SvoNotes: Sweezey's NHL dream comes true as he returns home to Boston

When the Blue Jackets take to the ice tomorrow in Boston, it probably won't be hard to find Billy Sweezey's cheering section.
The CBJ defenseman was recalled this week to take the injured Nick Blankenburg's spot in the lineup, and it's a fortuitous bit of chance that the Jackets will play in Boston tomorrow night.

Sweezey hails from Hanson, Mass., about 40 minutes south of Boston, and as such, Sweezey expects to have plenty of friends and family -- 30 or 40 people, in all -- in TD Garden when the puck drops tomorrow night.
"I might be paying to play," he joked considering how many tickets he'll have to procure for the game.
The good news is his father, Ken, is in charge of getting the tickets taken care of, so all Sweezey has to worry about is playing. His goal will be to treat it like any other game, even if it clearly won't be for someone who grew up with season tickets in TD Garden.
"It's obviously really special for me," Sweezey said. "I'm really excited. I'm trying to attack it as another game, obviously. I don't want to have too much swirling around in my head."
How hard will that be?
"Very hard," he said with a laugh. "I have everyone that I've ever met that lives in my hometown texting me. But that's cool. You only get to play here for the first time once. Hopefully there's more after this, but it's going to be a great day."
Any day to be in the NHL is a great one for Sweezey, who made his NHL debut earlier this year at Minnesota at age 27 and played just his second game last night against the Rangers. He took the long road to the world's best league, working his way through junior leagues, college hockey at Yale, and then the minors. He earned a CBJ contract last March after impressing with AHL Cleveland, and his continued solid play has kept him on the Jackets' radar.
Last night in New York, Sweezey played 18:43 and dished out three hits, which is the calling card of his game.
"There's some stuff to learn, but he's come as advertised," head coach Brad Larsen said. "He's a physical presence. He plays hard between the whistles. He has a really neat personality, too. He's very energized on the bench. He's very focused on it, as far as, he's plugged in, let's put it that way. I thought he had a pretty solid game. He's a very simple player. He's gonna move the puck, get it moving north, but I love his physical presence."
But perhaps most notable about Sweezey is his personality in the locker room. He's become a favorite of teammates in Cleveland because of his energetic personality as well as his willingness to do anything for the team both in the room and on the ice.
It all was encapsulated when Sweezey earned his first callup to the Blue Jackets in November. When the Cleveland coaching staff announced the news, Sweezey's teammates dogpiled on him in the locker room to celebrate.
"That was great," Sweezey said. "It's something we talk about down there is being happy for your teammates. I think that's a big part of the culture down there, which is huge. But that was probably the most emotional 10 minutes of my life. I was bawling my eyes out when every guy came up and hugged me. The whole team mobbed me. That was probably the peak for sure. I appreciate the guys for embracing it like that."
For someone like Larsen, who played his fair share of minor league hockey and also coached in the AHL, seeing someone like Sweezey have success is one of the rewarding parts of the job.
"I know exactly why they love him," he said of Sweezey's teammates. "I can tell you right now. Even in practice, he's energized. He loves to be on the ice, he loves to compete, he loves to play. There was a video when he got called up the first time and his teammates mobbed him. It's for all the right reasons. That doesn't happen by accident.
"I think the way he plays the game, it's a selfless game. It's for his teammates, and he brings that energy behind it. Those are qualities that are getting harder and harder to find at times, and he brings it every night. Even as simple as his game is, they appreciate what he does."
As Larsen said, Sweezey's game isn't based on offense, as he's posted four goals, 26 points and 202 penalty minutes in 144 AHL games. He's dropped the gloves four times this season with the Monsters, perhaps fitting given what he said was his favorite memory of growing up going to games in Boston.
"I was really young, but they played Dallas here at home and my dad and I were at the game," Sweezey said. "There were three fights before a second ran off the clock, all right off the opening puck drop. That maybe says a little bit about me."
Add it all up and Sweezey was described by the most Boston person ever by fellow New Englander Gavin Bayreuther.
"That's a huge compliment from Gav," Sweezey said. "I really take that to heart. I appreciate that. I'm gonna go give him a hug after that for sure."

Gillies The Goalie

The Blue Jackets have used four goaltenders this year in Elvis Merzlikins, Joonas Korpisalo, Daniil Tarasov and Michael Hutchinson.
That's not that out of the ordinary in team history, as Columbus has used at least four goalies in eight of the team's 22 seasons. Only twice, though, has the team gotten to five goalies (2008-09 and 2006-07), but that's on the table as the Blue Jackets come down the stretch here.
Merzlikins is currently out with a lower-body injury, Korpisalo has been traded to Los Angeles and Tarasov has been sent down to the minors. Hutchinson got the start last night in Madison Square Garden and was backed up by Jon Gillies, who was added at the trade deadline in a prescient move to add to the CBJ goaltending depth.
Gillies starred at Providence College and has 32 NHL games under his belt with Calgary (who drafted him in the third round in 2012), St. Louis and New Jersey. The 29-year-old has played just 15 games this year, though, all with Tucson of the AHL and none since Jan. 16.
Much like Hutchinson, he's reached the point in his career where he's bounced around quite a bit. In addition to his four NHL homes now, he's suited up for six different AHL teams as well as an ECHL team. Last year, he played for five different squads -- two in in the NHL, two in the AHL and one in the ECHL -- and now he's in his second different organization this year.
"I tell you what, there's been a lot of it the past two years, more so than I ever thought I'd have in my hockey career," he said of moving around. "For someone like me, I'm pretty shy by nature and I don't talk a whole lot, so I've had to get out of my comfort zone that way."
Gillies comes from a line of goalies, as his father Bruce played at the University of New Hampshire and had a short pro career, his uncle Chris played at the University of Denver, and his grandfather Bruce played at Norwich University.
"We're all crazy, I guess," Jon said. "We all want to stand there and get hit. I don't know how smart it is."
As someone who has played just 15 games all season, Gillies admits it's been a difficult campaign, and he's tried to grow from it. His return to the NHL probably couldn't have come at a better place, as he knows Sean Kuraly and Johnny Gaudreau from previous stops, and he shares a goaltending coach with Hutchinson and has watched the netminder since his younger days.
Also, one unique thing about Gillies -- his family owns a trucking company, so he's spent his fair share of time behind the wheel. As a result, when it came time for him to make the journey from Arizona to Ohio, he hit the open road.
"If you would know me at all, that wouldn't surprise you," he said. "I drive more than probably anybody you'll ever met. I'm good at it, I enjoy it, and I hate flying."