Brad Marchand Finding Immediate Fit With Panthers

Brad Marchand is having no trouble fitting in with the Florida Panthers.

Mar 28, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Brad Marchand (63) warms up before the game against the Utah Hockey Club at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The Florida Panthers landing Brad Marchand was an utter shock. The inter-divisional trade between the Panthers and Boston Bruinsseemed unimaginable before it happened, as the former captain of the Bruins headed to their heated rival to help them pursue back-to-back Stanley Cups.

It took several weeks for Marchand to make his Panthers debut, but it took just one game for him to find a fit in the lineup. The winger spent the majority of his 22 shifts with center Sam Bennett. The chaotic duo is the perfect pairing for the Panthers, and it should be a duo the team rides into the postseason.

In Marchand's debut, the Panthers toppled the Utah Hockey Club in overtime. The veteran winger was instrumental in the winning goal. After an odd-man opportunity, Marchand corralled the puck behind the net and fed Bennett to the left of the goalie. Bennett moved in and netted the game-winning goal, giving Marchand his first assist with the club in the process. Following the game, the team's starting goalie, Sergei Bobrovsky, observed the chemistry between Marchand and Bennett.

“It seems like they have played together the whole season with the way they found each other,’’ Bobrovsky said. “It’s fun to watch how they play."

It's a long way from the heated rivalry Bennett and Marchand were at the center of during the Bruins and Panthers' playoff series. The two often verbally and physically fought, but now they are thick as thieves, trying to win a Stanley Cup together. Bennett said that's the nature of the game.

"You can be rivals and enemies one day, and as soon as you put on that jersey and play for the same cause, everything is washed away," Bennett said. "You’re instantly great friends and teammates that are looking to win together."

The Panthers were the ideal place for Marchand to land. Due to his pairing with Bennett, the team has another dangerous line to deploy in the postseason. It's only one game, but it's clear that Marchand will be a perfect addition to Florida's roster.

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