Fabian Lysell’s Saturday plans got changed very quickly.
The Boston Bruins top prospect was called up from Providence hours before puck drop. It was an unexpected turn of events for Lysell, who had family in town for Christmas and were able to take in the game.
“I woke up (Saturday) morning, didn’t think of this, and then you get a call and you’re up here so it’s just unbelievable and definitely special for me and my family and everybody that’s helped me along the way,” Lysell told reporters following Boston’s 4-0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. “My whole family’s here. They came down for Christmas and they were actually going to go home I think tomorrow so it turned out well.”
Lysell’s first NHL game got off to a strong start on his first shift when he played a big role in Justin Brazeau’s opening goal 2:29 into the game. While he didn’t get an assist on the play, he was able to make enough of a presence and handled the puck well.
It wasn’t a perfect debut and Lysell made some mistakes like when he got the puck taken from him in the second period. But overall he helped provide a little speed to the third line alongside Trent Frederic and Brazeau.
“I thought he handled himself well. It’s obviously an exciting night for him, his family. He was on the ice for the first goal, which is always a good feeling,” interim coach Joe Sacco told reporters. “And then, he did some good things. He was very responsible. He was trying to be very responsible away from the puck. You could see he was making a conscious effort to be good without the puck, and those are the things that he needs to continue to build into his game. But I thought that he handled himself fine here tonight for his first game.”
Lysell has been close to making the Bruins roster out of training camp the last two seasons. He began the season in the AHL and amassed 17 points in 26 games — including 13 in his last 15 games.
It’s possible Lysell can carve out a permanent spot for himself in the lineup after making a solid debut. And while he didn’t show up on the stat sheet, he still found ways to help impact the game.
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