Brad Marchand scores his first NHL goal 12 years ago
On this day 12 years ago, Boston Bruins superstar Brad Marchand scored the first goal of his NHL career, and it was a sign of things to come.
It was November 3rd, 2010, and the Bruins were on the road facing the Buffalo Sabres. During a Sabres powerplay, the defenseman misread a rim around the boards in the offensive zone that sent Marchand on a shorthanded breakaway, and the rest is history.
It was Marchand's 29th career game after appearing in only 20 games during the 2009-10 NHL season, where he registered just one assist. The 22-year-old would appear in 77 games that season, recording 21 goals and 20 assists, including four more shorthanded goals.
How was this a sign of things to come?
Marchand has gone on to score 33 shorthanded goals in his career, which is 14th all-time in NHL history and the most by any active player. The next closest is Andrew Cogliano of the Colorado Avalanche, who is 69th with 21.
His next shorthanded goal would put Marchand in a four-way tie for 11th all-time with Marion Hossa, Pavel Bure and former Bruin Derek Sanderson.
Here is the Top-10 in shorthanded goals in NHL history as per NHL Records:
Marchy has a real chance to be in the top five by the time is career is over, but reaching any higher than that may be a tall order. What do you think?
| POLL | ||
Where will Marchand rank in SHG by the time he retires? | ||
| 9th or 10th | 5 | 10.4 % |
| 7th or 8th | 8 | 16.7 % |
| 6th | 12 | 25 % |
| 5th | 23 | 47.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
