Chris Wagner was the first Bruins player to speak with reporters following Boston’s victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday.
But before answering the first question asked on his postgame Zoom conference, the right winger wanted to call attention to a local high school senior on their mind.
Bishop Feehan High School senior, A.J. Quetta, suffered a serious spinal cord injury Tuesday and underwent surgery Wednesday after crashing headfirst into the boards during a game.
After the Bruins 4-1 win, they team gave him the game puck.
The Massachusetts hockey community has rallied around Quetta and his family with a GoFundMe campaign, and the Boston Bruins are getting in on the cause by donating at least $100,000 to his recovery.
“We’re all praying for A.J. Way bigger than hockey. Such a freak accident,” Wagner said. “Our team is really thinking about him, his family, anyone affected. Really, just think how fragile our careers are, and you know, life is. We just want to say, we know we’re praying for him.”
The Bruins will be auctioning off certain game-used sticks from players on both teams Thursday night for the cause, and will be donating future proceeds of a 50/50 raffle.
“We want to support him,” Brad Marchand said after the game. “It’s a very tough thing to see … can’t imagine what the family is going through.”
Marchand hung up a No. 10 Shamrocks sweater in honor of Quetta behind the Bruins bench before the game.
Maybe it brought them some luck in the victory.
