The Boston Bruins are making Brad Marchand a priority.
Over the summer, both Marchand's and Bruins' braintrust made it clear they want to reach an extension before the diminutive winger becomes an unrestricted free agent next July 1.
While Marchand is occupied with Team Canada at the World Cup of Hockey for the next few weeks, Bruins president Cam Neely is aiming to reach a deal with last season's leading goal-scorer before the puck drops on the new campaign.
"We'd like to get Brad signed. We've made that clear to him, and we've made that clear to his agency. I know Don (Sweeney) has been working with their group to get a deal done," Neely told CSNNE's Joe Haggerty. "We'd like to get something done before the start of the season."
Marchand notched a career-high 37 goals and 60 points last season, and should be in line for a significant raise from his current cap hit of $4.5 million.
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