Nikita Zadorov didn't wait long, and Marco Sturm now has a playoff team backing him.

Boston locked up a postseason spot at 45-27-10, which made Brad Marchand's line about missing the playoffs looking even louder on Thursday.

That's why Zadorov's pushback landed.

Marchand had said a season without playoff hockey felt like a waste, and the Bruins defenseman clearly wasn't buying the message.

It hit because of who said it.

Marchand is one of the biggest names tied to Boston's recent standard, so any public shot at the Bruins was always going to get replayed in their room.

The clip shows Zadorov leaning into the moment with a smirk and a sharp answer, not a throwaway line, and that's what turned it from chatter into a Bruins storyline.

Boston earned the right to answer back.

The Bruins finished with 100 points and closed the regular season on a 2-game streak, which gave Sturm a strong first playoff push behind the bench.

Bruins clinch playoff spot, and Nikita Zadorov wastes no time firing at Brad Marchand

Zadorov isn't some extra voice on the blue line, either.

He played 81 games and stayed in the middle of Boston's identity from October through April.

His stat line won't drive the headline, but it adds weight to the comment.

Zadorov finished with 22 points and a +18 rating, which tells you he was on the ice for plenty of good Bruins minutes.

Then there's the edge piece.

He piled up 152 penalty minutes, and that number fits the way he talks when the temperature rises around this team.

That's the real angle here.

Boston didn't just sneak in and ignore the noise.

One of its most outspoken defensemen used the clinch to throw the conversation right back at Marchand.

Inside a locker room, players notice that stuff.

They remember who took the Bruins lightly, who talked about them from the outside, and who gave them extra fuel before the playoff grind starts.

Sturm now heads into the postseason with a group that looks connected, irritated, and fully aware of the opening in front of it.

That's not a bad mix for a team nobody wants to hand momentum to.

Zadorov's comment won't win a round on its own.

But it did something useful for Boston on the eve of playoff hockey: it sharpened the mood and reminded everyone the Bruins still think they belong in this fight.