Kevin Shattenkirk Excited To Team Up With ‘Special Player’ Brad Marchand

The Boston Bruins signed defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk to a one-year deal Saturday, and he seems happy to join fellow veteran Brad Marchand and the rest of the Black and Gold.

“I’ve always had tremendous respect for him. You see what he does on the ice. He’s an amazing player in that regard,” Shattenkirk told reporters in reference to Marchand, per NBC Sports Boston’s Twitter. “He has the ability to obviously get under your skin verbally and affect you that way, but then he also backs it up when you look at the score sheet at the end of the night.”

The defenseman and former Boston University Terrier went on to describe Marchand’s abilities as both a leader and player. Shattenkirk hopes to help the Bruins left winger in the leadership realm, too, having been in the league since 2010.

“He’s a hard worker, first and foremost. He’s someone who obviously cares about winning. He’s been successful his entire career, and I’m looking forward to finally playing with him because he’s a special player,” Shattenkirk said, per NBC Sports Boston. “I think anything that I can do to help out from a leadership perspective and help him; someone who obviously knows the locker room really well.”

Shattenkirk explained how Marchand was quick to reach out to him after he signed with the Bruins.

“He was one of the first calls that I got after I signed. He was the first one to extend his hand, offering any sort of help that he and his wife could for our family,” Shattenkirk added. “I know how much he means to this organization, and I’m really looking forward to being on the same team as him finally.”