How the war in Ukraine is impacting Russian players in the NHL and beyond
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, Russian-born players in the NHL have dealt with uncertainty, concern for the safety and well-being of loved ones back home, and harassment by fans, while being expected by some to speak out against their home country.
The league has also faced complex issues, including precarious cross-border travel and managing international relationships.
Simply put by one NHL GM: “It’s the elephant in the room right now.”
Added another GM: “This is a complicated situation that, quite frankly, a lot of us aren’t qualified to speak on. And so out of respect for those players, we’ve kept the conversation out of the public sphere.”
Here are some of the dynamics going on behind the scenes in the NHL as the war continues.
Life for players in the NHL
Last season, many Russian players declined to speak to the media altogether after the invasion. If Russian players did speak, it was nearly always under the agreement with journalists that there would be “no Russia questions.”
Forty Russian-born players made opening night rosters in the NHL. (There are currently no Ukrainian-born players in the league.)
As locker rooms have reopened to the media this season, those players are more accessible. One Russian player told ESPN that he was in an “impossible situation.”
“The media wants us to talk just so they can get us to say things to fit their story,” the player said. “But they don’t actually understand the situation, or what it’s like for our families, or what’s actually going on. If I say I am proud of where I am from and I love being Russian, I am painted as a bad guy — even if I do not support the war. So what am I supposed to do, lie?”
That’s why, the player said, it’s easiest not to say anything at all. He also noted that the topic of war hasn’t been brought up by his teammates in the locker room or on road trips as “we just focus on our jobs, and that is hockey.”
“People want [our players] to speak up in a certain way, but you’re not going to tell someone how to think politically — just like how you avoid conversations about religion or politics at Thanksgiving,” one GM with multiple Russian players on his roster told ESPN. “It’s conflicting for the athletes, and a weird dynamic.”
For Russian players, the biggest concern has been their own security, as well as the security of their families. According to several sources, some teams — especially teams with strong resources — are doing things behind the scenes to help support Russian players. That includes helping obtain visas for family members and even helping them relocate.
The war hasn’t affected contracts for current NHL players, but it has affected their overall earnings. The equipment manufacturer CCM, for example, stopped using Russian players in all global marketing campaigns. According to several NHL marketing agents, there are very few brands looking to do new business with Russian-born players as they wait out the climate. There are, however, expected to be marketing activations around Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin this season as he closes in on Gordie Howe on the all-time scoring chart.
Ovechkin has been a topic of conversation throughout the war, given his previous vocal support for Vladimir Putin — and the fact that he still appears with Putin in his Instagram profile picture. But those closest to Ovechkin have maintained that the dynamics for one of Russia’s most well-known athletes are complex, and there are still concerns over his family back home, which is one of the reasons he hasn’t changed his photo.
Travel for Russian players
According to sources, no NHL teams prevented their Russian-born players from traveling home this summer, despite the unpredictability of travel restrictions. “How are you going to tell a guy not to visit his family, the place he grew up?” one general manager said. “But I think a lot of us were holding our breath, just making sure there were no hiccups.”
The process for reapplying for visas was much more complicated — and slower — than in years past.
The U.S. consulate in Moscow has suspended visa services, so many Russian-born players flew to other countries to get their paperwork approved, which caused a few headaches. But as one agent said, “That was on the U.S. government — they are the ones that made it more difficult.”
When the San Jose Sharks and Nashville Predators opened their season in Prague as part of the NHL Global Series, the Czech foreign ministry initially told the league that Russian players would not be welcome because of the war in Ukraine.
The Sharks, from GM Mike Grier to captain Logan Couture, drew a hard stance publicly: If the Russians couldn’t go, the entire team would not go.
The Czech government eventually dropped its attempted ban. The Predators’ Yakov Trenin and the Sharks’ Alexander Barabanov and Evgeny Svechnikov all played in Prague. According to people close to the players, they did not experience any hostility and were even stopped for photographs and autographs by fans during the trip.
At the league level
The NHL condemned the Russian government shortly after February’s invasion and ended all business relations in Russia — including its Russian-language website, media and sponsorship deals. The league office was also quick to separate the acts of the Russian government with the league’s Russian players. The NHL said it would support its players, including adding extra security, which has continued this season.
The NHL and NHLPA have been working with the IIHF on hosting a World Cup of Hockey in February 2024. The IIHF has banned Russia from international events, but the NHL and NHLPA are hopeful that they could find a solution — such as having Russian athletes compete under a neutral name or flag. But deputy commissioner Bill Daly said other participating countries don’t view that as satisfactory and are advocating for no Russian player participation at all.
“Especially since the NHL didn’t go to the last two Olympics, playing in this tournament is deeply personal for Russian players,” agent Dan Milstein, who represents a majority of the Russian players in the NHL, told ESPN. “I will be working closely with everyone involved to find a solution here. We will fight until the end. This is a very important issue for the players, and not including them is absolutely unfair.”
The KHL issue
One concern for the NHL is its relationship with the Kontinental Hockey League, a league that includes teams from several countries, but the large majority of them are based in Russia. The KHL, which is widely considered the second-best hockey league in the world, has been on good terms with the NHL. The NHL had been considering sending a team to Russia for exhibition games, or reintroducing a KHL/NHL crossover event. Those discussions are on indefinite hold, with the league ending all business relations with Russia.
The KHL and NHL had a “memorandum of understanding” that required each league to respect each other’s player contracts. No KHL team has violated that memorandum, but many NHL executives wondered whether that might change. “I want to see what happens this current season,” Daly told ESPN in August. “I don’t really know one way or the other yet.”
One NHL executive presented this scenario: “If a player isn’t happy with his playing time, or down to the AHL, who’s to say he doesn’t just bolt home and sign a contract over there? That’s a real possibility now.”
Ivan Fedotov
One player in particular who was caught up in the geopolitical maelstrom: Flyers prospect Ivan Fedotov, who was expected to compete for Philadelphia’s backup goaltending position this season. Fedotov played last season for the KHL’s CSKA Moscow, which is considered an extension of the Russian Army. Fedotov signed a contract with the Flyers in May, and two months later, while skating at a rink in St. Petersburg, he was arrested by a SWAT team and sent to a military base in Severomorsk. All men ages 18-27 in Russia must serve in the military unless they have an official exemption, which is usually university studies. Fedotov was detained on grounds of military evasion.
“This type of snatching and sending young men to arctic bases has been used as retaliation against opposition figures in Russia,” Washington Post Russia correspondent Mary Ilyushina explained to ESPN. “In this case, it may not have to do with opposition but rather abandoning a Russia club for an American one.”
Fedotov hired a military lawyer, who reported that Fedotov was hospitalized after receiving “some kind of injections.” Fedotov has since been transferred to another base. His legal team dropped his appeal for the charges of evasion, and according to sources, he is hopeful that after serving a year in the military he will be released and allowed to come to the United States to begin his NHL career.
This is a case the league is following closely, as it could be the first example of the NHL and KHL memorandum being violated. Considering CSKA Moscow’s relationship with the military, it’s possible Fedotov could be required to play for CSKA Moscow.
One general manager said he’s not as concerned for well-established veterans, but more so for the prospects and younger players in the league. “They seem more susceptible to getting caught up with military service, et cetera,” the GM said. “And of course there is now the real concern — one that we used to have for years, but had gone away of late — about getting those guys over here and signing contracts. “
The draft and Russian prospects
Many in the scouting community predicted that Russians would be shut out of the first round of the 2022 NHL draft for the first time since 2005. However, three Russian players were selected in the first round in July: Pavel Mintyukov (Anaheim Ducks, No. 10), Ivan Miroshnichenko (Washington Capitals, No. 20) and Danila Yurov (Minnesota Wild, No. 24). It’s much easier for NHL teams to draft players already playing in North America, like Minyukov and Yurov, who were in the Ontario Hockey League.
Miroshnichenko is more of a risk. He was once projected as a lottery pick, but dropped because he was still in Russia playing in the second division last season and because he will miss the 2022-23 season after being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The Capitals viewed his draft selection as a gamble, but the upside was too much to pass up.
Matvei Michkov is considered a top-three pick in the 2023 draft, and his stock will be interesting to monitor as he plays this season for SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL. Several NHL teams have pulled scouts from Russia, but it’s hard to gauge how many organizations have a Russian presence as some teams may have consultants on payroll. Either way, Michkov will go the entire season with very few people from NHL organizations having eyes on him. Scouts say it helps that Michkov has played in well-attended tournaments over the past two years, such as the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup and the 2021 world juniors in Texas.
Michkov is under contract with the KHL through the 2025-26 season. “At those tournaments he looked like a world-class talent, someone worthy of going top-two, -three of the draft,” one veteran amateur scout said. “But I wouldn’t be shocked if there’s a precipitous drop simply because of the circumstance.”
Last year, in the inaugural season of the 12-team College Football Playoff, eight of the teams that qualified had two losses.
Five of the seven at-large teams had two losses, and three of the five conference champions had at least two losses. Keep that in mind as more contenders fall each week and the playoff picture changes — this system is more forgiving.
Below you’ll find one team in the spotlight for each of the Power 4 leagues and another identified as an enigma. We’ve also tiered schools into five groups. Teams with Would be in status are featured in this week’s top 12 projection, a snapshot of what the selection committee’s ranking would look like if it were released today. Teams listed as On the cusp are the true bubble teams and the first ones outside the bracket. A team with Work to do is passing the eye test (for the most part) and has a chance at winning its conference, which means a guaranteed spot in the playoff. A team that Would be out is playing in the shadows of the playoff — for now. And a team that is Out will have to wait until next year.
The 13-member selection committee doesn’t always agree with the Allstate Playoff Predictor, so the following categories are based on historical knowledge of the group’s tendencies plus what each team has done to-date.
Reminder: This will change week-to-week as each team builds — or busts — its résumé.
Jump to a conference:
ACC | Big 12 | Big Ten
SEC | Independent | Group of 5
Bracket
SEC
Spotlight: Vanderbilt. The Commodores probably have more work to do in the selection committee meeting room than with the AP Poll voters. As good as the win against LSU was, it was Vandy’s first win against a Power 4 opponent with a winning record. Both Virginia Tech and South Carolina are sub-.500 teams right now, and wins against FCS Charleston Southern, a 1-6 Sun Belt team in Georgia State and a three-loss Utah State team aren’t enough to make the CFP. Vandy has enough opportunities, though, to change that, starting Saturday. If Vandy beats Mizzou, its chances of reaching the CFP will climb to 49%. A loss, though, would drop that to 14%. Vanderbilt’s toughest remaining games are against Missouri, at Texas and at Tennessee in the regular-season finale. If the Commodores lose one more game and finish 10-2, they’ve still got a chance, but how that résumé stacks up with other 10-2 teams leaves the door open for debate.
Enigma: Missouri. The Tigers are in a similar spot to Vanderbilt, with a loss to Alabama and even less to compensate for it. Missouri’s best win might have been Saturday’s double overtime win at now four-loss Auburn. It also has an FCS win against 2-4 Central Arkansas, a win against a 2-5 Sun Belt team in Louisiana and a win against a 0-7 MAC team, Massachusetts. Both Kansas and South Carolina are unranked and sub-.500. A win at Vanderbilt on Saturday would give Missouri its first ranked win AND its first win against ANY opponent with a winning record. A loss would put the Tigers in a must-win situation in November, needing to beat Texas A&M and win at Oklahoma on Nov. 22. Missouri has found ways to win against lesser competition, but it needs the second half of the season to show the committee it can do it against more elite teams, too.
If the playoff were today
Would be in: Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Texas A&M
On the cusp: Vanderbilt
Work to do: LSU, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas
Would be out: Mississippi State
Out: Arkansas, Auburn, Kentucky, South Carolina, Florida
Big Ten
Spotlight: USC. Many were quick to dismiss the two-loss Trojans following their road loss to rival Notre Dame, but it was a nonconference game and USC still has a chance to change the Big Ten’s playoff picture. If USC can run the table, that would include a Nov. 22 win at Oregon (another team that could fall under the enigma category, given what has happened to Penn State). That head-to-head result would be critical because in that scenario, both teams would have two losses, and it’s one of the committee’s tiebreakers when teams are comparable. That’s currently the only game left on USC’s schedule that it’s not projected to win, as ESPN Analytics favors the Ducks (72.3%). That’s why USC currently has the fourth-best chance in the Big Ten to reach the playoff (15%) behind Ohio State, Indiana and Oregon.
Enigma: Iowa. The Hawkeyes have quietly won four of their past five games, that lone loss coming Sept. 27 to Indiana — by a whopping five points. Is that really the gap between Iowa and the nation’s No. 2 team? Iowa has a chance to prove it in the second half of the season with back-to-back games against Oregon and at USC. Iowa would have to run the table and finish 10-2 to have a chance — and ESPN Analytics gives the Hawkeyes a less than 1% chance to do that. In addition to the loss to the Hoosiers, Iowa also lost at rival Iowa State, and the selection committee would consider that it was a close loss on the road early in the season to an in-state rival. It’s not a dagger — nor is a close loss to Indiana — but the Hawkeyes still have a lot to prove, and it won’t be easy. Iowa has less than a 50% chance to beat Oregon, USC and Nebraska.
If the playoff were today
Would be in: Indiana, Ohio State, Oregon
On the cusp: None
Work to do: Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, USC
Would be out: Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Washington
Out: Maryland, Michigan State, Penn State, Rutgers, Purdue, UCLA, Wisconsin
ACC
Spotlight: Virginia. Following Miami’s loss to Louisville, the two teams with the highest chance to reach the ACC championship game are now Georgia Tech (62.3%) and Virginia (39.4%). The Cavaliers’ 30-27 overtime win at Louisville looks even better after the Cardinals knocked off Miami. The Sept. 6 loss at NC State will be a sticking point in the committee meeting room if the Cavaliers don’t win the ACC, though, or finish as a two-loss runner-up. Virginia isn’t likely to play a ranked CFP opponent in the second half of the season, but that also means running the table is a realistic scenario. According to ESPN Analytics, the only remaining game Virginia isn’t favored to win is Nov. 15 at Duke.
Enigma: Louisville. Any team that has a chance to win its conference has a chance to make the 12-team CFP, and Louisville has a 19.5% chance to reach the ACC title game and a 16% chance to win out. The Cardinals could be a CFP top 25 team if they continue to play like they did in their win at Miami. Their lone loss was in overtime to Virginia, and they now have a statement win against a CFP contender in Miami. Their problem is the rest of their résumé, but a nonconference win against James Madison is respectable, considering the Dukes are 6-1 in the Sun Belt with an outside chance at the playoff. The win against Pitt is decent, as the Panthers are over .500, but Louisville needs to look the part down the stretch, as only Cal and SMU are over .500 and nobody is ranked. The only game left on the Cardinals’ schedule they’re not favored to win is Nov. 22 at SMU, according to ESPN Analytics.
If the playoff were today
Would be in: Miami, Georgia Tech
On the cusp: Virginia
Work to do: Louisville
Would be out: Cal, Duke, NC State, Pitt, SMU, Stanford, Wake Forest
Out: Boston College, Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina, Syracuse, Virginia Tech
Big 12
Spotlight: Texas Tech. The close loss at Arizona State knocked the Red Raiders out of the top 12 projection and onto the bubble. If Texas Tech wins the Big 12 but finishes outside the selection committee’s top 12, it would still lock up a spot in the playoff as one of the five highest-ranked conference champions. The Red Raiders are still on track to do that and have the best chance (61%) of any team in the Big 12 to reach the conference championship, followed by undefeated BYU (59.1%). Those teams play each other on Nov. 8, and Texas Tech will have home-field advantage. The two can face each other again in the Big 12 title game. Where it gets tricky is if Texas Tech finishes as a two-loss Big 12 runner-up. Some of it would depend on how the Red Raiders lost in the title game and how ASU fares down the stretch. Texas Tech has the seventh-best chance in the country to win out (23.2%), according to ESPN Analytics.
Enigma: Cincinnati. The Bearcats are undefeated in Big 12 play and 6-1 overall, with their lone loss in the season opener to Nebraska. The question is if they can sustain their success against the No. 26 most difficult remaining schedule in the second half of the season. They have the third-best chance to reach the conference championship behind Texas Tech and BYU — two teams that still have to play each other. Cincy doesn’t play the Red Raiders, but it will face BYU on Nov. 22 at home. November road trips to Utah and TCU also won’t be easy, as ESPN Analytics gives Cincinnati a less than 50% chance to win each of those games.
If the playoff were today
Would be in: BYU
On the cusp: Texas Tech
Work to do: Arizona State, Cincinnati, Houston
Would be out: Arizona, Baylor, Iowa State, Kansas, TCU, UCF, Utah
Out: Colorado, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, West Virginia
Independent
On the cusp: Notre Dame. With the win against USC, the Irish climbed to No. 12 in this week’s CFP projection — quite a turnaround from the 0-2 start. But they would still be out if the playoff were today because the fifth highest-ranked conference champion, which this week is again projected to be South Florida, is outside of the committee’s top 12. That means the No. 12-ranked team gets excluded to include the Bulls. Notre Dame is in must-win mode for the rest of the season but still has the best chance of any team in the country (69.2%) to win out. If undefeated Navy can keep winning, the Irish might have another ranked opponent on their schedule to add to the USC win.
Group of 5
Spotlight: South Florida. No Group of 5 team has a better chance to reach the playoff right now than the Bulls (45.9%), according to ESPN Analytics — well above the second-best teams, North Texas (14.7%) and Tulane (14%). The American has separated itself from the other Group of 5 conferences because of the winning records, but also because of the strong nonconference opponents. South Florida’s wins against Boise State and Florida give it a significant boost over other contenders, and the lone loss — while lopsided — was on the road against a Miami team that still looks like a playoff contender. South Florida’s 63-36 drubbing of North Texas on the road was also significant. The American’s best teams, though, still have to play each other, and South Florida will travel to Memphis, Navy and UAB, which just beat Memphis.
Enigma: Tulane. Like South Florida, Tulane also played a respectable nonconference lineup that includes wins against Northwestern and Duke — both Power 4 teams that are above .500. The Green Wave’s only loss was a 45-10 drubbing at Ole Miss, but the Rebels are one of the top playoff contenders. Tulane and South Florida don’t play during the regular season, but they could face each other in the conference championship game. Tulane has the third-best chance to reach it (14%), just a hair behind North Texas (14.7%). The toughest game left on the Green Wave’s schedule is Nov. 7 at Memphis. ESPN Analytics gives Memphis a 66.2% chance to win.
If the playoff were today
Would be in: South Florida
Work to do: Boise State, James Madison, Memphis, Navy, North Texas, Tulane, UNLV
Bracket
Based on our weekly projection, the seeding would be:
First-round byes
No. 1 Ohio State (Big Ten champ)
No. 2 Indiana
No. 3 Alabama (SEC champ)
No. 4 Texas A&M
First-round games
On campus, Dec. 19 and 20
No. 12 South Florida (American champ) at No. 5 Georgia
No. 11 BYU (Big 12 champ) at No. 6 Miami (ACC champ)
No. 10 Georgia Tech at No. 7 Ole Miss
No. 9 Oklahoma at No. 8 Oregon
Quarterfinal games
At the Goodyear Cotton Bowl, Capital One Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl Presented by Prudential and Allstate Sugar Bowl on Dec. 31 and Jan. 1.
No. 12 South Florida/No. 5 Georgia winner vs. No. 4 Texas A&M
No. 11 BYU/No. 6 Miami winner vs. No. 3 Alabama
No. 10 Georgia Tech/No. 7 Ole Miss winner vs. No. 2 Indiana
No. 9 Oklahoma/No. 8 Oregon winner vs. No. 1 Ohio State
Sports
‘The fans make it awesome’: What to expect in Brad Marchand’s first game back in Boston as a visitor
BOSTON — On the day of the 2025 NHL trade deadline, one of the most transformative days for the Boston Bruins in recent memory, Charlie McAvoy was stuck on his couch.
The Boston defenseman was still recovering from an injury he sustained at the 4 Nations Face-Off that landed him in the hospital. The Bruins were in Tampa on a two-game trip.
McAvoy and his wife watched the minutes tick down to the 3 p.m. ET deadline and breathed a sigh of relief. Despite rumors his team might tear it all down, the damage wasn’t as bad as they had feared.
“And then things started coming in after the deadline, 3:10, 3:15,” McAvoy recalls. “And it’s just tough. It’s the nature of hockey. It’s the business of the game. But there’s human beings behind it all, great friends, great friends of my wife’s. And it’s sad. It’s never easy seeing your friends move on and go to different places.”
The Bruins were one of the busiest teams on March 7, trading five veteran players. The deepest dagger: saying goodbye to captain Brad Marchand. It wasn’t just that the Bruins parted with a player they drafted in the third round nearly 20 years ago, a feisty winger who helped them win a Stanley Cup in 2011 and a leader who matured under their watch and continued to establish the team culture. The destination was equally stunning: Florida. The Panthers shocked the historically dominant Bruins in 2023 by knocking them out in the first round of the playoffs, then won their first Stanley Cup the following season. They were the team with which Marchand had helped brew a new rivalry. And the team that catapulted above Boston atop the hockey world.
In the seven months since the trade, Marchand helped the Panthers win another Stanley Cup, scoring six goals (and two game winners) in the Final against Edmonton. Marchand continued to taunt opponents, became beloved in the Panthers’ locker room, and seemed to be having more fun than ever embracing Florida’s culture.
“Brad is an honest man, and that’s why he fits in our group,” Florida coach Paul Maurice said in June. “He loves the game, loves the people around him, is very open, very gregarious, so just fits right in. He’s completely accepted.”
Marchand re-signed in Florida this summer on a six-year, $31.5 million deal — which one rival front office executive called “sticker shock for a 37-year-old.” Meanwhile, the Bruins embraced a hard reset, recalibrating short-term expectations while injecting the roster with younger players.
On Tuesday, Marchand will return to TD Garden ice for the first time as an opponent of the Bruins (7:30 ET, ESPN).
“I’m excited for this one. I mean, it’ll be fun to compete against guys I played with for a long time and be on the other side of it,” Marchand said Monday. “I’m sure it will be a pretty intense game. It will be fun to play in front of the Bruins fans again.”
Everyone is bracing for emotion.
“I’m sure that we’ll have a very neat tribute for him and all the blood, sweat, and tears that he gave for the Bruins — one of the best Bruins to ever play,” McAvoy said. “I think he’ll get an amazing ovation from the crowd. And then he’ll probably get booed right after.”
“I’m sure it’s going to be tough for some people,” Marchand said. “They won’t be able to cheer because they don’t like the Panthers very much. Maybe they’ll like me enough to give a little ‘Yay’ or something.”
IT WAS ALWAYS Marchand’s intention to be a life-long Bruin. It was the Bruins’ design to contend for a Stanley Cup last season. It all derailed with a disastrous start, which cost coach Jim Montgomery his job 20 games into the season.
“Last year was a seismic shift in terms of how we’ve been,” Bruins GM Don Sweeney told ESPN. “We had to take a cold, hard look in the mirror and understand where we were. We weren’t anywhere close to the level we had been the last six, seven years, and we had to make some really hard decisions professionally, and really hard decisions personally.”
Marchand, who was named Bruins captain in September 2023, was in the final year of an eight-year $49 million contract. While he and the Bruins were engaged in contract talks for several months, the negotiations stalled, even with the pressure point of the trade deadline looming. Marchand wanted security and to be paid his value. The Bruins had other parameters.
“I was never going to take a one or two-year deal. Not even a three-year deal. That just wasn’t in the cards,” Marchand told reporters ahead of this season. “I want to play as long as I can. That’s the main reason why it didn’t work out in Boston. I want to play until I get kicked out of the league.”
Marchand was injured at the time of the deadline; it was looking like a timeframe of four to six weeks. Sweeney said his management group determined that because of the team’s place in the standings, the deadline would mark a “directional shift,” with a focus on adding to the team’s depleted prospect pool. Veterans Charlie Coyle, Brandon Carlo, Trent Frederic and Justin Brazeau were also traded as the Bruins acquired six draft picks (including two first-round picks and two second-round picks), two prospects (notably 21-year-old center Fraser Minten, who is already contributing) and several under-30 roster players, including Casey Mittelstadt, Marat Khusnutdinov and Henri Jokiharju.
The most difficult file was Marchand. According to sources, the Bruins had a deal in place with the Los Angeles Kings but honored Marchand’s desire to stay in the East for family reasons. Florida, unbeknownst to the public, was his top destination. He believed he might have only one more opportunity to win a Stanley Cup, and the Panthers were loading up for their back-to-back bid.
Even after that trade, the Bruins never saw the door as fully closed with Marchand. But they never got the opportunity to formally discuss a contract again, as he re-signed with the Panthers before reaching free agency on July 1.
“We certainly had discussions about it, where he would fit in long term,” Sweeney said. “Upon the opportunity to talk to Brad after the trade, he focused on the fact that he was going to get a long-term deal. That wasn’t going to change between what he accomplished of winning a Stanley Cup and if he were able to get to July 1. We didn’t get the opportunity to cross that bridge [because he re-signed with the Panthers], but we certainly would’ve entertained having Brad back if he had decided that, within the parameters that we could do.”
That closed the chapter on Marchand’s tenure with the Bruins, one that included 976 points over 1,090 games, and endless memories.
“Ultimately what he always wants is to be in the playoffs and to win, and that’s what he was able to accomplish last year,” Sweeney said. “So we’re proud of him for that, but unfortunately it wasn’t with us.”
MARCHAND HAS MAINTAINED his deep ties to Boston. He says his favorite part of the city is the fans, unequivocally.
“The city is incredible, but the fans make it awesome. They’re just very unique,” Marchand said. “It’s as simple as, every time I go get a coffee — I have the same routine, same coffee shop every day — there was a message on my cup, if I had a good game or bad game the night before. It would be like, ‘Tough one for you last night.’ All the way down, they bleed black and gold. It’s part of why there’s so much pressure on the team to have success and why they focus on it so much. You can’t slip. You don’t have the ability to slip in this city, or you’re going to hear about it. We wanted to produce and be good for the fans and live up to that reputation, so it makes it special to play here.”
The Panthers arrived in town early on the final leg of a five-game trip. On Sunday night, Marchand went to dinner with a group that included several former teammates: Patrice Bergeron, Zdeno Chara, Tuukka Rask and Adam McQuaid. On who fronted the bill, Marchand quipped: “They bullied me. I did.”
Marchand’s more recent teammates, such as McAvoy, were dialed in to his playoff run with the Panthers. McAvoy is superstitious, so because he didn’t text Marchand early in the playoffs, he held off reaching out until the series was over.
“We were able to connect right away after they won, and I told him it was just really inspiring watching him play,” McAvoy said. “He’s just a big-time player. It’s so fun to see a guy who has been with you, and to see the fire he still has. It allowed me to sort of reset in my head a little bit, and find that fire again.”
The Bruins have a new coach in Marco Sturm and, according to Sweeney, have put a heavy emphasis on being harder to play against. Everyone must earn their ice time. The culture is also continuing to evolve. The team has not yet named a captain, after the role had been filled consecutively by Chara, Bergeron and then Marchand.
McAvoy said he and David Pastrnak are learning how to take on a bigger role, while still staying authentic to themselves and the tradition before them. It’s one of the ways Marchand’s legacy still lives with the team.
“For a long time in Boston, you had Bergy, Z, and Marshy, and they were this perfect triangle of guys that leaned on each other, that each had different personalities,” McAvoy said. “You can talk forever about how amazing they are as individuals, how big their hearts are, how much they care for everyone around them. That’s certainly one of the pillars: caring for your teammate, and going above and beyond for them. Those three guys put that on display every day, making it fun to come to the rink. That was something they fostered there — that made it great to be a Bruin.”
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