Murphy: Will Marchand Be New Bruins Captain?

If Brad Marchand is going to be the 21st captain of the Boston Bruins, did the team miss a perfect opportunity to make that announcement at the jersey reveal and fashion show on Saturday night?

The 35-year-old veteran winger was front and center, strutting down the runway and getting the crowd into it as he modeled the team’s Centennial third jersey for this season.

“It made me look really pretty,” Marchand quipped after his runway display. “I’m retiring early. Gonna be a model.”

The man himself put on a SHOW 🥵 pic.twitter.com/gKTuOfLsJt

— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) September 16, 2023

If Marchand, as many expect, is going to be the next captain then why not have a ‘C’ on that brilliant third jersey as he came out and entertained, as he always seems to do?

Brad Marchand understands the significance of this Boston Bruins Centennial season and all the celebrations that have already begun.

“You never know how many events like this you’re gonna be a part of,” Marchand said following the ‘Centennial Takeoff’ “

And especially being the 100th year, it’s pretty special. I think with [Patrice Bergeron] and [David Krejci] retiring, not to get kind of sentimental — but you realize how quick it goes. And how close we’re kind of getting to that … as well. So these moments may not seem big, but they are and they’re things I’ll remember forever.”

Based on what head coach Jim Montgomery told the media last Thursday, the Bruins aren’t close to naming their next captain.

“I think we are trending in the right direction towards having someone be our captain [this season],” the reigning Jack Adams Award winner said. “We’ve had internal conversations, and I think decisions will be made. I don’t know if there’s a timeline on that yet. We have enough real good leaders where we could have a captain that would be leading us.”

Marchand has deflected any talk of him becoming captain and, as any good leader does, gone into the ‘We’ mode when addressing the situation to the media.

“That’s not something that I really think about too much,” Marchand said after captains’ practice at Warrior Ice Arena on Tuesday when asked if he wants to be the next captain. “Obviously, it’s a big honor to be in the leadership group of this organization when you look at the guys that have been there before. But we’ve always done it collectively as a group.

“So regardless of who wears it, it’s a collective thing, and even guys (without) letters step up a lot of times throughout the years. So, again, when you lose Bergy and (David) Krejci, leadership is going to come from a group, not from one certain guy or a couple of guys. It’s got to be from a big collective group, so that’s what we’re gonna rely on this year.”

There’s no doubt that whether he has a ‘C’ on his jersey or not, Marchand will remain a crucial part of that aforementioned leadership core, but the fact that he didn’t come down that runway on Saturday has this scribe wondering if maybe the team has decided to transition into the next generation fully.

Could it be 25-year-old defenseman Charlie McAvoy instead who becomes the 21st captain in franchise history? Maybe Marchand getting the ‘C’ isn’t the no-brainer everyone (this puck scribe included), thinks it is.