Elliotte Friedman makes his thoughts clear on Brad Marchand’s trade to Florida Panthers despite him wanting to stay with Bruins

NHL insider Elliotte Friedman shared further updates about veteran forward Brad Marchand’s shock move to the Florida Panthers. Marchand, who had spent 16 seasons with the Boston Bruins since his NHL debut, was traded to the Panthers in the closing stages of the trade deadline.

During Monday’s edition of his "32 Thoughts" podcast, Friedman gave a play-by-play recap of the entire saga.

“He (Marchand) wanted to stay. As you go to the 4 Nations, he made it very clear that he wanted to stay,” Friedman said [29:15]. “Marchand was not being asked to take a pay cut. However, there was a gap… Nobody out there would confirm to me what the gap was, but I think that the Bruins reached a line.”

He went on to talk about what sources had shared with him about Marchand’s perspective [28:25]:

“I think Marchand felt that it was below what he was willing to accept. I had some people tell me that, based on the way they think Marchand will play, especially if he's healthy enough for the playoffs, it's something he could get in the open market. Now, I think ultimately, he probably would have taken a little bit less to stay in Boston, but not where the Bruins were.”

Brad Marchand’s shock trade to the Florida Panthers has been extremely unpopular with fans and the rest of the team. Bruins general manager Don Sweeney has been heavily criticized for making the deal. Bruins players David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy have publicly expressed disappointment about the trade.

Marchand took out a full-page ad in the Boston Globe for his farewell note.

“My family is now your family: We are Bostonians now and forever," Marchand wrote via the Boston Globe.

Friedman shares details about Brad Marchand’s meeting with Bruins management before Florida Panthers trade

Sportsnet analyst Friedman has been tracking Brad Marchand’s trade and the aftermath closely. He shared more details about an in-person meeting between Marchand and the Bruins management, which the reporter had alluded to before.

“I heard that he (Marchand) reached out and asked for an in-person meeting. And it was granted,” Friedman said [29:39]. “And I really think that he believed that going in in person, it would work. And it didn't, you know, the Bruins had just decided they were going as far as they were going to go.”

Marchand is currently week-to-week due to an upper-body injury that saw him sit out the Bruins’ last two games before the trade deadline closed.