Chris Kelly Happy For Red Sox, Impressed By Boston Fans' Devotion
BOSTON (CBS) -- Chris Kelly spent much of his first 30 years of life in Canada. He grew up in Ontario, played junior hockey in the same province, and after spending some time in Michigan and New York in the AHL, he spent his entire NHL career with the Ottawa Senators. But he was traded to the Boston Bruins in 2011, and he's come to gain an understanding and appreciation of the city of Boston.
After winning the Stanley Cup in 2011, Kelly fondly remembers the opportunity he and his teammates had to celebrate with the Red Sox at Fenway Park. And with the Red Sox winning the World Series this week, Kelly was sure to wear championship gear following the Bruins' 3-2 shootout win at the TD Garden on Thursday night.
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Kelly said he was excited to see the World Series trophy inside the Garden on Thursday.
"I noticed it right away. It's awesome," Kelly said. "I wouldn't mind getting a picture with it. Unfortunately we missed that game [Wednesday] night but I remember us winning and us getting a chance to go in their locker room and celebrate with us. They were great about it, so that's fantastic for them to win."
The 32-year-old adopted Red Sox fan said he wouldn't mind opening the Bruins locker room to the Red Sox.
"When we won back in '11, when we went to Fenway we got to throw out the opening pitch and go in their locker room, which was pretty special," Kelly said. "I would love for them to come into our locker room but you've got to ask Claude [Julien]. I'm just an alternate captain."
Rookie defenseman Torey Krug, a Michigan native, had to watch the Red Sox beat his Tigers in the ALCS. But Krug talked of his appreciation of what the Red Sox were able to do this season.
"It's great. It's great for the city," Krug said. "Great group of guys that shows the way a team comes together and the right players and the right situations, and you have a championship. So it's great."
Krug later tweeted a photo of himself posing with the Commissioner's Trophy.
As for the Bruins, Kelly said he appreciated seeing Boston fans coming out in full force on Halloween, with a capacity crowd of 17,565 filling the Garden to see the victory.
"It's a sports city, clearly, and the crowd here is always awesome," Kelly said. "Halloween night, a lot of people might decide to take their kids trick-or-treating, but not in Boston. They're here."
