Colin Wilson tried to treat Wednesday’s game as if it were no different than any other.
He knew plenty of attention would surround his return to Boston, where the Nashville Predators forward starred at Boston University the past two seasons. But Wilson had no interest in putting added pressure on himself, even with a host of ex-teammates and supporters in attendance at TD Garden.
‘I just have to look at it as another game,’ Wilson said.
It was anything but.
One day after celebrating his 20th birthday, Wilson notched his first professional point ‘-‘- a second-period goal ‘-‘- in Nashville’s 3-2 loss to the Boston Bruins, making Wednesday not just a memorable night for the rookie, but one he’ll never forget.
Gracing the Garden ice for the first time since helping BU secure a Hockey East title last spring ‘-‘- en route to a program-record 35 victories and a national championship ‘-‘- Wilson looked very much like the player Terrier fans grew to love in his two years on Commonwealth Avenue.
The 6-foot-1, 213-pound center wasted no time showcasing the physicality and skill that made him the seventh overall pick of the 2008 National Hockey League draft, engaging in a post-whistle shoving match with Bruins forward David Krejci late in the first period. Moments earlier, Wilson stormed through the right faceoff circle and buried a shot into the chest of Boston netminder Tim Thomas.
Shortly after, Wilson had his shining moment.
Six minutes into the second stanza, Predators forward Patric Hornqvist’s shot from the right circle ricocheted off Thomas and into the air. When it landed, falling inside the crease, Wilson outmaneuvered Bruins defenseman Derek Morris and tapped the loose puck across the goal line.
‘I just put it home,’ Wilson said. ‘Obviously it was pretty nice to get that first goal in front of all my buddies.’
A top-three finalist for the 2009 Hobey Baker Award, Wilson amassed 90 points (29 goals, 61 assists) in two years at BU, earning USA Hockey College Player of the Year honors last season. His 55 points in 2008-09 marked the first 50-point campaign by a Terrier since Chris Drury in 1997-98.’
Five games into Wilson’s professional career, which was delayed by a season-opening trip to the injured reserve list because of a groin injury, the NHL has been everything he imagined ‘- and more.
‘It’s awesome,’ said Wilson, who has registered six shots on goal. ‘I’m really enjoying it.’
Nashville coach Barry Trotz has high expectations for Wilson, whose father Carey played in the NHL for 13 seasons.
‘Colin’s going to be a really good player,’ Trotz said. ‘He’s got the genetic gifts of a big, strong man. He’s really eager to learn, and he pays attention to detail.
‘He’s going to find that the NHL is a little harder-working than the college game, just because of the tempo. He’s got to continue to grow and learn, but he’s going to be fine.’
Though pro hockey certainly has its perks, it also comes with an assortment of differences from the collegiate game Wilson learned to dominate.
‘It’s just a lot more hockey and a lot more focus, things like that,’ Wilson said. ‘I think you lose a little bit of that fun, but your whole goal in life is to make the NHL. The fun’s for the offseason.’
Six months after hoisting the NCAA championship trophy with his BU teammates in Washington, D.C., the former All-American is relishing life as a pro athlete ‘-‘- both on the ice, and off it.
‘I have money now,’ Wilson said with a smile. ‘I don’t have to go to McDonald’s for dinner.’
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