Brad Marchand makes brutal comments on his departure from Boston.

These Stanley Cup playoffs have no doubt been bittersweet for fans of the Boston Bruins who have watched their former captain, Brad Marchand, advance to the Stanley Cup Final. Marchand has of course done so with a bitter Bruins rival, the Florida Panthers, after Bruins general manager surprised many with the decision to trade Marchand ahead of this year's National Hockey League trade deadline.

The Bruins secured a first round pick when Marchand and the Panthers advanced to the Eastern Conference Final, something that will likely soften the blow, but Marchand's most recent comments about his departure might open up old wounds once again. Marchand recently revealed that he had hoped to secure a new contract before this season, and was stunned by how negotiations with the Bruins had transpired.

"I didn’t really expect to have the contract negotiations that I had," said Marchand as per NHL.com. "I thought that was going to go a lot different, which obviously I think impacted me mentally this year a lot. And I was frustrated by it. I never pictured even entering the season without a contract."

There is a good reason Marchand didn't expect negotiations to go so badly with the Bruins with the now former captain of the Boston Bruins revealing that he was once again willing to take a hometown discount to remain in Boston.

"I didn’t really want to play contract years out because I never really wanted to have that stress," admitted Marchand. "I always wanted the security of maybe take a little less and you get a deal done early and you have the security of it being done and you can just worry about playing hockey."

Marchand would even admit that, at least for him, going into a contract year without a contract has a negative psychological impact on his game.

"I find when you go into a season playing (without a contract), things matter. Your stats matter more. So, it doesn’t just become about the team," admitted Marchand. "When you’re on term and you’re on a contract, it can be all about the team and you can sacrifice whatever you need to to be part of the team. But in contract years, you can’t do that. You have to be a little bit selfish."

It will no doubt sting for fans in Boston to hear just how badly Marchand wanted a new deal and wanted to remain in Boston, a sting that could be made all that much worse if the man who captained their franchise this season hoists the Stanley Cup with a bitter rival instead.