The Boston Bruins suffered a crushing 3-2 loss in Game 4 on Sunday night against the Florida Panthers, pushing them to the brink of elimination as they face a 3-1 series deficit. While things don't look great, the B's are still alive for the time being, and if they intend on winning Game 5, it would certainly help if they managed to get their captain Brad Marchand back on the ice after he missed Game 4 with an upper-body injury.
Marchand was forced to miss the final period of Game 3 after he appeared to be the victim of a dirty hit from Sam Bennett that saw him land a punch on the face of Boston's first-year captain. Of course, he wasn't able to return to the ice for Game 4 either, but according to general manager Don Sweeney, Marchand is traveling with the team back to Florida for Game 5, so he'll at least have a shot of suiting up for what could be the Bruins final game of the season.
“He'll travel with the team. He's still day to day and hopefully he continues … the guys [have] got to give him a chance.” – Don Sweeney, NHL.com
Bruins hoping Brad Marchand can return to the ice for do-or-die Game 5 contest
The Bruins don't have much top-end scoring talent on their roster, with Marchand leading the way in that area alongside David Pastrnak. That's a big reason why his absence looms so large, even though he's only managed to rack up three total shots on goal over the three games he's taken the ice for in this series.
Beyond his goal scoring abilities, Marchand is the Bruins leader on and off the ice, and he has a penchant for getting into the opposing teams' heads in a way that no one else on this team can. Ironically enough, though, Marchand and company have watched guys like Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk get the better of them in that department throughout the series, which is one of the many reasons they currently find themselves in a 3-1 hole.
Marchand's return isn't going to win Boston the game on its own, but it would certainly help the team put their best foot forward as they try to extend their season in Game 5. Nobody on the Bruins has the playoff experience that Marchand has, and he's been in pretty much every situation known to man over the course of his career. If there's anyone who can lead Boston to victory in Game 5, it's him.
Whether or not he plays, though, is still very much up in the air. While the fact that he's headed to Florida indicates he has a shot of suiting up, he doesn't have a lot of time to get himself healthy enough to play considering that puck drop is at 7 PM EST on Tuesday night. So while there's hope that Marchand can play in Game 5, it's still too early to tell whether or not he has a real shot of making a triumphant return for his squad.
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