"Such a gutless little rat": NHL fans accuse Brad Marchand of flopping on Mikko Rantannen collision

Brad Marchand, captain and left winger for the Boston Bruins, faced criticism after an incident during Wednesday's game against the Colorado Avalanche. After a collision with Avalanche forward Mikko Rantanen, Marchand was accused of flopping, with fans and analysts claiming that he exaggerated the hit.

Although he drew a penalty, many thought he should have been called for embellishment. Hockey analyst Drew Livingstone shared a video of the incident on X (formerly Twitter):

"Another brutal flop by Brad Marchand. Draws the call and no embellishment penalty"

NHL fans reacted to the video:

"Guy deserves an Oscar here. Such a gutless little rat. I'll never understand why no one hasn't taken him out by now," a fan criticized Brad Marchand.

"He left the game and did not return, that would be some commitment to the bit. Also - complaining about calls when you can’t score 5 on five seems a little rich..," another commented, albeit sarcastically.

"What makes this worse is he wears the "C" for them. What a s*it bag," another fan was more critical of Marchand's role as captain.

Fans on X continued to react to the incident involving Brad Marchand.

"Man when I saw it live, I thought headshot for sure. That replay is rough, flop city. Both feet off the ice. Brutal," one fan said.

"Absolute drama rat king," another fan commented.

"Lol, AVS are getting s*it on," a fan said.

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How Brad Marchand and the Boston Bruins beat the Colorado Avalanche

The Boston Bruins beat the Colorado Avalanche 5-3 on Wednesday night. The win was significant for the Bruins, who scored two quick goals from David Pastrnak and Hampus Lindholm in the second period, 13 seconds apart.

For the Avalanche, it marked their fourth straight loss. It's their worst start since the 1998-99 season when they had stars like Joe Sakic and Patrick Roy.

Despite the setback, the Avalanche fought back with goals from Ross Colton, Cale Makar and Mikko Rantanen, whose goal cut the Bruins' lead to 4-3 in the third period.

However, John Beecher sealed the win with an empty-net goal for Boston. Goalie Joonas Korpisalo made 22 saves. In contrast, Alexandar Georgiev let in four goals, bringing his total to 17 allowed in four games this season.

Matt Stienburg made his NHL debut and clashed with Nikita Zadorov. Looking ahead, the Avalanche will finish their homestand against Anaheim, while the Bruins face Utah next.