Panthers Forward Uninterested in Retirement Talk

Naturally, the question comes up for media personalities when a player 35 years of age and older wins Lord Stanley, because the ultimate goal is to achieve the pinnacle of NHL hockey, and what better way to ride off into the sunset than with a shiny Stanley Cup ring around your finger? 

While that’s all fine and dandy, Marchand is a gamer, and that never went unnoticed during his time with the Boston Bruins, and it doesn’t appear to have withered away with the Panthers either.

The Nova Scotian has never been the biggest dog in the fight, or the fastest or toughest, but his unwavering intensity and penchant for getting under opponents' skin between, and often after whistles, is still right there with the league’s top pests. 

But Marchand isn’t solely an agitator; he is one of the fiercest competitors in the NHL today, and he has the skills to back up all of the pleasantries he has become known for.

It isn’t a foreign concept for players to play beyond 35, though there are fewer players that do it than ones who don’t, it still creeps up into interviewers' repertoire of questions.

However, Marchand shut it down the only way that he knows how: with blunt honesty and sharp but precise words blended with his signature sense of humour.

You can’t blame the guy either, when you consider that he hasn’t slowed with age, but rather continued to defy ‘father time’ and continue producing and irritating the opposition, much like he did as a young guy breaking into the league, though the hairs might be a more pronounced color of gray now.

In 2024-25, Marchand had a strong regular season, posting 21 goals and 26 assists in 61 games with the Boston Bruins. After joining the Panthers to finish the year, he played 10 games, scoring two goals and two assists.

However, his monster playoff performance solidified that Marchand is still a performer despite being past his prime years, regardless of what time of year it is. His 10-10-20 totals through 23 games were a huge reason for the Panthers' success.

Marchand's diehard player’s player approach has continued to serve him well, both on the ice and certainly in the dressing room with his teammates.

It seems as safe a bet as any that Marchand will play out his contract, and perhaps into his mid-forties.