It’s a ride Marchand wants to continue, through this season with the Bruins, through to next season and the Olympics.
That would be the dream.
“[Milano-Cortina] is the last time I think that I’ll have that opportunity to be in the Olympics," he said. "I think that’s the ultimate level you can get to, it’s the best of the best. It’s like this tournament, but it’s not. Nothing replaces the Olympics. It’s at a whole different level and at the end of the day, it still means more. It’s a level I never ever expected to be at in my wildest dreams.”
He will be 37. Does he think he can make it?
“It would be an incredible honor to be part of that,” he said. “It’s something I’ve aimed for for a long time, for probably over a decade now. Do I think it’s realistic? I think anything is possible. It’s what you set your mind to.”
It was why Marchand had surgery three times last summer, to give him the best chance of playing for Canada in the Olympics for the first time.
“I feel like I’ve been handcuffed a little bit this year because of the surgeries I had last year," he said, "but the reason that I had them last year is because I didn’t want to have them going into the summer of the Olympics, so that I can train and have a complete summer of training and I wouldn’t be behind. So that was a big part of why I had them last year.
“I thought there was enough time to get back and get in shape for the [4 Nations]. I know that my season hasn’t been to the level that I would like it to be. But I started earlier than I should have. I should have taken another month to get ready but I knew that I would prefer to play bad in the first 10 games instead of not playing at all. because then I’d play bad the next 10 games. So I figured I’d try to get my conditioning back while I was playing would be the best way to get back to speed.”
This season, Marchand has 44 points (20 goals, 24 assists) in 57 games. This marks his 14th season in the NHL with at least 20 goals and 12th consecutive, having missed the mark by two in the strike-shortened 2012-13 season.
Marchand has the Stanley Cup, the All-Star Games. He has passed the 1,000-game mark in the NHL and is 27 points from 1,000 for his career, sitting at 973 (421 goals, 552 assists) in 1,086 games, plus 1,111 penalty minutes.
The Olympics is the void.
The NHL didn't send players to the Olympics in 2018 and 2022, so he's never had the chance to play for his country on the biggest international stage.
“It’s the one thing I’m missing, for sure,” he said. “The Olympics, it’s the biggest thing you can have as an individual accolade. Stanley Cup is more team oriented. And going to the Olympics is the highest accolade you can have as an individual.
“In my view, playing for Canada as a Canadian kid, there’s nothing better. So there’s a tremendous amount of pride with that. Playing in the NHL is a dream and then the Olympics is something you don’t even think about, it’s not attainable.”
But first is the 4 Nations.
Like so many, Marchand is hoping Canada coach Jon Cooper will put the Nova Scotia players together, hoping he’d get to play with Crosby and Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon, though Crosby’s status is up in the air with an upper-body injury. The trio have long practiced together in the offseason.
But Marchand isn’t picky.
“I’m just so thrilled to be part of the team,” he said. “I don’t care if I fill water bottles the whole tournament. I’m just happy to be there. Especially with those two guys where we have a different bond and it’s a different storyline. But I couldn’t care less who I play with. Every player on that team is a star, in their own way.”
In Boston, it has not been an easy season for Marchand, for the Bruins. They are not assured to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs, sitting outside the playoff structure as the 4 Nations break hits. There is good news for Boston, hopeful defenseman Hampus Lindholm -- an underrated loss on its blue line -- will return for the Bruins' next game, on Feb. 22 against his old team, the Anaheim Ducks.
As Marchand sits, talking, it is exactly one month from the NHL Trade Deadline, set for March 7.
Is there a chance he won’t be with Boston, his only team, after that date passes?
“I don’t think so, but I don’t have all of the answers,” he said. “I don’t think so. I believe that we have a group capable of doing more than what we’ve done. And I believe that they feel the same way.”
He doesn’t get caught up in the chatter. He can’t.
“We’re not in control of them,” said Marchand, who added that he has a close relationship with Bruins management, going back to when general manager Don Sweeney was in player development and Marchand was a prospect. “At the end of the day, if they wanted to trade me, that’s obviously well within their right. But I feel like that’s something that we would have a conversation about. I don’t think that’s something they would just do on a whim.”
For now, though, Marchand gets to forget about any of the disappointments -- and opportunities -- ahead for him in Boston. He gets to head to Montreal, family in tow, to play for his country, to wear the maple leaf, to get to do something he never really thought he would do.
And if next year at this time, he’s doing it again? Well, then so much the better.
This week, he will focus on what he has.
“For me, it’s just appreciating how unique the opportunity is and how rare it can be to wear the jersey,” he said. “You just never know if it’s going to happen again, so you’ve got to make the most of it.”
