Boston’s nearly 20-year contention window — ushered in by the likes of Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara — has been rooted in a stable leadership group, with the captaincy passed from Chara to Bergeron and Marchand since the start of the 2006-07 season.

David Pastrnak is the obvious choice to replace Brad Marchand as Boston Bruins captain, but now he's made some surprise comments on his desire to take the role.

While the former Bruins captain is still weeks away from returning to game action following an upper-body injury, Marchand is starting to ingratiate himself to his new teammates days after Boston dealt him to one of their most-loathed rivals.

The uncomfortable reality of Marchand and Boston being separate entities was inevitable after the team fell short a couple of years ago.

Brad Marchand skated on the ice at TD Garden for the first time since he was traded from the Bruins to the Panthers. "It still felt weird," he said of the practice skate.

After suiting up 1,247 times (including playoffs) in Black and Gold, Marchand took his first twirls in his new colors — those of the Florida Panthers — and noted the “mourning” that comes with moving on from an organization that has been part of his life since the June 2006 draft.