GHS: Boston sports fans can put away the panic button after great weekend
The energy, speed and physicality ramp up in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and so too does the trash talk.
In Game 2 of the Bruins' first-round series against the Panthers, some of that trash talk -- a lot of it, in fact -- got picked up by an ESPN microphone, which was between the benches with analyst Ray Ferraro.
A lot of F-bombs went out over the air in a short period of time, and one player seemingly crossed the line. Keeping this in the politest terms we can, Florida forward Matthew Tkachuk could be heard making a derogatory comment about a female member of Boston forward Tomas Nosek's family.
Brad Marchand was asked about the trash talk and whether Tkachuk has crossed the line this series after the Bruins' Game 4 win on Sunday. Interestingly, Marchand took the question in a different direction, taking issue not with Tkachuk, but with ESPN and other broadcasters who allow on-ice trash talk to be heard on broadcasts.
"I think the NHL and the media outlets have crossed the line by allowing those mics to continue to play and try to go down and listen to what's said on the benches when that's going on," he said. "There's a reason guys don't want mics on the bench and that's why, because they're going to take advantage of it at some point and they did. Regardless of what's said by Tkachuk or by other guys, there should never be an instance where a mic picks up any of that stuff. What's said on the ice and what's said on the benches should be there.
"...The fact that the media outlets allowed that to happen, it's very disrespectful to the agreement we have in place. That's how guys are going to push to get them taken away, to get the guy between the benches out of there. Because it's going to get guys in trouble, and it's not fair and it's not right."
A reporter then followed up and asked Marchand if, despite his reservations about the microphones, he believed Tkachuk had crossed the line.
"That's the thing. There's a lot of things that are said, and a lot of things like what he said, that are said all game long and throughout the year, but you don't pick it up because of the mics," Marchand said. "So I'll go back to, there shouldn't be mics in that situation. So no, that's part of the game."
Marchand certainly has a point about the between-benches mic probably being too invasive in a heated situation like that. ESPN and other broadcasters could and probably should just shut that mic off in those moments.
On the other hand, it's also fair to say that Tkachuk and others probably shouldn't be bringing anyone's mother or wife or girlfriend into their trash-talking. That doesn't seem like too much to ask either.
You can watch the whole hot mic moment between Tkachuk and Nosek below, but warning: It is definitely not safe for work.
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