Bruins

Pat Maroon not happy with Matthew Tkachuk’s ‘dirty’ late punches against David Pastrnak

"It's two skill guys fighting. I mean, Tkachuk's not gonna fight me."

By Conor Ryan

May 10, 2024

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Pat Maroon, like several of his Bruins teammates, was in the visiting locker room at Amerant Bank Arena when David Pastrnak answered Matthew Tkachuk’s challenge and dropped the gloves in Game 2.

A heavyweight bout between two superstar talents capped off a pugnacious third period where the Bruins and Panthers combined for 136 penalty minutes and 12 total game misconducts on Wednesday night.

Maroon and other Bruins bruisers like Trent Frederic and Justin Brazeau were already sent to the showers by the officials by the time Pastrnak traded hooks with Tkachuk.

Considering the lack of reinforcements on Boston’s bench and the uneven tale of the tape against a power forward like Tkachuk, Maroon was impressed with Pastrnak’s willingness to stand up and fight. 

But the 35-year-old veteran and established scrapper wasn’t pleased with Tkachuk’s actions, especially after the Panthers star delivered two additional punches to Pastrnak after he already dropped the Bruins winger to the frozen sheet. 

“I didn’t like how he hit him on the ground twice,” Maroon said Friday of Tkachuk’s late punches. “I think that’s dirty. I like the idea of them fighting. I think Pasta did a good job. That’s what leaders do and he stood up for the team. 

“He took charge. You’ve got to love that kind of stuff, right, out of your leader. And he’s fighting another skilled player. So obviously, it’s a game within the game. I don’t like the aftermath of it. So we know that part, right.”

The writing is on the wall that Friday’s Game 3 rematch at TD Garden will be prone to more fireworks, especially with plenty of bad blood already coursing through both Boston and Florida’s respective rosters after last year’s first-round faceoff. 

But Maroon, who has racked up 990 penalty minutes and 131 total fights over 13 NHL regular seasons, was also candid regarding talk of him engaging in fisticuffs with Tkachuk in Game 3. 

“It’s two skill guys fighting,” Maroon said of Pastrnak and Tkachuk’s scrap. “I mean, Tkachuk’s not gonna fight me. So if I go out there and take a dumb penalty, and they get a power play? My job is not accomplished, right? So can’t look at it like that. Just got to take numbers.”

Regardless of who trades punches with whom on Friday, Maroon stressed that the Bruins need to do far more than just land welts against the Panthers if they hope to take a 2-1 series lead in this second-round showdown. 

“I think we should be pissed off, for sure. Especially about our game — I think most importantly,” Maroon said. “All the other stuff, whatever. The scrums, them yelling in our face after they scored? It’s over. It’s done with. 

“We gotta be mad here. And play with intensity, play the way we’re supposed to be playing. We’re winning our battles. We’re doing the same thing, we’re hitting. And we’re playing a simple game  … Just got to continue. Obviously the stuff that happened was — we know what happened. It stays in this locker room.”