What followed: Marchand went from undersized agitator to elite, complete top-line player, with the points (288 the last three-plus seasons), the All-Star nods (2017, ’18), and the megabucks to prove it (career earnings north of $74 million, per CapFriendly).

The fiery left wing, who debuted as his hard-working centerman was recovering from a two-year struggle with concussions and emerging as a superstar, said it was one of the first tips former coach Claude Julien gave him.

Fifteen years and 1,000 games into a career that could someday end in the Hockey Hall of Fame, Patrice Bergeron is a model for young players in the Bruins organization. Brad Marchand , his partner in crime for close to a decade, may have been the first one the team brass ever advised to Be Like Bergy.


The pair was instrumental in the 2011 Stanley Cup win, likewise a major reason the Bruins have more victories since 2010 (421, entering Tuesday) than all but three other teams (Pittsburgh, Washington, San Jose).

“He’s the best example of a guy where Bergy said, ‘This is how to you have to do things,’ ” general manager Don Sweeney said.

Since Marchand’s Oct. 21, 2009, debut (on a line with Bergeron and Michael Ryder), Bergeron and Marchand have played 604 games together, according to Natural Stat Trick. Including power-play time, they have spent more than 8,299 minutes together on the ice. The Bruins were outscoring opponents, 528-332, and driving close to 60 percent of the shot share. All that, for close to a decade.

“It doesn’t happen often in this game,” Marchand said of the longstanding connection, which was again clicking as the Bergeron odometer reached Game No. 1,000. Marchand assisted on both of Bergeron’s goals in the 3-1 win, and collected the puck on the first.

Entering Tuesday, David Pastrnak (213 games), Reilly Smith (132), Loui Eriksson (129), Tyler Seguin (121), and David Backes (98) had played the most on their right wing. Hall of Famer Mark Recchi, who spent the final two-plus years of his career in Boston, had a significant impact on both players.


Coach Bruce Cassidy noted they are “two different birds,” the outgoing Marchand and the reserved Bergeron.

“I think Marchy . . . a lot of people probably . . . you’d have a different perception of him when he is away from the game,” Bergeron said. “He is obviously a guy that lights up the mood and is always talking. I don’t have to do too much of that, so it’s actually great for that.

“He is entertaining to be around. He is a great guy, a great friend . . . and our families are close. And it has been a long ride. It’s been a lot of years, a lot of things we have been through together. I don’t know, sometimes they say the opposites attract, so I guess that’s what it is.”

Cassidy said it is curious they would connect, “but I just think Marchy has the utmost respect for Bergy and wanted to emulate everything he did, and is still trying to do that.”

Apprised of that comment, Bergeron offered a sheepish smile.

“Who said that?” he said. Told it was his coach, he answered, “I think we are learning from each other. I am also learning as much from him as he’s probably learning from me.”


Marchand believes the friendship will continue well beyond Bergy’s 1,000th, and not only because Bergeron’s contract runs another three years, and his goes another six.

“It’s a pretty incredible achievement,” Marchand said. “He’s still very young to have 1,000 games, and he’s missed a lot, too. . . . He still has lots of games left.

“He’s such a great guy. He gets along with everybody. He makes an effort with everybody to connect and build relationships. With the amount we’ve been together, it’s filtered over off the ice. Mutual respect and friendship.

“We’re not that different behind closed doors. He’s a fun guy, he likes to joke around and have a good time. Just a great person.”

On quite a roll

Pastrnak’s pair of assists gave him a 7-10—17 line in his last 14 games. His touch of the puck on the opening goal was the eighth goal in a row he helped create. The longest streak in team history: nine, achieved by Phil Esposito (1973-74) and Ray Bourque (1993-94) . . . Cassidy altered his defense against the Islanders, pairing his two largest blue liners, Zdeno Chara and Brandon Carlo (combined weight: 462 pounds) against the heavy New York top-liners Anders Lee and Brock Nelson (433 combined). He also created a puck-moving pair of ex-BU Terriers (Matt Grzelcyk and Charlie McAvoy) and an offense-defense combo (Torey Krug and Kevan Miller) Cassidy was planning minor lineup tweaks for the next few games, regardless of Tuesday’s result. “I’ve never been a true believer that if you win, you don’t change the lineup,” he said. That means winger Danton Heinen and defenseman John Moore, both of whom sat for the second game in a row, could return to close the back-to-back on the road Wednesday against the Rangers. . . Jaroslav Halak is likely to start in Manhattan. . . Cassidy said he would consider resting Chara at times down the stretch, though Chara wouldn’t like it . . . The Bruins are planning a “Bergy 1,000” ceremony for Saturday’s matinee against the Los Angeles Kings. Tuesday was Patriots’ Day: Julian Edelman led 25 players and owner Robert Kraft to center ice to bask in the cheers, whereupon the Super Bowl MVP Gronk-spiked the ceremonial puck drop, denying Bergeron a guaranteed faceoff win against Islanders captain Anders Lee . . . After the morning skate in Brighton, a few miles west of Tuesday’s Super Bowl parade, live news footage of the Patriots on their duck boats was playing on a projection screen in the Bruins dressing room. Most of the players who filtered in and out of the room glanced at the screen, some longer than others. Netminder Tuukka Rask, when asked if he had ever attended a Super Bowl parade: “Yeah. Ours.”


Follow Matt Porter on Twitter at @mattyports