Brad Marchand has an insatiable taste for playoff hockey.
The Bruins forward was once again spotted licking an opponent, this time during Friday's Game 4 in Boston. His latest subject of affection was Tampa Bay Lightning forward Ryan Callahan, and Marchand got his money's worth this time around.
— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) May 5, 2018
The incident came in the wake of a controversial hit thrown by Marchand just a few seconds earlier. Marchand, who has a history of low-bridging, went low on Callahan in a play along the boards.
Here’s the Marchand hit on Callahan pic.twitter.com/jfRFlKwZVH
— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) May 5, 2018
It's up for you to decide whether it was clean or not, but officials didn't call a penalty. This greatly displeased Callahan and the rest of the Lightning bench (Tampa Bay coach Jon Cooper called it "the type of hit that ends careers"); Callahan tried to confront the Bruins winger, and he got a mouthful. Literally.
It's not the first time Marchand has used this tactic in the playoffs, either. During Boston's first-round series against the Maple Leafs, he tongued Leo Komarov's neck. There were some reports that Marchand received a call from the league telling him to stop licking opponents, but Marchand denied such a thing happened.
False
— Brad Marchand (@Bmarch63) April 27, 2018
Well, now we have a reason to believe he was telling the truth. It'll be interesting to see if that call comes now.