Brian Dumoulin has played at Fenway Park twice with Boston College, as a freshman in 2010 and again as a junior in 2012. They are lifetime memories for the Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman, but he’s hoping his next experience at the Boston Red Sox old ballpark will be even better. .
Dumoulin will be back at Fenway Park for another hockey game when the Penguins play the Boston Bruins in the 2023 Discover NHL Winter Classic on Jan. 2 (2 p.m. ET; TNT, SN, TVAS).
Dumoulin, who lives in Boston in the offseason, spoke about what he expects the experience to be like during an appearance on the “NHL @TheRink” podcast Wednesday.
“Obviously, we didn’t have this big buildup in college, I don’t think we had a practice or a family skate or anything like that,” the 31-year-old said. “I think that will be one of the coolest moments, being able to practice out there and enjoy that day because when you’re playing, you’re so focused you don’t even know your surroundings, you don’t even know the atmosphere you’re playing in.”
When asked to give his dream scenario for the Winter Classic, the one he would love to tell his grandkids years from now, Dumoulin had a very simple answer.
“I don’t care about the situation or anything, just winning, that’s the only thing I care about,” he said. “I know that’s a boring answer, but that’s one of the biggest disappointments. When I first played at Fenway against BU we lost that game (3-2) and I remember that being a disappointment. So that’s the only thing I care about. I don’t need to score, I don’t need to do anything, I just want to win.”
Dumoulin also told co-hosts Dan Rosen and Shawn P. Roarke about how the Penguins overcame their seven-game losing streak earlier in the season, the challenges of playing in the Metropolitan Division, and what makes Mike Sullivan a successful coach and Sidney Crosby one of the greatest players in NHL history.
In addition, Rosen and Roarke were joined by NHL.com staff writer Mike G. Morreale to discuss the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, which begins Monday in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Moncton, New Brunswick.
Morreale, co-host of the “NHL Draft Class” podcast, broke down the United States and Canada, and discussed the impact of Russian players not being allowed to compete in the tournament.
Rosen and Roarke also talked about the Colorado Avalanche and why they’re winning despite injuries to key players, including center. Nathan MacKinnonand what the Carolina Hurricanes should do about their goaltending situation.
The “NHL @TheRink” podcast is free and listeners can subscribe on all podcast platforms. It is
Also available on NHL.com/multimedia/podcasts and the NHL app.
—
Listen: New episode of NHL @The Rink
.