Bruins’ Brad Marchand, trade candidate? ‘All bets are off’

Brad Marchand is No.

5 on the Boston Bruins all-time scoring list with 966 career points.

At his current pace this season, the captain would become the fifth player to score 1,000 points as a Bruin early in 2025-26.

Its possible he could surpass Phil Esposito (1,012) next year and take fourth place behind good friend and ex-linemate Patrice Bergeron (1,040).

Advertisement Whether Marchand accomplishes either is unknown.

The Bruins are hanging on for dear life.

After a 2-0 win against the Ottawa Senators on Thursday at TD Garden, they are in third place in the Atlantic Division with 54 points.

They have the second-worst goal differential in the Eastern Conference.

Elias Lindholm , their $54.25 million offseason signing, is their No.

3 center .

At this rate, which path the Bruins should take ahead of the March 7 trade deadline will be a no-discussion conclusion .

The question that will be harder to determine is whether the Bruins should trade their last remaining Stanley Cup champion as part of their reconstruction.

If they think itll help the team, one hockey operations executive, granted anonymity to discuss a player not under his teams control, said when asked if the Bruins will trade Marchand.

All bets are off.

From one angle, it would be a preposterous decision.

Marchand (37 points) is No.

2 in team scoring after David Pastrnak .

He is averaging 1.78 points per 60 minutes of five-on-five play, per Natural Stat Trick.

He was at 1.6 P/60 last year.

The No.

2 left wing is averaging 18:38 of ice time per game, third-most after Pastrnak and Pavel Zacha .

He has worked the right-side half-boards and goal line on the No.

1 power-play unit.

He is a regular penalty killer.

Marchand is coming off a stunted offseason of training following three procedures.

The 36-year-old is a fitness fiend when healthy.

Because he is older than 35, the Bruins could include performance bonuses in Marchands next contract.

This could help them keep his average annual value reasonable against the salary cap.

But its not like Marchand would need the lure of a games-played bonus, for example, to motivate him for 2025-26 performance.

The native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, is desperate to keep his game high enough to merit Team Canada inclusion in the 2026 Winter Games.

It would be his first appearance in the Olympics .

Advertisement Marchand is in the second season of his captaincy.

He takes the title seriously.

Marchand is first to call new arrivals after trades or signings to offer his or wife Katrinas assistance.

He knows that following Bergeron and Zdeno Chara is an honor.

Marchand, drafted in the third round in 2006, is proud of being a lifelong Bruin.

To be part of an organization like this that has those standards and strives for excellence every day whenever you come in, theyre just constantly trying to improve, get better and build something special it makes coming to work every day so incredible, Marchand said at the Boston Bruins Foundations gala on Jan.

15.

It makes you so proud to be part of this organization.

It would be a tall task for Pastrnak or Charlie McAvoy , currently the alternates, to take the next step.

Marchand is the organizational heartbeat, setting the rhythm with his work ethic and competitiveness.

Trading Marchand would not only cost the Bruins their captain and top-six wings on- and off-ice contributions.

It would be general manager Don Sweeneys white flag on 2024-25, certain to darken the dressing room.

Sweeney would be revisiting former GM Harry Sindens decision to trade then-captain Ray Bourque to the Colorado Avalanche .

But from another perspective, dealing Marchand has merit, both for the player and the franchise.

Given the 36-year-olds full-gas style, injury history and 1,079 games of wear and tear, its difficult to project when Marchand will hit the wall.

Marchands game has leveled to the point where interim coach Joe Sacco benched him for overtime in the Bruins Jan.

18 6-5 shootout loss to the Senators.

If Sweeney progresses to a dealmaking degree, its possible he could consult with Marchand on a preferred destination.

Marchand has a young family.

He has partial no-trade protection.

But Marchand might welcome a Stanley Cup chase in Colorado with good friend and fellow Nova Scotian Nathan MacKinnon .

Advertisement Putting Marchand on the market would also refresh the roster for today and tomorrow.

One agent, granted anonymity to discuss someone he does not represent, estimated the Bruins could net a second-round pick and a promising young NHL player under team control for Marchand.

The price could rise if the Bruins retain part of Marchands salary.

The Bruins would have to determine, then, whether such a package would be worth the fallout of trading one of the clubs best players of all time.

Neither Marchand nor the Bruins expected they would be in this situation.

But Marchand knows there are consequences when teams fall short of expectations.

He might learn that firsthand.

(Photo: Brian Fluharty / Imagn Images).

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