SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Brad Marchand and Tyler Seguin were close friends, both on and off the ice, during their three seasons together on the Boston Bruins.

As rookies, they helped the Bruins win the organization’s first Stanley Cup in 39 years with a dramatic victory over the Vancouver Canucks in 2011. After returning to the finals and losing to the Chicago Blackhawks in 2013, then-Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli decided to trade Seguin to the Dallas Stars as part of a deal for Loui Eriksson, Reilly Smith, Joe Morrow and Matt Fraser.

Part of the reason Seguin was traded away stemmed from off-ice issues that were never fully explained publicly, but were often referenced in sly tones. The fun the entire team enjoyed after its Stanley Cup victory has been well-documented, but that doesn’t set them apart — each of Boston’s 11 championship-winning clubs since 2001 have made the most of their respective achievements.

“The way he was off the ice, I think was blown way out of proportion while he was (playing in Boston),” Marchand said. “When you give that kid, any kid, money at that age and you’re in a city like Boston — nights we went out, we picked our spots and we were pretty good about it, for the most part. So those things got blown way out of proportion.

“The guys in the room, his teammates, we knew what was going on and it wasn’t what the media was portraying. He was a good teammate. A good guy and a good friend off the ice.”

But Seguin is back in the news for all the wrong reasons. This week, Dallas Stars CEO Jim Lites publicly criticized Seguin and teammate Jamie Benn in The Athletic, delivering a lengthy tirade in which he accused the pair of playing like “fucking horseshit.”

Now Marchand, who is preparing to play the Blackhawks in the Winter Classic at Notre Dame Stadium on Tuesday, said he completely disagrees with Lites’ comments.

“There’s a lot more going on there than just to throw their top players under the bus,” Marchand said.

Lites “might’ve lost it a little bit too much there,” added Marchand. “They are two of the top players in the league and have been for a long time. So when you’re looking at a 30-game segment and they don’t put up 50 points in 30 games and you’re losing, I don’t necessarily agree with that.

“They’ve been two of the top players in the league the last four or five years, and you haven’t heard a peep out of (Lites) in that time. It doesn’t take long for those guys to go off (production-wise) and getting 30 points in 20 games and (Lites) won’t say a whole lot then. You can’t expect guys to have their best year every single year. By no means are they having bad years. Compared to what they’ve done it might not be the same.”

Earlier this year, Seguin signed an eight-year contract extension worth $78.8 million and, at the time of Lites’ tirade, the center had 32 points in 38 games. Benn is making $13 million this season, the third-highest salary in the NHL and had 30 points in 38 games when Lites criticized him.

“At the same time, you have every player in the league cracking down on them when they’re playing against them,” Marchand said. “They’re going to get the top (defensive) pairing, the top defensive line every time they’re on the ice.”

The NHLPA condemned Lites’ comments as “both reckless and insulting.”

“If players directed such comments towards management, how would those be regarded?” the union added in a statement. “To say that Jim Lites’ conduct is unprofessional would be a gross understatement. In professional sports, all individual players and teams go through highs and lows, but this is not how professionals handle adversity.”

Marchand has nothing but positive things to say about Seguin.

“He was a good teammate,” Marchand said. “We got along really well, so I like Seggs — a lot. We also had a really good team to keep everyone in check. We had the veterans and the experience in the room and we weren’t falling out of line at any point and time.”

Many Bruins fans still blame Chiarelli for making that deal, and it would be interesting to see what the current Bruins would look like if Seguin stayed. Marchand can’t imagine what it would be like if Seguin were still his teammate.

“He’s a high-end guy, high-end player. Obviously, it would be fun to have him here, but that’s not reality,” Marchand said.

(File photo of Seguin, left, and Marchand: Steve Babineau / Getty Images)