The Bruins could be looking at an extended stretch without their leading scorer.
The NHL has offered Bruins forward Brad Marchand an in-person hearing to give his side of Tuesday’s incident that earned him a match penalty for attempting to injure Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry. According to Boston Hockey Now, the offer of an in-person hearing can mean a suspension of six or more games.
After a strange incident when Marchand batted the puck off Jarry’s stick at the end of the second period, it appeared that Jarry said something to Marchand after the whistle had blown in the final minute of the third period. Marchand reacted first by punching him, while Jarry was covering the puck on his knees. He then hit Jarry around the chin/neck area with the toe of his stick as referees tried to guide him away.
While the stick infraction wasn’t forceful, it was purposeful and came right in front of the officials. With Marchand’s reputation, which includes a suspension earlier this year for slew-footing, that’s unlikely to play well with the NHL’s Department of Player Safety.
Bruce Cassidy was frustrated with Marchand’s lack of composure after the game.
“Lack of discipline obviously on Brad’s part. I just watched the replay. It looks like some words were exchanged. I don’t know if there was an incident at the end of the second period that precipitated that. I was in the room. Still, you have to have better discipline,” Cassidy said. “Brad’s a leader on our team. He needs to control his emotions in that situation.”
Marchand leads the Bruins with 49 points (21 goals and 28 assists).
Marchand’s absence is more significant as Patrice Bergeron will miss at least one game with an upper-body injury. His status beyond that is uncertain.
Story by Matt Vautour, masslive.com