Brad Marchand is still a good hockey player. If he was still a Bruin, he’d be second on the team in points. But the biggest question mark left in the wake of the now former captain’s departure is how the team is able to fill the large void in the leadership department, not just with the loss of Marchand but also the trades of Charlie Coyle and Brandon Carlo.
When the B’s took to the ice on Saturday in Tampa, David Pastrnak was the only player wearing a letter, the “A” for alternate captain he’s worn all year. Had Charlie McAvoy, still skating and rehabbing his injured shoulder, been in the lineup would have worn the other “A.”
But who is the next Bruin to wear the “C”?
That has not been a question for almost 20 years as the captaincy went seamlessly from Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron and Marchand. All wore it with distinction.
The only two real candidates would be Pastrnak or McAvoy. The team, which GM Don Sweeney said will play out this year without a designated captain, could also go without a captain for next year as it figures out just how long it will take to become a real contender again.
When asked if he ever thought about being a captain, Pastrnak wasn’t about to publicly campaign for the job.
“I (haven’ thought) about it honestly,” said Pastrnak. “I got the A and I haven’t changed a bit. Obviously the role changes a bit. You lead more but you just try to stay being yourself. Right now, we have 17 games left and that’s my main focus, to build on those two games. We played pretty good hockey, the last two (in a win in Tampa and a painful loss in Carolina). This has to be our standard for the rest of the season and we’ll see where it takes us.”
Pastrnak has carried this team offensively for the past two years. In 2023-24, the B’s surprised many that they were able to compete for the Atlantic Division, falling just short, after the retirements of Bergeron and David Krejci and the departure of a slew of other players. But from an offensive standpoint it was thanks mostly to Pastrnak, who notched 43 more points than the second place scorer on the B’s, Marchand. This year, Pastrnak is sixth in the league in scoring on a team that’s ranked 28th in goal scoring.
But beyond that, interim coach Joe Sacco said recently, well before anyone was traded, that he had noticed a growth in Pastrnak’s leadership, not just on the ice but in the room.
On Monday, Pastrnak talked about maturing as a person, which for him came at a terrible price when he and his wife Rebecca’s newborn son, Viggo Rohl, died shortly after birth. In 2023, they welcomed a healthy baby girl, Freya Ivy.
Pastrnak is the same ebullient player on the ice and he doesn’t want anything to change that. But he’s also 28 years old and not exactly the same goofy, happy-go-lucky teenager he was when he first arrived here.
“It goes past the room. You grow as a person,” said Pastrnak. “You have family, you are older, you have life experience, professional experience with hockey. You have life experience and you know I’ve had some tough and happy experiences at the same time. You obviously grow and that’s human nature. It’s up to every individual how much you learn and how much you take in. I try to be joyful since Day One I got to the NHL. I’m fortunate enough to do what I love for my work and I will never take that for granted.”
A team’s best player doesn’t necessarily have to be the captain. Sometimes it’s best not to heap added responsibility on your most skilled player. Pastrnak, however, seems more and more like a worthy possibility.
While the B’s have had strong captains, the leadership has always been spread throughout the room and Sacco is looking for players to step up.
“There needs to be a balance there with that. We do have to find and get some more leadership from guys now that are in our room and are capable of it that maybe didn’t have that role before,” said Sacco. “Obviously losing a great leader in Marchy and real good leaders in Charlie and Brandon, it’s up to everybody to step it up and we’re going to find more guys individually that can come in and be a part and help that leadership group.”….
Both Matt Poitras and Riley Tufte were sent to Providence over the weekend. Sacco didn’t rule out a recall at some point in the final 17 games remaining in the regular season when asked about Poitras. But the club wants him to get more playing time and he wasn’t exactly earning it up here. He did not have a point in his last nine games.
“He had (shoulder) surgery last January so he really didn’t get to play from January on with us. And right now when you look at the way the games are played, there’s just not a lot of room out there,” said Sacco. “The ice gets tighter and space becomes less available. It’s just something that he’ll continue to work on in his game to try and create some space for himself out there. He did some good things but he’s a guy that needs to be playing, so he’s not going to be here and not play.”…
Pastrnak reacted to Marchand’s emotional press conference in Florida and his words of praise for Don Sweeney.
“I honestly couldn’t put my feet in their shoes, both of those guys. It’s obviously a very tough decision on both ends,” said Pastrnak. “Brad has done an incredible job in those years, won a Cup for the city and obviously has been a captain too this group. He raised his family here. I can’t imagine how hard it is for him to move. We love him and we’re going to miss him.”