Grzelcyk, Coyle, Dumoulin share Winter Classic connection to Fenway Park

BOSTON --It was the evening of Matt Grzelcyk's 16th birthday and he was on the ice at Fenway Park.

Not a bad way to celebrate, he figured.
"It was everything you dreamed of as a kid," Grzelcyk said. "It was not that cold out, dark and a light snowfall. Everything just matched up perfectly. We won the game in overtime. It was kind of exactly how you drew it up is what happened."
That game was wild, a 6-5 overtime comeback for Belmont Hill School of Belmont, Massachusetts, on Jan. 5, 2010, when Grzelcyk contributed an assist, four days after the Boston Bruins defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 in overtime in the 2010 NHL Winter Classic on the same rink.
The Bruins defenseman will get another chance to take the ice at Fenway Park, this time as part of the 2023 Discover NHL Winter Classic on Monday (2 p.m. ET; TNT, TVAS, SN) when Boston takes on the Pittsburgh Penguins.
"You see it coming earlier in the year, you get really excited," Grzelcyk said. "We always have really tight matchups with Pittsburgh, too, so that always makes for a fun environment. It's one of those things where people definitely request tickets for that one. That's circled on the calendar before the season even starts."
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Grzelcyk, who grew up in Charlestown, Massachusetts, won't be the only player revisiting 2010 memories when the Bruins and Penguins take the ice Monday. In addition to centers Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci -- the only remaining players from the home team who skated in the 2010 NHL Winter Classic -- another two players got to experience pieces and parts of the rinks in the storied Boston ballpark 13 years ago.
Three days after Grzelcyk played with Belmont Hill at Fenway Park, there was another historic game that took place there. It was the 248th all-time meeting between the Boston College and Boston University hockey teams, this time in an all-new setting, with BU winning 3-2.
Penguins defenseman Brian Dumoulin was there, playing for Boston College, just months into his freshman year. He played there again in 2011, against Northeastern, as Frozen Fenway gained steam.
"First year, I'd say, it was a little more special," Dumoulin said. "It was the first year there had done it. … That one, that was a cool, cool atmosphere. That was a fun one to play in. Second one was great because we won. Both very memorable."
There were also some quirks that Dumoulin recalled, feelings that aren't exactly the typical game day NHL experience.
"You feel like the stands are so far away from you," he said. "You almost don't feel like there's a crowd. You almost feel like it's just you guys out there playing."

Dumoulin said he's looking forward to returning to the ballpark. The native of Biddeford, Maine, visits Fenway Park for a Red Sox game about once a year, so he's no stranger. But he'll be happy to revisit the memories of being there on the ice, this time as an NHL player.
"It will be special," he said. "Obviously a lot of people will be watching. It's a cool atmosphere. It's a cool game to be a part of. I've played in a couple Stadium Series, but Winter Classic seems like a little bit more dramatic. Will be against a good opponent, so should be a lot of fun. Hopefully [the] weather is good."
Bruins center Charlie Coyle, who grew up in East Weymouth, Massachusetts, was a senior in high school when Fenway Park was first taken over by the NHL. He was lucky enough to snag tickets to the event, as was close friend and future Boston teammate Chris Wagner, with whom Coyle played at the time.
And he got to see Bergeron, another future teammate, author a signature moment, passing the puck to Marco Sturm for the overtime winner against the Flyers.
"We had a regular seat, like 200 yards away," Coyle said. "They're like, 'Hey, let's go up on the [Green] Monster. So I just followed along. We snuck up there and it was perfect because it was a great vantage point from there. And that's where 'Bergy' passed to Marco Sturm for the winner, right down there."
The moment remains singed into Coyle's brain. Partly because at that moment, one of the group yelled at the rest to turn around. He can still pull up the picture of himself, his friend and his friend's little brother on top of the Green Monster.
"It was cold as anything," he said. "You knew a bunch of people there. It was so cool to be a part of. And for the Bs to win it, to win in overtime, it was entertaining. It was awesome."

At the same time, Coyle was 17. He wasn't exactly anticipating he might one day get to participate in an NHL outdoor game, which he will do for the third time Monday.
"You think of that stuff and what it would be like if you were out there, yeah," Coyle said. "But do you really know it's going to happen? No. Do you hope one day and try to put work in to try to make that happen, to put yourself in position? Yeah. But it doesn't always work that way.
"But it's pretty cool to think back and say I was up in the stands watching. ... It's pretty special. I know my buddies who I went to the game with then and the people I saw then are probably going to be right back watching again."
NHL.com independent correspondent Wes Crosby contributed to this report