• HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • Site Index
  • NHL Salary Caps
  • Hockey 101: A Beginner’s Guide
  • Join Our Team
  • Free Newsletter
  • Store
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • North Division
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • East Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • Dallas Stars
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Nashville Predators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • West Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • Minnesota Wild
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle Kraken
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • World Juniors
  • Archives
  • Podcast Network
  • More…
    • CHL
      • Ontario Hockey League
      • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
      • Western Hockey League
    • Columns
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
Home
Archives

Brad Marchand: Hall of Fame Worthy?

By Carrie Salls September 19th, 2020

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Without a doubt, Boston Bruins’ left wing Brad Marchand is one of the most polarizing active players in the National Hockey League. He is at the same time a masterful goalscorer and a pest for the ages. Bruins fans love him. Fans of just about every other team hate him. His relationship with league officials? It’s complicated.

Related: Best Nicknames in Hockey

Straight up skill-wise, Marchand has put up numbers that, taken on their own, make a solid argument that he belongs in the Hockey Hall of Fame when he hangs up the skates. He is coming off his first 100-point season in 2018-19 and was already at 87 points in 70 games played in 2019-20 before the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world to a halt. He tallied another seven goals and five assists in the Bruins 2020 postseason bubble.

Brad Marchand Boston Bruins
Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)

In 751 games played, all of them in a Bruins uniform, Marchand has contributed 290 goals and 356 assists for a total of 646 points. And he’s only 31 years old. So, it stands to reason that the player who currently sits in seventh place among the team’s all-time leading goal scorers will be lighting the lamp for several more years and adding to those impressive totals.

If having his name etched on the Stanley Cup increases a player’s chance of getting a Hall call, Marchand checked that box early in his career. He is one of a handful of current Bruins left on the team from the 2011 Cup win. For a second-year player, the Nova Scotia native definitely helped that team reach the pinnacle of hockey, putting up 21 goals and 20 assists and a plus-25 rating in the 2010-11 season.

Wet and Wild

Marchand has shown no signs of slowing down, with 85 or more points in each of the past four seasons, including the currently suspended one. However, one debate that divides hockey fans is whether the player dubbed “The Little Ball of Hate” has matured in recent years into a player more interested in helping the team win than pushing the buttons of on-ice officials and opposing players. That’s a tough one.

If Marchand does make the Hall of Fame, he would certainly be among the very few inductees, if not the only one, to have been reprimanded by the NHL for licking opponents during a game. In fact, he did just that two times in the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs, using the unusual diversionary tactic on Leo Komarov of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ryan Callahan of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Brad Marchand Boston Bruins
Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)

Although Marchand has kept his tongue to himself since, he still found himself at the center of a controversy a year later in the second round of the 2019 playoffs. Many Columbus Blue Jackets fans believed the Boston winger should have been suspended for a hit to the back of the head of the Jackets’ Scott Harrington, although the league ultimately disagreed.

Related: Top 5 Coaches of the Decade

Marchand has been suspended a total of six times in his career. Although the suspensions may have slowed in recent years, his reputation has earned him numerous trips to the penalty box during game action. It’s safe to say he rarely gets the benefit of the doubt from game officials, and that is surely a major factor in the 82 penalty minutes he’d already racked up in the 2019-20 campaign.

Speaking His Mind

As boisterous and aggravating as he can be on the ice, Marchand also rarely holds back his thoughts, or criticisms, in media scrums and press conferences. For example, he publicly called out the TD Garden crew for what he deemed to be poor ice conditions during the 2019 playoffs and offered only curt, sharp-tongued answers to the media after his team won the Columbus series.

It’s easy to wonder if Marchand’s antics take away from his focus on the game. A few times during last season’s playoffs and one particularly glaring incident earlier this year suggest that they might.

As mentioned, Marchand got upset with the media coverage of his play during the Blue Jackets playoff series last April. After that, he essentially disappeared, having little to no impact on the rest of the Bruins’ deep playoff run. In all fairness, linemates Patrice Bergeron and David Pastrnak also struggled to produce during the 2019 postseason, but all eyes were, as usual, on Marchand.

Last week, EA released a NHL 20 update that featured a not-so-subtle chirp at one Brad Marchand.https://t.co/HtvBl07YYz

— FanSided NHL (@FanSidedNHL) April 6, 2020

Then, on Jan. 13, 2020, the tide turned in a big way on the king of chirps after Marchand overskated the puck during a shootout against the Philadelphia Flyers. The problem was, Marchand did swipe his stick over the puck but fanned. As a result, the move counted as a missed shot, and the game ended with the Flyers on top.

No Pests Allowed?

Obviously, there’s no rule that says world-class agitators cannot be Hall inductees. In fact, that role is one that has been perfected by a handful of players over the decades. But looking at more recent history, it seems many of those guys will be better remembered for that part of their game than for their talent.

Related: NHL Waiver Rules

Could Marchand have attained superstar status if he never decided to play the class clown? It’s quite possible. That very reputation that may have kept a very good hockey player from rising to the ranks of the elite could, unfortunately, also cost him a nod as one of the greatest to ever play the game.


Sign up for our regular 'Bruins Newsletter' for all the latest.

  • Tags
  • Brad Marchand
  • Hockey Hall of Fame
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Get theScore App Now!
Recent Posts
Jan 16th 6:10 PM
Hockey History

25 Best Senators’ Memories From 25 Years at Canadian Tire Centre

Jan 16th 6:00 PM
Anaheim Ducks

Ducks Prospects: Colangelo, Andersson, Drew & More

Jan 16th 5:50 PM
Chicago Blackhawks

Blackhawks Need Taxi Squad to Drive Better Results in Net

Jan 16th 5:40 PM
Women's Hockey

Toronto Six 2021 Season Preview

Jan 16th 5:30 PM
Winnipeg Jets

Jets Have a lot of Options to Deal With Laine

Jan 16th 5:20 PM
Dallas Stars

Stars’ COVID-19 Cases Could Cost Them

Jan 16th 4:25 PM
Column

Maple Leafs News & Rumors: Campbell, Andersen, Tavares & Robertson

Jan 16th 4:15 PM
Tampa Bay Lightning

Lightning Look to Benefit From Week Off

Jan 16th 3:05 PM
Montreal Canadiens

Josh Anderson’s Canadiens Debut Should Make Marc Bergevin Proud

Jan 16th 2:55 PM
Other Leagues

OHL Would Benefit From 24-Game Season

Editor’s Picks
World Junior Championship All-Time Leading Scorers

World Junior Championship All-Time Leading Scorers

2021 Guide To the World Junior Championship

2021 Guide To the World Junior Championship

Masthead

Newsletters

RSS Feeds

Privacy Statement

Contact Us

About THW…

Founded in 2009, The Hockey Writers is a premier destination for news and information on everything hockey. Updated daily with news and features from over 130 writers worldwide. Over 2 million monthly readers now come to THW for their hockey fix.

© The Hockey Writers 2020. All rights reserved.
logo
  • HOME
  • Hockey Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • North Division
    • Calgary Flames
    • Edmonton Oilers
    • Montreal Canadiens
    • Ottawa Senators
    • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Vancouver Canucks
    • Winnipeg Jets
  • East Division
    • Boston Bruins
    • Buffalo Sabres
    • New Jersey Devils
    • New York Islanders
    • New York Rangers
    • Philadelphia Flyers
    • Pittsburgh Penguins
    • Washington Capitals
  • Central Division
    • Carolina Hurricanes
    • Chicago Blackhawks
    • Columbus Blue Jackets
    • Dallas Stars
    • Detroit Red Wings
    • Florida Panthers
    • Nashville Predators
    • Tampa Bay Lightning
  • West Division
    • Anaheim Ducks
    • Arizona Coyotes
    • Colorado Avalanche
    • Los Angeles Kings
    • Minnesota Wild
    • San Jose Sharks
    • Seattle Kraken
    • St Louis Blues
    • Vegas Golden Knights
  • World Juniors
  • CHL
    • Ontario Hockey League
    • Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
    • Western Hockey League
  • THW Podcast Network
  • Store
  • FREE Newsletter
  • Search THW
  • More…
    • Join Our Team
    • The THW Archives
    • Prospects
    • The Goalie Page
    • NHL Salary Cap Information