Bruins coach vows team will get revenge for injury to Brad Marchand

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Noel Drolet
May 12, 2024 (10:53)

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One of the most entertaining series of the playoffs so far has been the Bruins-Panthers slog fest. This is a matchup between two teams who are built for playoff hockey and the games haven't disappointed whatsoever. Game 4 is scheduled for tonight and the Bruins have seemingly gotten a bit more beat up than the Panthers, as news comes out today that captain Brad Marchand won't suit up for the game.

Marchand is a tough player despite his on ice theatrics, so it must be a substantial injury if it's going to remove him from the game. Bruins fans are not happy, as the injury was a result of a sneakily dirty play by Sam Bennett; a man who is building a reputation for being a bit of a repeat offender. Here's the hit in slow motion so you can see just what's going on.

In the footage you can see Bennett brace for the reverse hit on Marchand and then seemingly stick his hand out to punch Marchand in the shoulder. This is obviously not a legal hit, as you're never allowed to punch a player even if they're approaching for a hit.

Now, even Bruins coach Jim Montgomery has come out saying that the team will handle the injury to Marchand differently tonight. Montgomery said that he prevented the team from retaliating, so now tonight could get interesting.

Sam Bennett had multiple hits like this last year in the series against the Leafs, but keeps his nose clean in the regular season. The Panthers have a notorious reputation for being dirty, with players like Tkachuk, Cousins and Bennett being in multiple controversies. It'll be interesting to see if the Department of Player Safety decides to do anything about this play as there's been no word on any review on the play from them so far.

Regardless this series is going to only get more and more physical, and the Bruins are going to have to find a way to be successful without Marchand if they want to have a chance at staying afloat in the series. The Panthers have been slaughtering the Bruins in their wins and the Bruins are going to have to up their pace of play to keep up with the Stanley Cup finalists, or else they're already dead in the water.