Paul Maurice calls out Bruins captain Brad Marchand ahead of game six

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Graham Montgomery
May 17, 2024 (9:18 PM)

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Florida Panthers head coach Paul Maurice had a few things to say in response to Bruins Captain Brad Marchand ahead of game six between the teams tonight.

Marchand was talking about the play in game four that knocked him out of the series, at least for now. It was a hit that has been seen by everyone by now. Panthers forward Sam Bennet appeared to punch the Bruins captain in the face on the play. Marchand did not return in game four and missed game five. Tonight he briefly talked about the play again as the Bruins prepare for game six with their season on the line once again.

«I think he got away with a shot, but I'm not going to complain because **** happens. It's part of playoff hockey. I've been on the other side of a lot of plays, and I think he got away with one, but that's part of the game � and definitely part of playoff hockey.

Maurice took a different stance on the play as one might expect. He revealed that his philosophy is that the intensity level of the playoffs makes even ordinary plays seem more egregious because of how intently everyone is focused on them. To be fair, there is a lot of truth to this. Just think about the last time your favorite team was in an elimination game and it went to overtime. Every time the puck even gets close to the net fans wince. Even a simple shot from the blueline that gets saved 999 times out of 1000 will have fans holding their breath.

«I think the playoffs are more focused on everything. Every hit gets finished and every hit gets finished as hard as it can. But I don't think our game would last 10 minutes if that were true. I don't think that's true at all. I just think all things are more focused. You can't play 82 games the way Boston and Florida are playing. It gets saved up for playoffs and unleashed.»

Maurice has been on fire these playoffs, rattling off memorable quote after memorable quote. Ahead of game five he made another comment about Marchand, leaning into the speculation of whether or not the Bruins captain would play.

"There'll be 18,000 cameras on the morning skate just to see how many sips of the water bottle Brad Marchand takes."

Paul Maurice put on a HHOF presser performance 🔥

After the game he talked about a moment in game five where he called his players to the bench and went off on them during a media timeout. He was rather frank about what that discussion sounded like, providing us with another memorable quote.

Paul Maurice knows how to give a good pep talk 😂

Be sure to tune in tonight to see if Maurice's Panthers can get the job done, or if the Bruins will force a game seven in Florida.

Source: HockeyFeed
Paul Maurice pushes back on Brad Marchand's controversial comments