Marchand named Bruins captain, replaces Bergeron

Brad Marchand humbly vowed to follow the lessons he learned from his predecessors, Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara, after being named captain of the Boston Bruins on Wednesday.

"I am extremely proud and honored," Marchand said. "It means more to me than I think anyone will ever know to be able to wear a 'C' for this team. When you look at the leaders that have been here before me and the guys that I've been fortunate enough to be under, they take an incredible amount of pride. Everything that they can possibly lead into this team, they do. It's been incredible to see, but I see the work that goes into it … and I really believe that I've witnessed two of the best leaders of all time being in this organization."

The 35-year-old forward replaces Bergeron, who retired from the NHL on July 25 after playing his entire 19-season NHL career for the Bruins, including the final three as captain. Chara was Boston's captain for 14 seasons before that (2006-20).

Marchand watched each closely during his 15 NHL seasons, all with the Bruins, and hopes to carry on the winning culture they helped build, but knows he needs to do it in his own way, with help from his teammates.

"They led in different ways, and I think that there's things you can implement in our group from both of those guys that were very effective and that they thrived in," Marchand said. "But I'm also not them, so I can't do what they do. I just want to try to find our own path as a group and I try to not to use the way I'm going to do it because I really believe the most effective way we're going to achieve things as a group is as a good leadership core."

That leadership core also includes forward David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy as alternate captains.

Marchand is the 27th captain in Bruins history, a list that includes seven Hockey Hall of Famers and seven players whose numbers are retired. He is eighth in Bruins history in games played (947), fourth in game-winning goals (71), sixth in goals (372), ninth in assists (490) and seventh in points (862). The 2011 Stanley Cup champion is fifth in Stanley Cup Playoff games played (146), second in goals (53), fourth in assists (75) and second in points (128).

"I am extremely proud of Brad and the hockey player he has become," Bruins CEO Charlie Jacobs said in a statement. "Brad has been a Bruin for over 15 years and had the opportunity to learn from great leaders in Zdeno Chara and Patrice Bergeron. He is ready for this opportunity and our whole team will learn from his competitive nature and tenacity. I am confident he will represent our organization with heart and grit."

Marchand served as an alternate captain under Bergeron and Chara and was the natural choice to be the next player to lead the Bruins.

"He'll be one of the leaders," general manager Don Sweeney said. "I think we've crossed organizationally by committee, leadership down, not to rest on anyone's shoulders, although Brad is well prepared to be in this position and I think he would be the first to tell you it's a privilege to be named captain and follow in the footsteps of somebody that he was very close with and learned from and I think you'll take a lot from these experiences that he's spent with Zdeno and Patrice and then he'll be his own person.

"And Brad has his own unique qualities that we all love, and he may have to continue to grow in some areas and lean on other people and we fully expect him to do all those things because he was the right person at this point in time and where this organization is, and he'll do a fabulous job."

Marchand suspected he was going to be named captain when he was invited to dinner with Sweeney, Bruins president Cam Neely and coach Jim Montgomery, but it took some time during the meal before the topic came up.

"We're talking small talk and stories from the past and whatnot, just kind of having a conversation," Marchand said. "I'm a little quiet because I want to know what's happening, like, 'What are we doing here?' Then Cam spoke up and brought it up and kind of let me know and 'Sweens' and 'Monty' both spoke after that.

"Again, I was extremely proud and honored, a little relieved. At the end of the day, we have a lot of guys that it could go to and that are deserving, but I did want it and I was hoping to have the opportunity."

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Sweeney credited Marchand for maturing during his career into the leader he's become. Marchand acknowledged he needed to change how conducted himself following a series of on-ice incidents, including when he licked Tampa Bay Lightning forward Ryan Callahan during the 2018 playoffs.

"My brother said something to me when I told him (he'd been named captain), he said something along the lines of, 'Four or five years ago, everybody hated you and now you turn around, you're the captain of the team,'" Marchand said. "It's pretty incredible the way things change. Perhaps that incident with Callahan was kind of one of those moments where I realized it was getting away from me a little bit. At the time, I don't think that really kicked in and made me change at that point in time.

"But I think over the next couple of years, it was part of the discussions that were about changing what my legacy was going to be and something that [former Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy] talked to me a lot about. Then, when 'Bergie' became captain, I was alongside him every day and that's really where I got to see what it takes to be at that next level."