OverDrive - Haggerty on Marchand's departure from the Bruins, his return to Boston and the standpoint from the fanbase

Episode Date: March 11, 2025

Bruins Writer for Boston Sports Journal Joe Haggerty joined OverDrive to discuss the headlines around the Bruins, Brad Marchand's return to Boston, the departure from the team, the perspective around the fanbase, the team without Marchand's leadership and more.

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Bell, getting a new phone just got better. Here is Joe Haggerty, writer for the Boston Sports Journal. What do you expect to see out of Marshawn the press box tonight, Haggs? What is the plan for this guy now that he's representing the road team at the Garden tonight? Well, he won't be sitting next to me i can tell you that much uh... he would he would be crushing me uh... for eating gummy worms and sour patch kids uh... while the game is going on it i was sitting next to him

uh... but i definitely will not be sitting next to a midday it won't be a situation like it used to be in the old days either where uh... you know sean thorton when he was a healthy scratch would go get like ice cream sandwiches at the contest and bring them back to the media people uh... during the game stuff like that i was going to be a that marcia will probably be a hiding out somewhere not wanting to answer any more tough questions that are going to make a mobile

uh... we probably won't be too much of a better in the game i'm gonna get well it's interesting how you know now reports are coming out what he was looking for with the brooms were willing to give home and you know that uh... march on he himself brokerage i guess a meeting with don sweney i don't have can really was involved in that trying to figure this out where they could you know continue to be uh... in partnership moving forward in the bruins just said

i guess no not happening like what is your understanding it was either takes what they're offering or do you think in the end the Bruins just said, I guess, no, not happening. Like, is it your understanding it was either, takes what they're offering, or do you think in the end the Bruins actually really just wanted to move on and wanted to rip the Band-Aid off? Well, I think there was probably a notion of wanting to do that, but also, you know, Marchant can still play, and wanting to keep him

if the price was right, if everything made sense. But you know, the fact that they weren't willing to budge when it got down to, you know, not a lot of money, relatively speaking, especially with the salary cap going up, and certainly from all accounts, it sounded like Martian wanted to meet in the middle in that final meeting. And that really wouldn't have been a lot of money per year that we're talking about. And with the Bruins not wanting to budge, it tells me that at least on some level, they were ready to move on,

especially with Charlie Coyle getting traded, Brandon Carle getting traded, Trent Frederick getting, I think they were in a mindset that it made sense to clear a bunch of the decks, to amass a bunch of draft picks and prospects, clear some salary cap space and sort of use that to build it back up again. Now, maybe they did this with a calculated idea that maybe Brad Marchian will so much want to come back in the summertime and come back to

Boston. We've seen how emotional he's been several times now talking about the Bruins and he's still having a hard time even talking about not saying we when he's talking about the Bruins and saying they and all that stuff and today even he wouldn't close the door on coming back to Boston. He said he didn't really thought about it but certainly sounded to me like he had not closed the door at all on that potentially happening. So maybe they are also taking a gamble that they could do this now, knowing the rest of the year is kind of shot, get the conditional second round pick. And like, you know, it's a pretty

good bet that the Florida Panthers are going to win two rounds in the playoffs and that Brad Marchand is going to play half the game. So I would guess this is going to turn into a first round pick and that turns into a really good deal for the Bruins and maybe they can even get them back for the number they wanted in the first place in the summertime. Part of the reason Marchand I'm sure is emotional about what's going on is because he probably thinks, man, maybe I should have just taken the deal that was on the table because I really wanted to stay because it seems to me and talking to him and the way he's

answering some of these questions, he really didn't want to go. So, Joe, with all that in mind, how is the city taking this? Like, are they kind of OK with it, with some of that you mentioned, like getting some assets for the future? Are they like, I don't know, angry

at management for actually trading them? Well, you know how it works on social media right it's like the radical like three percent of people around twitter and around social media making a ton of noise and very consistently it's been for a while now like trade everybody trade marcian trade this person trade that person and you hear a lot of that on social media face of like all the other twitter all this stuff.

But like when the reality sets in, when these players actually get trained, especially the cup winner, a guy that's been here 16 years, a future Hall of Famer, a guy that's going to be one of the best Bruins of all time when it's said and done. I think there's a lot of people that are upset, a lot of fans were upset. A lot of people couldn't believe that they traded them, especially for a second round pick, even if it turns into a first and that's the kind of return they traded and got back it wasn't worth doing. Now Marcians hurt he seems like he only really wanted to go to Florida I think there were some

factors in there that made it difficult for the Bruins to get a bigger return than they were gonna get and I thought they did pretty well with an injured player to get a first round pick a were going to get. And I thought they did pretty well with an injured player to get a first round pick a player that still seems like he's not going to be back much before the playoffs. Um, I think that's pretty good value, but I do think fans have been upset in general that these players get traded away. Cause I think they were all fan favorites, but especially with a guy like Brad Marshan,

who was the last link to that 2011 Stanley cup winning team. And let's face it that brad marshan is one of the most charismatic likable great on tv players the marketable players in the nhl like he's one of the faces of the league and he's an iconic player that's the kind of guy that you pay money fans pay a lot of money to see play that they want to see play the more the b Boston Bruins trade away players and get rid of players that fans pay money to want to see play, the worse it's gonna be for them.

Well, you know, you bring up like Marchand and the past and being connected to that cup team. I think the Bruins have a unique culture, right, where it's been Chara, it's been Bergeron, it's been Marchand, and now Marshann moves on. Would there be any worry within the organization that you're moving on from too much of the Bruins culture that's been built within that locker room?

Well, when you're getting rid of the last piece that actually won anything, yeah, I would. He's the last player that was on that roster that actually won a cup and could speak from experience about it as a member of the Bruins and you know would I think at times hold other players accountable and be hard on them at times because he knew what it took to win and he understood what it took to win and maybe at times there were some you know younger players and players of a younger generation who kind of bristled at that accountability and

some of the conversations that happened. I'm sure there were times when it didn't go smoothly and when players didn't want to hear what Marshaan had to say, but I think that's part of being a leader and part of being a demanding guy that wants to make players accountable. And let's not forget, some of the players in that locker room also Bruce Cassidy they said was too hard on them and part of the reason he got fired when he did from the Bruins job and then he went on to win a cup with the Vegas Golden Knights so like if I feel like some of it you know maybe they they were looking for a change or they want they decided that they you know wanted to go down

that avenue, especially when they had a lot of players tied up to big contracts and guys that want to be leaders and the next sort of generation taking over. I think that was part of it. I think part of it could have been locker room stuff and maybe they didn't want to be held accountable by a guy that was a hard driving player like Marcia. That might have been part of it too. A lot of different things went into it. They didn't want to be held accountable by a guy that was a hard driving player like Marcia. That might have been part of it too. A lot of different things went into it.

In some ways, I think that's a reflection on the players that are left that have to take over now and the guys that want to be leaders, guys like Ostranek and McEvoy and some of the other younger players, that they really need to step it up now. They don't have Jim Montgomery to blame. There's no captain to blame. There's no other things to blame right now. It's on the management. It's on the players that are in that locker room now, uh, to step it up.

And if they don't, they're going to continue to make changes there with Joe Hagerty. So you've seen, uh, I'm sure almost every game, if not every game, Brandon Carlos played in his career. And now he's two games into his leaf career and, uh, he's playing a lot of minutes, a lot of expectation here. He's going to team up with Morgan Reilly.

In terms of the way he was playing down the stretch, why do you think the Bruins decided to move off him? He's still got two years left on his deal. And how do you think Carlo will eventually fit in here in Toronto? I think Brandon Carlo was part of a Bruins team this year that broke way too many times late in games in the third period. Way too many times they could not close out close games in the third period. Way too many times they let other teams come back on them and tie it up and get to overtime

or win in the third period. The penalty kill, which is one of his big fortes and big calling cards, really struggled this year as well. I just don't think he was a hard enough player in the D-Zone when it really mattered when other teams were making a big push, especially late in games. And there was just too many instances, I think, when he was out there in situations, and they didn't get the stop that they needed. And was not like the old days it's weird to see it I guess with the Bruins because They've always had defensive stoppers and guys that would make plays in those late situations to hold on the leads whether it was

Zdeno Chara as the big bad Defenseman around the net for so many years that was always playing the last minute or two of a game and only get down Or Patrice Bergeron, another, you know, great defensive player that would win face-offs, would make plays that need to be made and do things to help hold teams off. I think when you took those two players away and some of these other players need to step up and really get stops defensively, there were players that weren't able to do it.

And Brandon Carlo was one of them. And I usually great penalty killer. He kills a lot of plays. He's bigow a lot of place you big strong great guy and great leader like the so many things i like about brennan carlo uh... but i do think throughout his career i've always felt like he would have been more effective a little bit here a little that here that he is uh... for a side and strength level and he just has not been that kind of player and i think that the bruins decided they needed a change after seeing that one

too many times all right hags we'll leave it there enjoy covering the game tonight and uh... sure will do it again soon maybe not the playoffs because i'm not sure that i'm gonna make it man i'll be the first time in a long time for you to get an early spring uh... paid everybody a Toronto to hear that let me tell you uh... make sure you guys hear us loud and clear all the way up here in Toronto if that ends up taking place.

Thank you, appreciate it. You got it, boys. I'm going to go hit the golf course in April. It's all good. Attaboy. Attaboy. There's Joe Haggard here, the Boston Sports Journal. All new, all Canadian.

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