Boston Bruins play-by-play announcer Jack Edwards was in hot water back on Nov. 29 when a clip went viral of him and NESN color commentator Andy Brickley for body shaming Tampa Bay Lightning forward Pat Maroon.
Thursday night will be the first time the two teams have met since Edwards’ comments, and the announcer was spotted in the Lightning dressing room after their morning skate apologizing to Maroon in a private conversation that lasted more than 10 minutes.
Lightning reporter Erik Erlendsson, who snapped the photo, wouldn’t share details of the conversation but said “it’s not exactly going well for Edwards.” The Athletic’s Joe Smith later added the two ended up shaking hands in the end.
Affectionately referred to as “Big Rig” by his teammates, the three-time Stanley Cup champion heard about Edwards’ comments in the dressing room following the game.
“You just don’t talk bad about someone like that for a minute straight, for no reason,” Maroon said at the time. “I get it — if we’re out on the ice and guys are chirping and guys are doing those things, that’s part of hockey. That’s part of it. But someone on national TV when (potentially) millions of listeners are watching or tuned in, and he just basically cut me down. Uncalled for, unnecessary. I don’t understand why he did that.”
Instead of starting a war of words, Maroon instead used the attention in a positive way.
In Edwards’ name, he donated $2,000 to Tampa Bay Thrives, a non-profit dedicated to “assisting those struggling with mental health and substance use issues by providing navigation, access and awareness.” In just a few days, he had raised more than $50,000 for the cause.
The Lightning and the Bruins have shared a relatively recent but bitter rivalry. As two of the best teams in the Eastern Conference over the past few years, meetings between them have always had an extra edge, leading to physical, playoff-intensity hockey in the middle of the regular season.
Tampa has gotten the better of Boston in this new rivalry, winning both the 2018 and 2020 conference semifinals in five games. Boston has won both meetings against Tampa Bay this season, taking the Nov. 29 contest 3-1 after beating them 5-3 a week prior.
The Bruins lead the Atlantic Division — and the NHL — with a staggering 38-5-4 record, sitting 19 points above the Lightning, who are third in the division with 61 points.
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