Matt Grzelcyk, a Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman, has only known Boston.
He was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts, and grew up as a die-hard Bruins fan. He played collegiate hockey at Boston University and even captained the Terriers in his senior year. Grzelcyk was picked by his local team and spent eight seasons with the Bruins.
The defenceman signed a one-year, $2.75 million contract with the Penguins on July 1, after spending his whole career with the Bruins. Grzelcyk will begin a new chapter in his life in a new city.
“I’ve known nothing else besides being a Bruin,” Grzelcyk told Kevin Paul Dupont of The Boston Globe. “I guess it comes in waves now. You have to meet new people, find a new place to live, and you realize, ‘Wow, you really can’t take some things for granted.’ “Just the little things you didn’t even notice.”
The 30-year-old realized the “writing was kind of on the wall” when the Bruins showed little interest in him when his four-year contract expired.
Grzelcyk, on the other hand, is excited about the new chance and the prospect of making new acquaintances in a different place.
“The unknown of it is really something I’m excited about,” Grzelcyk told reporters. “And with it comes the task of determining whether I’m going to sink or swim. Not because my back is against the wall, but I simply want to come in and prove myself right from the start. You know, when you’re in one area for a long time, you get, I don’t know the perfect term, whether it’s comfy or, yeah, stale, but now I’ll be walking into a room, not knowing who’s there, not knowing where anything is. You must be on top of your game, whether for practice or a game.
The defenceman appeared in 445 games for the Bruins and scored 135 points, including 25 goals and 110 assists. Grzelcyk averaged 18:03 minutes of ice time and was a regular presence for Boston across his eight seasons.
