The Boston Bruins took home another win Sunday night. But this one carried just a tad more importance.
The Bruins defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2023 NHL Winter Classic at Fenway Park, scoring a pair of goals off the stick of Jake DeBrusk in the third period to secure yet another come-from-behind victory.
The third period was a dominant effort from Boston, who totally flipped the script after a pair of subpar periods to kick off a night at the Fens. So how’d they do it? Well, they got a little pep talk from an emerging verbal leader in Nick Foligno — who reminded the B’s of how special the opportunity in front of them truly was.
“These are moments that I think you look back on and talking to Bergy (Patrice Bergeron) and the guys that have played, you only remember the ones you win,” Foligno told reporters postgame. “So I think that was the talk. It’s just ‘We jut got to find a way to win this one. It’s going to make it that much better.’ I was proud of the guys for taking it in.
“JD (Jake DeBrusk), obviously, comes up huge and I thought Linus (Ullmark) was outstanding. It’s not easy to track pucks. So I thought just everybody dialed in for that third period, found a way to win and now I’ll look back on this as one of the best memories of my career. Hopefully we got a few more down the road here coming up in the spring. This is definitely amazing and just to be able to experience this with out home crowd, Boston fans never disappoint.”
Foligno’s emergence as a leader this season has been one of the many storylines that helps explain the Bruins’ fast start. After signing a two-year deal with Boston ahead of the 2021-22 season, the start to his Bruins career was rocky at best. The 35-year-old scored just two goals and 13 points all season, leaving many wondering whether or not the Bruins would consider cutting him loose.
They didn’t, which is looking more the right decision with each passing day.
Not only has Foligno already eclipsed his goal and point totals from last season, but he’s become the ultimate glue guy in Boston. That’s not surprising considering he was the Columbus Blue Jackets’ captain for six seasons, but has been a blessing for the Black and Gold, nonetheless.
“Uncle Nick” as he is now known has done a little bit of everything for the Bruins. Whether it be scoring game-winning goals, providing meals for young teammates or filling in on the goalie hug during injuries — Foligno has been nothing short of tremendous in each role he’s played. The Winter Classic was no different.
