Tom Fitzgerald is the Former Bruin and Billerica Native Named Predators First Captain in 1998

by Douglas Saffir on Sat, Feb 11, 2012 at 4:38PM

The Predators visited the Bruins on Saturday, and for one Boston native, the match up is a curious conflict of interest.

Tom Fitzgerald played for the Predators when they were founded in 1998, and was named the first captain for Nashville. Being a part of the franchise's history has to compel him to cheer on the Predators.

But he also has plenty of ties to the Boston area. Not only did he play two seasons with the Bruins, but Fitzgerald also grew up in the area. He is a Billerica native and attended Austin Prep and Providence College, playing hockey for both.

Fitzgerald also worked for NESN as an analyst after retiring from the NHL in 2006. He stayed until 2007 when the Penguins hired him.

He still works for Pittsburgh as an assistant to the general manager, but with a lot of ties to Saturday's Bruins game, he'll probably look away from his work for a few minutes to catch the action.

Photo via Twitter/@pghpenguins