Bruins name Brad Marchand captain, succeeding Patrice Bergeron - ESPN

Brad Marchand might still be the «Little Ball of Hate», but he now has another title: Captain of the Boston Bruins.

The Bruins announced Tuesday that the 35-year-old Marchand, who has spent his entire career with the club, has been named the 27th captain in franchise history ahead of the 2023-24 season.

«I am extremely proud of Brad and the hockey player he has become,» Bruins CEO Charlie Jacobs said in a statement. «Brad has been a Bruin for over 15 years and had the opportunity to learn from great leaders in Zdeno Chara and Patrice Bergeron. He is ready for this opportunity and our whole team will learn from his competitive nature and tenacity. I am confident he will represent our organization with heart and grit.»

Marchand finished second on the Bruins in scoring last season with 67 points in 73 games.

An alternate captain for the last five seasons, Marchand was long believed to be among the candidates, if not, the front runner to be named the Bruins next captain. The Bruins were in search of a new player to wear the 'C' following Bergeron's retirement at the end of the 2022-23 season.

Bergeron, who also spent his entire career with the Bruins, was an alternate captain for more than a decade until he was named captain at the start of the 2021-22 season. The decision to name Bergeron captain came after Chara, who captained the Bruins' Stanley Cup team in 2011, left the club following the 2019-20 season after captaining the team for 14 seasons.

One of the ways the Bruins announced the news was to release a video on social media that shows a pair of hands stitching the 'C' onto home sweater the club will wear in honor of their 100th anniversary. Eventually, the video shows Marchand putting on the sweater before looking