New Brad Marchand Comments Could Be Tipping His Hand on Free Agency

To say that the deadline deal that brought in veteran Brad Marchand from the Boston Bruins was a good one for the Florida Panthers is, shall we say, an understatement. After scoring the double-overtime winner in Game 2 to tie the Stanley Cup Finals at a game apiece, the 37-year-old now has 17 points in 19 playoff games, with a plus/minus rating of +14.

He'll be an unrestricted free agent at season's end, and he just keeps driving up his price—and likely the number of suitors. But after being such a great fit on the Panthers, he's obviously giving a lot of thought to staying in Florida.

And as Greg Wyshynski writes in ESPN, Marchand's recent comments about the lack of state taxes in Florida certainly indicate that he's leaning towards potentially re-signing there.

There are teams where that absolutely matters. It doesn't matter for every player, but when you're dealing with guys that have a choice between multiple teams, it absolutely plays a part. If you have two teams that are offering the same contract, you're going to pick the team with less tax.

Has he thought about staying in Florida, then?

"Yeah, I've thought about it. But we'll deal with that in the future," Marchand said, insisting (and proving on the ice) that all his focus right now is on the Stanley Cup Finals.

Marchand notched 23 goals and 51 points in the regular season, and while the Bruins weren't interested in paying up for him to stay with the team, it sounds like he'll do just fine as a free agent. An $8 million AAV is looking like a reasonable projection for him on his next deal, which would be the highest paycheck of his 16-year career.

He's fit like a glove on the Panthers, but we also had a look at a couple of other teams that might make sense for Marchand if he wants to look around in free agency.