Yahoo Sports Respect Is Mutual Between Brad Marchand, Sidney Crosby
BOSTON – For only the fifth time in Brad Marchand’s career, every hockey fan in Canada will be rooting for the Boston Bruins captain during the upcoming 4 Nations Face-off.
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Outside of Boston, most fans despise Marchand and his style of play. However, he has helped Team Canada win four international championships, including the 2016 World Cup of Hockey when he scored the game-winning goal to beat Team Europe in the finals. He’s also earned a pair of gold medals from the World Junior Championship (2007 and 2008) along with gold at the 2016 World Championship.
Marchand, 36, wants to add to his trophy case while wearing the Canadian colors once again in a couple of months. And, he’ll be on the ice, and possibly on the same line with Pittsburgh Penguins superstar Sidney Crosby. Both natives of Nova Scotia, they’ve built a strong relationship both on and off the ice and once again they’ll lead Team Canada during the best-on-best tournament Feb. 12-20 at the Bell Centre in Montreal and TD Garden.
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The Penguins visited TD Garden Friday night and finished with a 2-1 victory over the Bruins.
Marchand, while he remains a pest on the ice, he continues to be one of the best players in the NHL. He’s the prototypical player everyone hates to play against, but they also want him on their team. Count Crosby among that group.
“It’s great,” Crosby said of playing with Marchand after Team Canada won in 2016. “You know every shift he’s going to try to create and he’s willing to do all those little things. He’s an offensive guy but he takes a lot of pride in playing strong defensively, being strong on pucks, creating turnovers, going to the net hard and doing all those little things that definitely add up on top of all the other skills that he has.”
Best-on-best tournaments are always great to watch. Every game is important. The players understand there’s a lot on the line for their respective countries and go all out. That was on display for Team Canada when it won the 2016 World Cup of Hockey in Toronto. It’s also no coincidence Marchand took his game to a new level after playing with both Crosby and Patrice Bergeron during that tournament.
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“It’s always a lot more fun playing with him than against him,” Marchand said of Crosby. “I love watching guys like that behind the scenes in the way they prepare. It’s not often you get to see the epitome of excellence and the way they take care of themselves every day and how they approach the game. I’m still trying to be a student.”
Marchand is known for his outgoing personality and no doubt he has fun clowning around with his teammates, but there’s no denying his preparation and readiness for every game. When he needs to be dialed in his focus is off the charts. Mentally, he puts himself in a bubble and leads by example. Players respect him and understand he’s all business when he needs to be. Marchand took a few pages out of Crosby’s book when they were teammates in ’16.
“I’ve always had a ton of respect for Sid,” Marchand said. “I watched him as a kid and I was always supposed to play against him, but he was so good he moved up, so I watched him all the way through (junior hockey). The biggest thing I took away from ’16 playing with him is his attention and compete level. I always knew it playing against him, but just how focused he is in everything he does and the way he prepares.
“That’s where you really see where the legends of the game,” added Marchand. “It doesn’t happen by mistake and getting a first-hand look at the way he comes in and takes care of himself at the rink and is prepared every single shift was impressive. You’re talking about the most elite players in the game that are on our team and he’s another step above that, so it was great to watch and gave me a whole new appreciation for what it takes to be at that level.”
Full rosters for Canada, the United States, Sweden and Finland will be unveiled Dec. 4, but for now Marchand is focused on the Bruins. He admitted before Friday’s game against the Penguins he hasn’t paid too much attention to 4 Nations Face-Off.
“None,” Marchand said. “It’s one of those things when it happens, you’ll look at it, but there’s so much to worry about day to day within this team and really trying to stay in the moment here. There are so many guys who could play on that team and whatever happens will happen. I’m just excited I know I’ll be part of it, and I’m really looking forward to being there, but one of the biggest things here is staying in the moment and focus on the task at hand.”
In the end, Marchand and Crosby hope all of Canada will be celebrating another international title in February.
“Those are very fun tournaments, ones you’re really proud to be a part of, and going through it with guys from my hometown will make it a little more exciting, a little more meaningful, but it’s another great opportunity and I’m really looking forward to it,” Marchand said.
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