Bruins

Why Brad Marchand isn’t going to ‘complain’ about Sam Bennett’s sucker punch 

"I'm not going to complain because if I'm him, I'm doing the same thing."

By Conor Ryan

May 16, 2024

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A week after a sucker punch from Panthers forward Sam Bennett landed him on the shelf, Brad Marchand could be back on the ice for Boston’s do-or-die Game 6 on Friday night at TD Garden. 

Marchand — sidelined for the past two games due to an upper-body injury — still has “boxes to check”, according to Jim Montgomery. But the 36-year-old Bruins captain was optimistic about his chances of getting the green light to play and try to keep his team’s season alive. 

“Just going through the steps,” Marchand said Thursday of his availability for Game 6. “And we’ll see how tomorrow goes. But hopefully.” 

In a heated second-round series punctuated by discourse over officiating, goaltender interference, and physicality — Bennett’s jab against Marchand amid a reverse hit during Game 3 still stands as a major point of contention. 

The ever-candid Marchand acknowledged Thursday that Bennett  “got away with a shot” against him, especially with the bruising Panthers pivot avoiding any penalty and supplemental discipline on the play. 

But Marchand also admitted that he’s not going to harp on Bennett’s actions, especially during the physical gauntlet and controlled chaos that is the Stanley Cup Playoffs. 

“I’m not gonna complain. [Expletive] happens,” Marchand said of Bennett’s punch. “That’s part of, especially, playoff hockey. I’ve been on the other side of a lot of plays. And I think he got away with one. 

“But I mean, that’s part of the game. Definitely a part of playoff hockey. It sucks to be on the other side of it. But that stuff happens … Yeah I think he got away with one. But it is what it is.”

Marchand, much like Bennett, is no stranger to controversy when it comes to dangerous plays that draw the ire of opposing teams — and in Marchand’s case, the league office. The Bruins forward has been suspended eight times, and been fined five different times. 

Bennett was fined $5,000 last postseason for cross-checking Toronto forward Michael Bunting in the back of the head, but has otherwise managed to avoid major repercussions from the NHL despite his borderline hits and dangerous punches. 

But even with Bennett’s reputation as a dirty player following several incidents over the last two playoff runs, Marchand stressed that the Panthers center’s play style would be coveted on just about every NHL team during playoff action. 

“It’s part of the playoffs. People don’t want to say it, but part of the playoffs is trying to hurt every player on the other team,” Marchand acknowledged. “And the more guys you take out, the more advantage your team has. And people don’t say that. But that’s just a fact of the game. 

“So every time you step on the ice, someone’s trying to hurt someone. And that’s just how it goes in playoffs. And any time you can get an advantage on a team, it’s going to help your team win.”

Marchand’s return would provide a major lift to a Bruins team trying to become the first group in franchise history to win a best-of-seven series after trailing, 3-1.

Beyond his production on the ice (10 points in 10 playoff games this spring), Marchand’s role as the emotional conduit of this roster will come in handy against a physical Panthers team. 

Any potential matchups between Bennett and Marchand on Friday will likely feature no shortage of heavy hits, shoves into the glass, and post-whistle slashes. In Marchand’s view? All is fair when the Stanley Cup is on the line. 

“I’m not going to complain about it — it is what it is. And that’s playoff hockey,” Marchand added. “That’s what makes winning a Cup so hard to do.  … It’s the hardest trophy to win. You’re playing, you’re willing to sacrifice your body and want to hurt other guys and do whatever it takes to win. 

“And if you don’t like it? Don’t play in the playoffs. But it’s the best time of the year. And if I have to get hurt to win? If I have to hurt someone to win? I don’t care. That’s part of it. And I’m not going to complain because if I’m him, I’m doing the same thing.”