It was the rematch fans had been low-key waiting for—after catching a rough L from the Maple Leafs on April 2, Brad Marchand and the Florida Panthers rolled back into the spotlight on April 8, hungry for that revenge W. And man, they brought the vibes. Eetu Luostarinen decided he was done with the drama and fired in the go-ahead goal early in the third, snapping Florida’s five-game cold streak with a sweet 3-1 dub over Toronto. Gustav Forsling and Carter Verhaeghe also jumped in on the action, while Sergei Bobrovsky locked things down between the pipes with 17 solid saves. Oh, and shoutout to Coach Paul Maurice, who tied Barry Trotz with win No. 914—big-time coaching royalty kinda stuff.
Toronto didn’t exactly go out without a fight, though—John Tavares even hit the back of the net, and goalie Joseph Woll had himself a busy night with 34 stops. But when Luostarinen muscled his way in front of the crease and backhanded that puck home? Yeah, that was the game-changer. And Verhaeghe sealed the deal with an empty-netter that broke his own 13-game goal drought. Even with all the fireworks, though, the postgame chatter circled right back to Brad Marchand. And Toronto kept Brad Marchand on lock while he went head-to-head with his old foes in a heated showdown.
Things got cheeky real fast when Luke Fox, NHL writer over at Sportsnet, hopped on X on April 8 and casually stirred the pot with a little chirp-spill. “Brad Marchand says he didn’t chirp Brandon Carlo in Toronto. Carlo chirped him. ‘It cut deep,’” he posted—and honestly, that twist hit like a surprise slapshot. Because let’s be real, if there’s one guy you expect to be flinging chirps left and right, it’s Brad “Master of the Mic” Marchand. He’s been that dude in the NHL—smack-talking on ice, roasting analysts on TV, and giving zero passes. But this time? It was his former teammate, Brandon Carlo, who flipped the script.
Brad Marchand says he didn’t chirp Brandon Carlo in Toronto. Carlo chirped him.
“It cut deep.”
— luke fox (@lukefoxjukebox) April 8, 2025
These two were brothers-in-black-and-gold for nine full seasons with the Bruins, riding the Boston wave together before the trade deadline came in like a wrecking puck. Marchand landed in sunny Florida, and Carlo got scooped by the Maple Leafs. When it came time for their first showdown as rivals, everyone expected Marchand to come in chirping loud. Even Carlo braced for it, saying, “It’ll be interesting to see what kind of dirt he has on me… I’m sure I’ll hear something.” But guess what? Plot twist—Marchand was the one catching heat this time.
After the game, Brad Marchand smirked and admitted, “You got a scumbag,” before doubling down with some serious love for his former teammate. “No, I love Brando. He’s one of my best buddies on the team there… They got an incredible teammate in the room. Great locker room guy. Great competitor… one of the best sticks in the league.” From chirps to compliments, it was a full-circle moment filled with banter, brotherhood, and a little post-trade poetry on the ice. And talking about Brad Marchand, he indeed is known for his chirping!
Brad Marchand and his unrelenting chirping!
Brad Marchand’s still got that fire in his belly and a mic drop always in his back pocket—even at 36, the man’s chirping game is still top-shelf. Back in December 2024, he was out here spinning verbal slapshots like it was his rookie year. Just days after clowning Paul Bissonnette for a seven-man brawl in a restaurant (yep, real story), Marchand doubled down on TNT with that signature smirk.
Biz tried to suspend him from the “Mr. TNT” award in a sketch, but Marchand wasn’t having it. “I absolutely am going to have to appeal that,” he shot back. “As soon as I heard you going after the hairline, there’s no way that Biz is about to throw a compliment.” Man didn’t even blink—he just kept the roast alive like it was game 7.
Of course, Brad Marchand had receipts—he threw it right back to that Black Friday moment when Bissonnette joked about hair plugs, and Marchand clapped back with, “I’m just trying to look like those guys who beat the wheels off you the other night.” Biz pulled up to TNT wearing a neck brace and bandages like he walked out of a wrestling match.
“What’s up, you little angry elf,” he teased, and Marchand still took the W both on the mic and the ice—dropping two goals just over two minutes apart against the Blackhawks. Bruins win 4-2. Even Boston’s social team jumped in with a victory post featuring Biz in that ridiculous neck brace. His reply? “Please stop. I have a family.”
And then, in March 2025, the drama took a palm-tree turn—because Marchand got scooped up by the reigning NHL Stanley Cup champs at the deadline, and he stepped into enemy territory with all the sass still intact. Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk—former foes turned new linemates—better braced themselves. Brad Marchand had already fired the first playful jab, saying, “Yeah, still a scumbag,” about Bennett. So, love him or hate him—he’s the kind of chaos you can’t look away from.
Brad Marchand’s still got that fire in his belly and a mic drop always in his back pocket—even at 36, the man’s chirping game is still top-shelf. Back in December 2024, he was out here spinning verbal slapshots like it was his rookie year. Just days after clowning Paul Bissonnette for a seven-man brawl in a restaurant (yep, real story), Marchand doubled down on TNT with that signature smirk. Biz tried to suspend him from the “Mr. TNT” award in a sketch, but Marchand wasn’t having it. “I absolutely am going to have to appeal that,” he shot back. “As soon as I heard you going after the hairline, there’s no way that Biz is about to throw a compliment.” Man didn’t even blink—he just kept the roast alive like it was game 7.
Of course, Brad Marchand had receipts—he threw it right back to that Black Friday moment when Bissonnette joked about hair plugs, and Marchand clapped back with, “I’m just trying to look like those guys who beat the wheels off you the other night.” Biz pulled up to TNT wearing a neck brace and bandages like he walked out of a wrestling match. “What’s up, you little angry elf,” he teased, and Marchand still took the W both on the mic and the ice—dropping two goals just over two minutes apart against the Blackhawks. Bruins win 4-2. Even Boston’s social team jumped in with a victory post featuring Biz in that ridiculous neck brace. His reply? “Please stop. I have a family.”
And then, in March 2025, the drama took a palm-tree turn—because Marchand got scooped up by the reigning NHL Stanley Cup champs at the deadline, and he stepped into enemy territory with all the sass still intact. Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk—former foes turned new linemates—better braced themselves. Brad Marchand had already fired the first playful jab, saying, “Yeah, still a scumbag,” about Bennett. So, love him or hate him—he’s the kind of chaos you can’t look away from.
The post Toronto Shuts Down Brad Marchand as Florida Panthers Star Faces Former Rival appeared first on EssentiallySports.
