Bruins Brad Marchand promises to stop licking opponents Ive

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Brad Marchand is one of the best hockey Jaromir Jagr Jersey players in the world. On talent alone, thatisn't up for debate. But after the Bruins bowed out of the Stanley Cup playoffs with a whimper in a second-round beatdown by the Lightning, some of the blame shifted toward their biggest and most polarizing starforhis.
In one final twist to the strange saga, a contrite Marchandacknowledgedhis behavior became a distractionand promised to reform it next season.
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"I've got to knock that s out," he said, speaking to reporters for 17 minutes during Boston's exit interviews Wednesday.
<p dir="ltr" lang="en" xml:lang="en">Brad Marchand said he needs to take a look in the mirror: Ive got to cut that expletive out.
Fluto Shinzawa (@FlutoShinzawa) Marchand's antics against the Maple Leafs when, in the heat of a scuffle with Leo Komarov, he nuzzled the Toronto tough guy, smooching Aaron Ness Jersey his neck. The quirky incident led to laughs from observers around the league, who mostly agreed with Nazem Kadri's a se sment that "it was uncomfortable to watch."
The greater offense and the one blamed for contributing to Boston's demise came in Game 4on the second round. Marchand landed a low-bridge hit on Tampa's Ryan Callahan along the boards Alexander Alexeyev Jersey earlier in the game. So when Callahan confronted Marchand,shoving him in the face,the Bruin responded by licking Callahan's sweaty, bearded cheek (ew). The Bruins went on to lose 4-3 in overtime, but much of the postgame discu sion centered on the latest licking incident.
The NHL, fed up,was forced to respond, saying it gaveMarchand a tongue-lashing for the outbursts and .
Instead of making amends and putting the story to rest, Marchandremained bullish. He said he was justified in Lucas Johansen Jersey licking Callahan out of retaliation and calledwhole situation "pretty stupid."Boston went on to lose Game 5 and the series, leading to wide-ranging opinions on how much, exactly, the distraction affected the Bruins' play.
Marchand also revealed on Wednesday that he had been playing through a groin injury for the entirety of Round 2. He finished with a goal and eight points in five games.
Marchand, of course, is no stranger to being reprimanded by the league, and licking opponents Michal Kempny Jersey is relatively mild in the grand scheme of his offenses. He was suspended five games earlier this season for elbowing the Devils' Braden Holtby Jersey Marcus Johan son, a ban that bridged the NHL's All-Star break in Tampa where Marchand, allowed to participate in the festivities, was heartily booed and embraced his villain roll, repeatedly egging on the crowd.
He was also fined on two separate occasions in March, the first for embellishment and another for elbowing the Islanders' Andrew MacDonald.
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John Short, Jr