Toronto radio host Bryan Hayes named former Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand as the biggest villain in Maple Leafs history during a recent segment on OverDrive. As a long-time tormentor of the Toronto teams, Hayes believes there’s no statute of limitations on Marchand's behavior toward the organization and likens his ability to play against the Maple Leafs to 'playing this market like a fiddle.'
'Absolutely, Brad Marchand is number one,' Hayes said. ‘Marchand licked people. There’s no statute of limitations on that. And the guy is, what is he, 5-0 in Game 7s against the Maple Leafs? They know how to defend. Really, he plays this market like a fiddle. He does it better than anybody else.’
In addition to his long history of playoff dominance against the Maple Leafs, Marchand has scored more career playoff points against the team than any other player, with 37 points (13 goals, 24 assists) across 35 games.
‘They asked of all time, and like I don’t know all time. I just went in this last little bucket of years, and I picked Sam Bennett,’ Siegel said, pushing back against the notion that Marchand was the top villain, suggesting he favored a younger target instead due to his current unpopularity among fans.
Marchand has been dominant in elimination games as well, going a perfect 5-0 in Game 7s against the Leafs with 10 points after scoring five times during his last five matchups with them. His presence and actions have not gone unnoticed by the team he now competes against, with Florida Panthers general manager Bill Guerin saying: 'Brad's a little troublemaker - he enjoys it and does so well at it.'
