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Bruins' Charlie McAvoy Reacts to Brad Marchand Trade With Wordless Post

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Antonio Losada | Last updated Mar 8, 2025 8:30 AM ET

Charlie McAvoy didn’t need words to express how he felt about Brad Marchand’s departure from the Boston Bruins.

On Friday, hours after the Bruins sent their longtime captain to the Florida Panthers in a trade deadline stunner, McAvoy took to Instagram to react publicly for the first time.

He shared a throwback photo of himself embracing Marchand during a game against the Calgary Flames, adding two broken heart emojis above the picture as they appear to celebrate a goal.

In addition to Marchand's departure ahead of the deadline, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney also traded Trent Frederic to the Edmonton Oilers, Charlie Coyle to the Colorado Avalanche, and Brandon Carlo to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

McAvoy, who has been a staple on the Bruins’ blue line since 2017, also paid tribute to other teammates dealt in the Bruins’ deadline overhaul.

He shared a few more pictures in his Instagram stories, featuring all of Frederic, Coyle, and Carlo.

Charlie McAvoy's IG story pic.twitter.com/4l7YvQJYCG
— NESN (@NESN) March 7, 2025

In return for those players, the Bruins went younger by landing Casey Mittelstadt, William Zellers, Henri Jokiharju, Fraser Minten, and multiple draft picks from different teams as part of the deadline deals.

For McAvoy and the remaining Bruins, the challenge now is moving forward without the heart and soul of the team, although it's not clear if Marchand will think about returning to Boston next summer when he's set to enter free agency.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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