NHLPA Poll: Players still hate playing against Brad Marchand, but wouldn't mind him on their team

BOSTON -- It's no fun playing against Brad Marchand. NHL players have made that clear for the second straight year.

But that doesn't mean they wouldn't mind sharing the ice with the Bruins forward.

That comes according to the annual NHLPA poll. For the second straight season, Marchand has been voted the player that his NHL compatriots least enjoy playing against -- but would like to have on their team. 

Of the 626 NHL players that participated in the poll, 36.5 percent of them voted for Marchand. That's up from the 26.4 percent of the vote that Marchand received in 2022, when 566 players were polled by the NHLPA.

"For the second straight year, the players would much prefer to see Brad Marchand sporting their colours, rather than having to face the Bruins forward who often finds his way into the middle of the action," this year's poll read.

Edmonton's Connor McDavid, who leads the NHL with 58 goals and 78 assists this season, was second with 15.6 percent of the vote while Washington's Tom Wilson was third at 8.1 percent, rounding out the same top three as last year.

Only one other Bruins player made an appearance in the poll: Captain Patrice Bergeron. 

Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby was voted the "Most Complete" player in the NHL, receiving 30.1 percent of the vote, but Bergeron came in second with 18.8 percent of the vote. Bergeron is in the top three of that category for the fourth straight year.

Bergeron also received 1.5 percent of the vote for "most impactful" forward in a must-win game.