09/12/2024
Boston Bruins captain Brad Marchand on what drives him at 36 years old: “There’s so much talk these days that, as you get older, you can’t play and teams don’t want [you] or they don’t like guys that are in their 30s, mid-30s. It’s almost like you need to re-establish every year that you belong,” said Marchand. “As a young guy coming in, you need to earn your spot every day, you need to show you’re a good pro and you can compete at this level and can deal with the schedule and the challenges of becoming an NHL player. You need to earn it.
“And as you get older, they try to push you out and the young guys are trying to take your job. Teams are looking to go young, and you almost have that same mindset that you need to show you can play and keep up with the young guys, with the new talent and the speed. In [some] ways, I’m definitely a lot more comfortable coming in and understanding what it’s like, what’s expected. But in the same sense, you need to re-establish every single year that you come in that you’re still right there and belong and that these young bucks aren’t going to take my job.”
