Bruins reportedly interested in Brad Marchand reunion if he hits free agency
"It doesn’t change my love for the city and the will to want to be here has never changed. I don’t think that it will ever change."
After putting together a dominant playoff run en route to a Stanley Cup title with the Panthers, former Bruins captain Brad Marchand is set to earn himself a hefty contract on the free-agent market this week.
But could the 37-year-old winger find that deal with his former team in Boston?
As Marchand mulls his options before the start of NHL free agency on Tuesday, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reported that the Bruins would be interested in making another pitch to their former captain this week if he goes to market.
“As we wait to see Brad Marchand’s decision with Florida, several teams including Boston and Toronto hope to talk to him come Tuesday when the market opens, if he doesn’t re-sign with the Cup champs,” LeBrun posted on X. “The Bruins would certainly be open to bringing him back. But again, perhaps Marchand re-signs in Florida.”
While the Panthers – who just re-upped Sam Bennett on an eight-year, $64 million contract over the weekend — are looking to retain both Marchand and Aaron Ekblad before the start of free agency, several teams might be lining up to offer Marchand a sizable deal in the coming days.
From the Bruins’ perspective, getting Marchand back into the fold would seemingly make plenty of sense — with a Boston team starved for both offensive production and leadership likely welcoming back their captain with open arms.
But a Marchand reunion would likely revolve around the ever-confident winger likely making some concessions with his next contract — with a Bruins team focused on building up a new wave of talent unlikely to be the franchise willing to give Marchand $8 million or more per year on a new deal.
That inability to bridge the gap on a new contract was ultimately the determining factor that led to Boston trading him away to Florida in March — so it seems unlikely that said sentiment would change after Marchand only increased his value with his Cup run.
A win-now team looking to get over the hump like the Maple Leafs might be willing to pay such a steep price for the next three or four years. But that similar $8 million payout may not be tenable for the Bruins amid this period of transition.
And even if Marchand was to return to Boston, the state of the Bruins’ roster is also in a spot where the veteran would once again be tasked with being a top-line playdriver — rather than the middle-six role that allowed Marchand to feast on matchups on a much-deeper Florida forward corps this spring.
Marchand is still an elite talent, but his value wanes if he’s going to be tasked with being a team’s top left winger – night in and night out — at this stage of his career.
Now, if the Bruins were to sign a top wing like Nikolaj Ehlers and push Marchand further down the lineup? That could be a more ideal scenario.
But barring Marchand opting for comfort over cash and taking a below-market value deal with Boston, it seems unlikely that the Bruins will be the team to reel in their former star come July 1.
Speaking in March, Marchand was asked if he’d consider returning to the Bruins once he became a free agent.
“I mean, I don’t know — I guess, is how I would respond,” Marchand said when asked about permanently closing this chapter of his career in Boston. “I don’t know what the future brings in terms of how it plays out in the summertime. I know it didn’t come together. Now can things change down the road? Potentially, but that’s to be seen. So I am sure we’ll have a conversation down the road, but I don’t know where that goes.
“So I mean obviously I would still — it doesn’t change my love for the city and the will to want to be here has never changed. I don’t think that it will ever change. It’s just whether we can have a meeting of the minds and kind of come together, but it’s to be seen.”
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