SOUTH BEND, Indiana – Brad Marchand wasn’t with the Bruins team back on January 1, 2010 during their first Winter Classic, and the Little Ball of Hate was suspended for the 2016 Winter Classic against the Canadiens at Gillette Stadium. So Marchand has never had a chance before to play in any of the outdoor games with the Black and Gold, and is excited for something new as an All-Star, Olympian and former Stanley Cup champ that’s experienced pretty much everything across the NHL spectrum at this point in his career.
“It hasn’t happened yet, so don’t jinx it,” said the 30-year-old Marchand, with his trademark smirk while joking about his suspension about a couple of years ago. “It’ll be an exciting game. It’s a very unique experience to be a part of something like this. It’s a fun time and a fun thing to be a part of.
“These are the things, games like this, that when you’re growing up you never think things like this are going to happen [for you]. So it’s very cool to be a part of something like this. It’s so different than what you are used like having the rink away from the stands, and the fans far away from the glass. It’s all different, and playing in front of 70,000 will be an incredible experience. Having no roof on the building…there are just so many things that are so unique about it. It’s not something that you’re going to get nervous about because there are way bigger games in the season, but it’s so different that it’s enjoyable to be a part of it.”
Despite missing last weekend’s win over Buffalo after taking a number of hard hits in the loss to the New Jersey Devils, it appears that the only way Marchand would miss the New Year’s Day game would be if he were to slewfoot the Notre Dame leprechaun mascot on the way out to the Notre Dame Stadium arena on the way to warm-ups. Short of that, the Bruins will have one of their best and most entertaining players on the outdoor ice this time around, and that should be good for everybody from the fans, the Bruins team and the Winter Classic product that the NHL has built into their centerpiece midseason event over the last ten years.
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