Local boy Frank Vatrano excited for Winter Classic opportunity
FOXBORO – Gillette Stadium is about a 90-minute drive from Frank Vatrano’s hometown of East Longmeadow, Mass. So when the puck drops at 1 p.m. ET on Friday for the 2016 Winter Classic, seven of the 21-year old’s family and friends will be in attendance.
“It’s a pretty cool and pretty surreal feeling,” said Vatrano, one of four Massachusetts-born players in the game. “I’m excited to get out there tomorrow.”
Despite the proximity to the home of the New England Patriots, Vatrano wasn’t the biggest football fan growing up. He loves all Boston sports, so he rooted for them to do well, especially as they marched toward three Super Bowl titles in the early 2000s.
Vatrano introduced himself in fine fashion to the Bruins faithful on Nov. 7 when he scored his first NHL in his first game to give Boston a 2-1 lead over the Canadiens. Since then, he’s been able to stick with the big club and contribute, like his first career hat trick during a 6-2 win over Pittsburgh two weeks ago. His presence in the lineup has been helpful as the team deals with injuries to their forward group.
Following two years at the UMass-Amherst, Vatrano ended last season in Providence of the AHL. Attending Bruins training camp helped him when he went back down. He said he’s not entirely comfortable yet, but he feels more relaxed out on the ice.
“I thought maybe if I had a good year a couple years down the road there’d be an opportunity for me,” Vatrano said, “but things happened a lot quicker than I expected and I couldn’t have wished it any better. It’s awesome to be here and it’s a good opportunity for me. You can’t take it for granted.”
Vatrano has spent most of his time with the Bruins alongside Jimmy Hayes and Ryan Spooner. But no matter where head coach Claude Julien puts him, he’s been focused on not changing a thing.
“It’s just been keeping things simple and just playing my game,” Vatrano said. “Just because I’m playing with certain guys or on a certain line doesn’t mean I need to change the way I play. The way I played down in the [AHL] is what got me here, so I can’t change that and have got to be working hard in all areas of the game.”
Like all Winter Classics, beyond all the attention the game is given and beyond the pomp and circumstance, two points are at stake and the Bruins, who still have three games in hand, can leap-frog the Canadiens with a win.
“It’s something we can’t look past. It’s a big game, playing for first place, playing for those points,” Vatrano said. “With it being the Winter Classic, it makes it a bigger stage than what it would be if we played in Boston or Montreal. I think everyone’s ready for the challenge.”
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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Sean_Leahy
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