Bruins changes continue with split up of Bergeron, Marchand

Share

WILMINGTON, Mass. – While not as overwhelming in their offensive production as flashy NHL tandems Tyler Seguin/Jamie Benn, Ryan Getzlaf/Corey Perry or even the Sedin Twins, the Bruins have had their own dynamic duo in Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand over the past five years.

They’ve rotated through Mark Recchi, Tyler Seguin, Jaromir Jagr, Reilly Smith and now Brett Connolly as right wings over the half-decade, but Bergeron and Marchand have always served as a constant together five-on-five as a shutdown line, or as a dangerous, effective pair killing penalties.

In a season full of transition for the Black and Gold, now there’s been change with the Bergeron and Marchand pair as well. They’re still killing penalties together for the NHL’s worst penalty kill group, but Claude Julien broke up Marchand and Bergeron to start in the victory Sunday over the New York Islanders after three losses in a row.

It was jarring for both players, to be sure. Still, it was also something they partially anticipated given the team’s recent struggles, and the way their coach has been forced to mix, match and juggle lines all season.

“It’s been awhile since we’ve been split up, but then again we have so many different combinations [we can use] this year,” said Bergeron, who leads the Bruins with 46 shots on net and has 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in 14 games this season. “With so many different players, it’s one of those situations where Claude wants to get a look at them…and also get a change, and a spark too. I thought as the game went along we got better as a line with [Beleskey], and practice was another good chance to work on that chemistry.”

Marchand, in particular, had been listless with zero points and a minus-3 in his previous three games headed into Sunday’s road trip finale in Brooklyn, and had taken a bad retaliation penalty in Washington that led to a damaging Caps power play goal. So, Julien responded by dropping Marchand to the third line left wing with Ryan Spooner and Jimmy Hayes, and pushing hard-nosed Matt Beleskey up to Bergeron’s left side.

The move worked as Marchand was sufficiently sparked in a new role, Beleskey looked good in a north/south fore-checking role among the top-six group and Bergeron contributed to both goals in the victory over the Islanders. It also gives Marchand some responsibility with a couple of newer Bruins players to the Boston way of doing things.

“[Beleskey and Bergeron] are both hard workers, and [Beleskey] has certainly shown us that he competes really hard. I thought that was probably a good situation for him to go in there,” said  Julien. “No matter is being said out there about [Marchand], my main reason for doing that is that he wants to be a leader. When you put him with a guy like Spooner that’s a young centerman and [Jimmy] Hayes in his first year here, it gives [Marchand] a chance to do that.

“It’s to not have to [be a leader] very much when you’re right next to Bergy. I thought he responded well, and he played a really good game while helping that line be a really good line. It’s what we had in practice on [Tuesday], and right now I don’t why we should, or shouldn’t, do that change. We’ll see as time goes by here. As I said at the beginning of the year, there are lots of reasons this year to move guys around.”

So how long will it last?

Well, clearly in the short term, the Bruins want to take a look at some new combinations after sticking with those new line combos at practice on Tuesday afternoon. But Marchand also said he fully expects to be reunited at some point with Bergeron given all their past success and established chemistry. The existing chemistry between Marchand and Bergeron was obvious when they ended up on the ice together with Hayes during a line change, and actually produced the game-winning goal together in Sunday’s game.  

“It was a little bit of a change, but [Spooner] and [Hayes] have been playing great. So it’s a great opportunity to try something new, and spark a little something. It’s fun to try,” said Marchand. “You want to lead by example in the way you play, and try to play within the system. I’m sure eventually we’ll be back together as a line, but sometimes you need to change things around to get a spark. We’d lost a few games in a row, so anything can happen in that way.

“We won the last game, so it was a big change up there. Hopefully we can continue to do the same thing on Thursday [against the Colorado Avalanche].”

The fact both Bergeron and Marchand are still together as PK partners would seem to indicate Marchand is indeed correct, and longtime duo will indeed reconnect as a line once things stabilize a bit for the Black and Gold. But there have been very few constants in this year of change for the Bruins, and switching out the highly successful Bergeron/Marchand partnership is just another example of that one month into the season. 

Contact Us