Frustrated Pat Maroon Pushes Back On Bruins-Panthers ‘Narrative’

Game 4 of the Bruins-Panthers second-round Stanley Cup playoff series was tailored to the services of a player like Pat Maroon.

Maroon, a three-time champion and one of the NHL’s toughest customers, was widely expected to be involved in Boston’s retaliation for Sam Bennett’s hit on Brad Marchand. Marchand on Friday sustained an upper-body injury from a cheap shot by Bennett, whose arguably dirty actions forced Boston’s captain to miss Sunday night’s tilt at TD Garden.

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Maroon was actively looking for a dance partner in Game 4, but no Panther took the bait. Instead, Florida found a new way to rattle Boston and secured a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven set.

The 36-year-old Maroon knew all eyes were going to be on him Sunday night, and on Monday, he issued a response to critics who believe he hasn’t done enough in this series.

“I’m sure everyone’s wondering why I haven’t done anything,” Maroon told reporters, per an NBC Sports Boston video. “I’ll sit here and say it’s not like I haven’t tried or I don’t want to do anything. I love my captain, I love the guys. Trust me, it’s a tough business and everyone’s looking at me to do something. Fortunately, I tried. I am trying. We can’t really focus on that. It’s over, it’s done with. We got to focus on winning a hockey game now.”

Maroon added: “It’s frustrating that you guys are trying to do a narrative right now for (expletive) nothing, to be honest. Like, we got to win a (expletive) hockey game. That’s what it comes down to. We have to turn the page. We got to find a way. You can sit here and say I’m not doing my job. Maybe, maybe I’m not. But like I said before, I’m damned if I do, I’m damned if I don’t. I don’t want to put my team in jeopardy. I don’t want to take a suspension. I don’t want to put my team on a penalty kill. I’m doing everything I can. So, we can sit here and say I’m not. Maybe I’m not. But I talked to my captain, I talked to the guys in that locker room. They know and they know that I care. That’s the most important thing.”

Maroon is right. The Bruins can’t afford to dwell on missed opportunities or lament parts of the game that didn’t go their way. Boston is on the brink of elimination, and it needs to do everything it can to leave Florida with a win Tuesday night.

The Atlantic Division rivals will drop the puck for Game 5 at 7 p.m. ET.