Here's A Closer Look At The Sneaky Sucker Punch That Panthers Lunatic Sam Bennett Delivered To Bruins Captain Brad Marchand, Eventually Knocking Him Out Of Last Night's Game Three

Thanks to Spittin' Chiclets and TNT's intrepid, eagle-eyed analyst Colby Armstrong, fans and viewers learned exactly why Bs captain Brad Marchand ended up mangled after a seemingly routine, physical mid-ice collision with Florida's Yosemite Sam and resident wrecking ball Sam Bennett...

The quality is Boomerish but you can still make out Bennett's sneaky, dirty-as-fuck right-handed sucker-punch right to Marchand's mug. I incorrectly labeled it a rabbit punch at first. Punches to the face that you don't see coming or expect are sucker punches.

Here's a few clearer versions that all show the same thing: Bennett's gloved right hand holding his stick making violent, deliberate contact with Marchand's squash.

Oh and here's a back angle for you as well..

Advertisement

As a guy who's been watching the Stanley Cup Playoffs for 45+ years, I get it. It's dirty as fuck and it sucks that Marchand is likely concussed as a result. But I watched Claude Lemieux build a HHOF-worthy résumé playing that way. So I get why it happened this time of year.

Bennett sucker punches Marchand because it's the playoffs, he's a bit of a psychopath, and he thinks there's a good chance he'll get away with it. Again.

And he does (at least for now). But even Bennett knew he was guilty when he gave the ol' Urkel…

"DID I DO THAAAAAAAAAATT?!?"

But he checked for a raised arm, likely relieved when he didn't see one…

I watched the clip dozens of times and Marchand looked like he was actually out on his feet by the way he hit the deck (and having just been unexpectedly punched in the face by a big dude)…

Advertisement

Then the poor prick slid into the boards which may have actually jostled him awake. Darren Pang said that the Bruins captain was groggy and out of it on the bench after the collision and bonus punch. Classic concussion signs. Marchy ended up finishing the second period but did not play the third due to an "upper-body" injury. There's been no word yet today from the Bs about his condition.

As for retribution, the game polices itself with this shit and that will get dealt with on-ice however and whenever it does. But that's not the Boston Bruins main concern right now. Game Four is. (And Monty and his charges better figure out how to show a hell of a lot more life and fight than they did for two-and-a-half periods last night. I've been to most of Bs playoff games at the 'new' place and that was one of the worst displays I can recall. And yet they were still in it until Mason Lohrei committed his first real mistake these playoffs. Coaches need to figure it out as well.)

As for the league/DOPS, I'm certainly not expecting them to get involved. But should they?

Above, you can clearly see Bennett's gloved right hand, holding his stick vertically, aiming square at Marchand's melon.

Advertisement

In the next frame, Marchand's head is the principal point of contact from Bennett's sneaky, greasy punch.

As Bennett follows through, Marchand's head jerks violently to his left. What initially looked like possible whiplash from the double hit is, instead, a clearly deliberate shot to the dome.

As Marchand's head snaps even further to his left, you can see his eye is closed before crumpling to the ice, with no apparent attempt to cushion his fall…

A person with common sense and average vision can deduce from the above that Bennett snuck in a quick sucker punch on Marchand (resulting in an injury he later had to leave the game because of). We'll see whether the DOPS and Gary see it the same way. It'd be a fine at most. But that was probably the grimiest thing I've seen so far these playoffs.

Bennett is your classic "fucking hate him unless he's on your team" guy. A rat. Dirty. Scumbag. A disruptor and he's got skill. And come playoff-time, he straddles and occasionally crosses the line. You know. Like Marchand.

Advertisement

And look at the difference he made last night. He's a huge part why that Florida team has been a post-season steamroll once again. There's a reason opponents are always aware of his presence on the ice. Because of shit like this. He plays a hard fucking game and he hasn't exactly read the rulebook. Eventually he'll pay a piper (he's got more than one). But like Patty Maroon said the other day regarding Tkachuk and Pasta, "take a number".

But the real point of this blog was to highlight Colby Armstrong and how he was seemingly the first/only media person to point out exactly what happened. Because he could be a greasy fuck when he played and knows the thought process. So kudos to Armdog for catching that. He's the best.

See you at Game Four tomorrow night.