Adam Fantilli Recalls Bruins, Tyler Seguin Memory Before Face-Off

The tradition of players from the championship-winning team taking the Stanley Cup to their local communities is one of the best in sports, and former Boston Bruins forward Tyler Seguin witnessed that firsthand Thursday night.

When Seguin was getting ready to take on Adam Fantilli on a face-off, the Columbus Blue Jackets rookie had a quick message for the Dallas Stars center.

“Hey, I was in Toronto when you brought the Cup to Westwood,” Fantilli told Seguin, per Bleacher Report.

“How old were you?” Seguin asked.

The two forwards both are from Ontario, and Fantilli was six years old when the Bruins won the Stanley Cup in 2011 and when Seguin brought the Cup to his home province.

It’s a touching story to hear how inspired Fantilli was to see Seguin bring the Cup to Ontario, but the former Bruin only is 31 years old, which highlighted how young the new crop of stars in the NHL is. It’s like how Charlie Coyle watched the Bruins play in the Winter Classic growing up and then played in the Winter Classic while wearing the Spoked B.

It’s not clear if Fantilli meant to throw an indirect shot at Seguin or if the 19-year-old simply wanted to pass off a simple message during a game. Fantilli did end up winning the face-off encounter, but the Stars beat the Blue Jackets, 5-2.

The Bruins will hope to win their first Stanley Cup since 2011 this season. Boston will continue that path Saturday when it takes on the Montreal Canadiens. Puck drop at Bell Centre is scheduled at 7 p.m. ET, and you can catch full coverage on NESN starting at 6 p.m.