Marchand scored twice, including the game-winner in the third period and stayed on the right side of the line to hand Toronto a loss at home.
Marchand scored twice, including the game-winner in the third period and stayed on the right side of the line to hand Toronto a loss at home.
One day after showering the Toronto Maple Leafs with praise for the way they have played, Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand got the upper hand against the opposition.
Marchand scored twice including the game-winner on Wednesday to help the Bruins defeat the Maple Leafs 4-2 to take 2-1 series lead in their best-of-seven first-round series. His game-winner came just 28 seconds after the Maple Leafs tied the game 2-2 in the third period.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfNaApGVTTY[/embed]
But perhaps his most impactful play came on teammate Trent Frederic's goal in the second period.
The Maple Leafs were up 1-0 late in the second period when Marchand and Maple Leafs forward Tyler Bertuzzi were involved in a bit of a wrestling match in the neutral zone. The Scotiabank Arena crowd erupted in anger and Marchand hauled Bertuzzi down for the second time with no penalty called. As the chaos ensured, Frederic was able to get a chance at the net and beat Maple Leafs goaltender Ilya Samsonov for a 2-1 lead.
After the game, Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe was amazed at how well Marchand has been able to ride the line with officials.
"He gets calls. It's unbelievable, actually, how it goes. But we got to play through that, got to play through that stuff. I don't think there's another player in this series that gets away with taking out Bertuzzi's legs the way that he does. There's not one other player in the series that gets away with that, but he does. It's an art, and he's elite at it," Keefe said. "As far as his game, I think we've managed that pretty well, for the most part. Obviously, tonight, we make a mistake at a key time that allows him to get the winner."
Marchand and Bertuzzi know each other well, having been teammates with the Bruins for a portion of last season. Both were involved in an exchange on the ice at the end of Toronto's 3-2 victory in Game 2 and it's bound to continue as the series moves to Game 4 on Saturday.
"I mean he's a great player. That's what he does. He's been doing it for a long time. So I don't expect it to stop," Bertuzzi said.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lFwyD4If5Q[/embed]
In the first period, referees also missed a clear elbow from Marchand on Bertuzzi
Marchand's antics are hardly the only reason Toronto finds itself down in the series. The Leafs were 0-for-5 on the power play and the Bruins were 2-for-3 (although one was also an empty-netter). It negates what was otherwise a good game for the Leafs at even strength when Toronto wasn't caught in any of Marchand's antics.
"He obviously wants to get under our skin and, you know, influence the refs. So I think we just got to be composed and not kind of get into that bulls**t," Maple Leafs forward Matthew Knies said.
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