After five straight losses, Brad Marchand‘s Boston Bruins clinched the victory in today’s game against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The game ended 3-2 in their favor, yet all was not well as Marchand himself had to leave the ice after suffering a hit by Pierre-Olivier Joseph. Naturally, NHL fans were concerned when they saw the 36-year-old writhing in pain after the hit.

The incident took place just 5:56 minutes into the game. Pierre-Olivier Joseph had got his stick stuck in Marchand’s skates before the awkward collision sent Marchand shoulder-first into the corner board. Thanks to the injury, Marchand had to be helped off the ice after clocking just 2:18 minutes of ice time. But in his absence, three players became heroes of the Penguins game. 

David Pastrnak extended his point streak to 17 games by scoring his 32nd goal of the season just 1:32 minutes in. But Mason Lohrei and Charlie Coyle didn’t leave the top goalscorer alone in the absence of Brad Marchand. Lohrei made the best out of a power play, while Coyle buried a short-handed empty-netter from long range thanks to an assist by Nikita Zadorov. 

However, you can’t miss acknowledging the goaltender. John Korpisalo clinched his first win since January by racking up an impressive tally of 29 saves. Meanwhile, the Penguins only had Anthony Beauvillier’s short-handed goal on the scoreboard until the Rickard Rakell’s final-minute consolation. But even though the Bruins secured a victory, NHL fans still obsess over Brad Marchand’s nasty hit on the boards. 

Fans worried about Brad Marchand’s upper-body injury

A worried fan had to make sure Brad Marchand was okay, “Hit the boards awkwardly. Hope he’ll be alright.” Now, it’s no secret that Brad Marchand has never really been a good boy, so to speak, and there’s a reason he is called the “Little Ball of Hate.” And while one of his critics thought he deserved it as they wrote, “Karma,” another still sympathized with the veteran, “He’s not one of my favorite people, but I hope he’s ok.” 

“What a shame. My hearts breaking,” wrote a netizen as they resonated with the overall sentiment. But as social media was flooded with sympathetic comments for Marchand, one fan had something else on their mind altogether. “The trade value just went down,” they wrote. Insensitive? Probably? Invalid? Not really. Even though Marchand made it clear that he plans on playing for the Bruins his entire career, rumors of him being traded are still making the rounds, and hardcore Bruins fans want to make sure that the team lands the right deals.

However, with Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm out of the season indefinitely, there is a slim chance the Bruins would want to trade Marchand in case they are still hoping to make it to the playoffs. McAvoy injured his AC joint in a game against Finland. However, if the Bruins decide to think long-term instead, reports suggest that possible destinations for No. 63 include the Tampa Bay Lightning, the New Jersey Devils, and the Edmonton Oilers.

The first priority for the Bruins at the moment, however, would be to get Marchand back to full fitness as soon as possible because even though he might be going through a slump in terms of scoring, he still ups the team’s goal-generation and that is something that the Bruins desperately need.