How Brad Marchand’s Ever-Changing Game Is Fueling the Boston Bruins

Somewhere around 2016, Brad Marchand decided that outscoring opposing stars was more fulfilling than simply shutting them down. Through sheer force of will, at age 28, he added elite playmaking to his agitating two-way game.

Since then, he’s posted the sixth-most assists and third-most points in the entire league. That’s a remarkable leap to take midway through your career. Sharpshooter David Pastrnak’s arrival must obviously be accounted for, but there’s no denying how much more menacing and consistent Marchand’s passing has become in and of itself. It was as though he just…realized one day that he could so much more.

There’s no question he’s become the Boston Bruins’ offensive heartbeat—a whirlwind of energy and creativity who can generate opportunities out of thin air.

In Boston, however, offense frequently starts with defense. Longtime linemate Patrice Bergeron provides virtually immaculate three-zone positioning. This security blanket allows Marchand to play more instinctively and gamble when he sees fit. He isn’t content with containment. He wants to dispossess opponents and immediately break their backs. If Boston’s captain is the field general who steadies the troops, Marchand is the tip of the spear. Once he sniffs a counter opportunity, he’s off to the races:

His pursuit angles are shockingly aggressive. When there are 50/50 races for the puck near the defensive blue line—when most forwards would err on the side of caution—Marchand swoops in for the kill. That fearlessness, in addition to his raw talent, is why he’s been the most dangerous penalty-killer of the past decade by a wide margin.

His playmaking instincts then take over. His vision and touch are top-tier, as he seemingly never runs out of options. This is especially true on the power play. He ranks among the very finest bumper-feeders in the world (and Bergeron is one of the finest trigger men from that spot), he can filter pucks through the seam to Pastrnak, and if the PK is adamant about snuffing out those two targets, he can find another threat in tight.

The defense can only hope that his teammates fail to finish:

Marchand currently sits 12th in primary assist rate, and that’s with Pastrnak suffering through one of the toughest stretches of his career. Prior to the month of January, the Czech sniper had mustered just eight goals in 26 contests. This compelled head coach Bruce Cassidy to split up his vaunted Perfection Line, promoting Craig Smith and pairing Pastrnak with Erik Haula and Taylor Hall.

Smith is a hard-working and capable middle-six winger, but he lacks Pastrnak’s marksmanship, playmaking and one-on-one skills.

Boston’s top line has shed a portion of its flair in favor of an emphasis on pressure. In some ways, it’s a return to what made the unit such a terror to begin with. They play direct, fast-paced hockey and execute at a level most opponents can’t match. Bergeron tilts the ice with his clinical two-way presence, whereas Marchand extends or creates plays with his close-quarters brilliance.

Even at 5’9” and 181 pounds, the scrappy veteran manages to shield the puck from larger defenders by using their momentum against them. He’s quietly one of the more inventive forwards in the league too, spinning away from or dancing through mystified opponents on a nightly basis. He simply understands how to manufacture space:

Better yet, he doesn’t quit. Block his pass, and he’ll pounce on the loose puck to try again. Knock him down, and he’ll hop right back to his feet and somehow end up with possession. The puck seems to follow him around, and one way or another, he’s going to get it to the middle of the ice.

Marchand’s daring and relentless nature manufactures waves of attack for the 22-11-2 Bruins. In their time together, Marchand, Bergeron and Smith have controlled 73.1% of the scoring chances, 68.4% of the high-danger opportunities and 71.1% of the expected goals at 5-on-5. On the season, Marchand has posted a 63.6 xGF%. That ranks second among all forwards with at least 400 minutes played.

He isn’t done evolving, though.

With Pastrnak now lining up alongside Haula and Hall, Marchand has filled the scoring void by developing a deadlier nose for the net. He has 20 goals in 30 games while shooting at nearly exactly the same clip as he did a year ago. In other words, he’s tweaked his approach to become less reliant on setting up teammates and more conducive to his team finding the twine by any means necessary.

Look at where these goals originate from:

Pairing a grittier and classically Bruins-ier style with his playmaking and aggressiveness has propelled him into the MVP conversation. Despite a lower OISH% than usual, he ranks second in all-situations points per 60 minutes. Among the top 100 forwards sorted by that metric, he also boasts the highest individual points percentage (89.6). When he’s on the ice, Boston scores 4.90 goals per 60 minutes. When he’s off, its GF60 plummets to 2.43.

If he isn’t conjuring his magic, nothing is happening.

Marchand’s latest trick has yielded the highest goal-scoring rate of his career, at age 33, and he’s pulled it off by…just putting his mind to it. He possesses an almost comical faith in his own abilities, but his exceptional production and impact in every phase of the game are proving it’s no joke.