role]. That’s a horrible word, but it’s close. And then they get here and they’re the exact opposite person that you thought they were. He’s just a wonderful human being.”
The Panthers dominated the Leafs from the opening draw, carrying play in Game 7 after Toronto extended the series with a Game 6 road victory Friday night. After two periods, the Panthers held a 70-33 advantage in shot attempts. That included a 39-14 gap in the second period, when Florida scored its first three goals.
Marchand factored into two important ones. Just 4:03 after Seth Jones opened the scoring, Marchand’s shot was deflected by Luostarinen off of goalie Joseph Woll‘s pads, and center Anton Lundell was there to clean it up for his fourth goal of the playoffs to make it 2-0. In the third period, Marchand’s pass was tipped home by Luostarinen.
“There are moments that you need to enjoy. Careers fly by. I’ve been at it a long time. I’m very fortunate. But it’s almost over. I can’t believe how fast it’s gone by. I wish I was able to enjoy more moments,” Marchand said.
With the loss, the Maple Leafs suffered yet another postseason failure. Toronto hasn’t advanced past the second round since 2002. They infamously haven’t won the Stanley Cup since 1967, the longest drought in the NHL for any franchise — including those that have never won a Cup in their existence.
After the game, Marchand was complimentary of this Toronto team. He said of all the Game 7s he has played against the Leafs, he was most nervous about this one because “they competed way harder than they ever have.” He felt criticism of this group, which might have played its last game together, was unwarranted.
“If you look at the heat this team catches, it’s actually really unfortunate. They’ve been working at building something really big here for a while,” he said. “They were a different brand of hockey this year, and they’re getting crucified. I don’t think it’s justified.”
That said, Marchand did have a little fun at Toronto’s expense on the TNT postgame show. When asked what the difference was in the Panthers locker room from Game 6 to Game 7, Marchand said “we just had that be-Leaf” — a winking reference to one of the rallying cries of Toronto fans.
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business3 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway