NHL star left winger Brad Marchand made his debut with the Florida Panthers Friday night, but his contract status – that makes him a UFA at the end of this season – has already started speculation as to where he could wind up playing next year and beyond.
Here are five teams we could see Marchand playing for after this season:
1. Boston Bruins
Let’s get this out of the way first: Marchand OK’d a move out of Boston, but there was no sense he or the Bruins had burned bridges with each other. So, if he doesn’t find an option that’s to his liking, Marchand could elect to return to Beantown.
He’ll be 37 years old by the time he signs a new contract, so his next deal could be his last NHL deal. But if Boston can get the money right – somewhere in the area of his current annual salary of $6.125 million – it wouldn’t be out of the question to see him return to the Bruins.
Marchand served Boston well as their leader on the ice and off of it, and although he probably would’ve wanted to spend his entire career with the same team, he could, in theory, win a Stanley Cup with the Panthers, then find a way to come back to his first NHL home.
Stranger things have happened than a return to Boston for Marchand, and he might decide that a few months away from the Bruins was too long and return to the Bs at the first chance he gets.
2. Colorado Avalanche
The Avs are one of the odds-on favorites to win the Cup this season, but if the Panthers repeat as Cup champions, Marchand could choose to play with fellow East-Coast Canadian Nathan MacKinnon on a Colorado team that will have the cap space to sign him for at least a couple of seasons.
Like all the teams on this list, the Avalanche could use Marchand’s grit and playoff experience, and playing in the relative calm of Denver may be exactly what Marchand wants at this stage of his career.
Marchand would help out the Avs’ second line, and Colorado has enough cap space to get a deal done that will satisfy Marchand’s pride. Closing out his career with the Avs would allow Marchand to satisfy his competitive drive, and the Avalanche would be thrilled to land someone with the pedigree Marchand can boast of.
3. Pittsburgh Penguins
This one is admittedly more of a long shot, as the Penguins are still going to be a fringe playoff team next season. But the opportunity to play alongside another East-Coast Canadian legend in Sidney Crosby would no doubt appeal to Marchand, and the Pens would welcome Marchand as they try to win another Cup in the Crosby Era.
Marchand has been a thorn in the side of just about every opponent, so the chance to make him a Penguin would be a no-brainer for Pittsburgh GM Kyle Dubas. But the Pens would almost assuredly have to make more notable moves to assure Marchand that he’s not going to be the only new face with the Penguins.
Marchand might want to change out his Black-and-Gold Bruins colors for a similar set of colors in Pittsburgh, and the Penguins could offer him the chance of a lifetime when it comes to playing on the same side as clear-cut Hockey Hall-of-Famers in Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang.
4. Toronto Maple Leafs
Okay, before you get snippy, hear us out: let’s assume the Maple Leafs falter early in the playoffs once again this spring. In the wake of that disappointment, there will likely be a massive change in Toronto – and what better way to effect significant culture change than to sign a proven winner and Leafs-haunter in Marchand?
He’d have to acclimate to playing in the huge hockey fishbowl that is Toronto, but it’s not as if Marchand isn’t used to that in Boston.
The Leafs might be a bigger long-shot than Pittsburgh on this list, but if Marchand values playing in another Original Six market where hockey is everything, he could spend his remaining few seasons in Toronto and be an integral part of what could be something special. The Leafs would be motivated buyers for him, and he’d fill an obvious need for grit and spunk.
5. Tampa Bay Lightning
The Panthers were clearly Marchand’s choice to play for this season, but if Florida can’t find a way to re-sign him, perhaps the other Sunshine State team can make him a member of the Lightning.
Like the Panthers, the Bolts will be tight to the salary cap ceiling, but Lightning GM Julien BriseBois always seems to find a way to land big fish, the way he did last summer when he signed star left winger Jake Guentzel. So, Marchand could be one of the final pieces of the puzzle in Tampa next year.
The Lightning can sell Marchand on the no-tax state of Florida and the opportunity to stay on the East Coast. We don’t see Marchand agreeing to take a huge pay cut to play in any market, but in Tampa Bay, his dollars would go further, and he’d have the luxury of great weather all year long. Thus, his current experiment with the Panthers could keep him in Florida but in another market.
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