"So short he can’t jump into the bench lol" "Should be a suspension": NHL fans react as Brad Marchand shoves official on his way to Bruins bench

The Boston Bruins fell 2-1 to the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 6 of the first round of the 2023-2024 NHL playoffs.

During the game, Bruins forward Brad Marchand was caught on video shoving a linesman out of his way as he tried to get to the bench. This incident sparked outrage and calls for Marchand to be suspended.

The shove occurred during the first period as Marchand was trying to get off the ice for a line change. A linesman was standing in Marchand's path to the bench door, blocking his entry. Marchand used his hands to shove the official out of his way to get to the bench.

Video of the incident went viral online, with NHL fans angrily reacting to Marchand's actions. One fan jokingly commented,

"So short he can't jump into the bench lol," referring to Marchand's short stature.

Many fans called for Marchand to be suspended for putting his hands on an official. One fan wrote bluntly,

"Should be a suspension," one fan said.

Under NHL rules, deliberately applying physical force against an official leads to an automatic game misconduct penalty. However, the official chose to overlook Marchand’s shove.

"This should be a suspension. No question." one fan wrote on X.

Here are some fan reactions to Brad Marchand’s shove:

"The linesman shouldn’t be by the bench door unless he is skating past. I hate Marchand but give it a rest" a user tweeted.

"Good. It’s called poetic justice for the ref decking Marchand last game" one fan wrote.

"That's direspect from Marchand, not a great attitude from a Captain!" another fan wrote.

Brad Marchand's comments after the Bruins' 2-1 loss to the Maple Leafs in Game 6

After the Boston Bruins fell 2-1 to the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 6, team captain Brad Marchand commented on the tightness of the series and the need for the Bruins to have stronger starts.

Marchand emphasized the Maple Leafs' readiness from the opening puck drop.

"It's a tight game," Marchand said post-game. "They're starting well every game. They are prepared to play first shift and we need to be better in that area. I think we had maybe one game where we started as good or better than them."

Looking ahead to a decisive Game 7 in Boston, Marchand remained confident about the Bruins' chances.

"If someone told us at the start of the season that we'd be [in] Game 7 at home against Toronto, we'd take that all day," he said. "So it doesn't matter how you get there. We're there."

The series will return to Boston for Game 7 on Saturday, with the victor moving on to compete against the Florida Panthers in the second round.