Bruins Blast Radio Host Over Rumor of Tension Between Marchand and Pastrnak

The Boston Bruins are mired in a season-worst six-game losing streak.

From the outside perspective, it would be easy to claim that tensions are on the rise within the Bruins’ locker room, which is why Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak firmly pushed back against a report that the two are at odds with one another on Friday.

“It’s unfortunate,” Marchand told reporters in Fort Lauderdale. “I know reporters have a job to do, and that job is to report on the team, and usually you try to be fact-based. But when there’s just blatant lies told in the media, that’s where there’s a problem.”

The report came from WEEI radio host Rich Keefe, who said earlier in the day on the Jones & Keefe Show that Pastrnak told the Bruins that he refuses to play on the same line as Marchand.

“The locker room is a disaster, and David Pastrnak is at the center of that,” said Keefe. “David Pastrnak has told the team he doesn’t want to be on a line with Brad Marchand, and it may stem from Brad Marchand calling out Pastrnak for some of his play.”

Scoops @Keefe21 :

"The locker room is a disaster, and David Pastrnak is at the center of that. David Pastrnak has told the team he doesn't want to be on a line with Brad Marchand, and it may stem from Brad Marchand calling out Pastrnak for some of his play."😳

Yikes. pic.twitter.com/GeZg7sw05B

— Jones & Keefe (@JonesandKeefe) January 10, 2025

Marchand and Pastrnak have typically played on separate lines this season, but not due to any sort of issues between them.

“The only reason we’ll play together is so that we can spread depth through the lineup,” said Marchand. “There’s zero truth to [Pastrnak] being a problem in the room. He’s one of the most loved guys in the room. There are zero issues in the room at all, and the fact that he’s in the center of anything is a completely fabricated lie. This guy has zero merit to anything he’s saying.”

Marchand and Pastrnak have been teammates in Boston for a decade and are the two longest-tenured members of the Bruins. The two have played in more than 670 regular season games together, as well as 15 different Stanley Cup Playoff series, which made the idea of the two harboring animosity comical to them.

“I’ve been laughing for a little bit,” Pastrnak said. “I thought he was making fun of me. Then he actually said it was true, so I don’t make much of it. I know how I feel about the Marchy. We love each other. I have a huge amount of respect for him. We had a good laugh about it, and it’s a hundred percent false.”

This story will be updated

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