Joining Bruins is ‘dream come true’ for Dorchester’s Jimmy Hayes
You can come home again. Just ask Dorchester’s Jimmy Hayes.
Hayes met with the Boston media Tuesday for the first time since the Bruins acquired the restricted free agent forward from the Florida Panthers last week in exchange for forward Reilly Smith and the remaining years on Marc Savard’s contract.
The former Boston College star could not be more excited about the chance to put on the Black & Gold.
“This has been a dream come true for me, to come home to my hometown and my family,’’ Hayes said Tuesday. “To have this opportunity to win another championship for this city is a dream come true.
“It’s been pretty crazy — just getting a lot of phone calls and texts, and a lot of congratulations, and it’s finally sinking in for me that I’m going to be wearing a Boston Bruins jersey every night.’’
Dorchester’s Jimmy Hayes happy to be playing for the Bruins
(Boston Globe) Dorchester’s Jimmy Hayes happy to be playing for the Bruins. (By Alan Miller, Globe Staff)
On Monday, the Bruins signed Hayes to a three-year, $6.9 million contract that will pay him $2.3 million a year through the end of the 2017-18 season.
The 25-year-old Hayes had his best season with the Panthers last year, scoring a career-high 19 goals along with 16 assists in 72 games.
“Last year was basically my first opportunity to play a full season in the NHL, and I got the opportunity to play with some pretty good players and capitalize on my chances,’’ Hayes said. “Last year was just a great opportunity for me. I finally got a chance to play every night and play with some great players. The coach there believed in me and gave me a chance to play. I just think [I had] chemistry with some of the players I was playing with, and [I] capitalized on my opportunity, which allowed me to have a great year.’’
Meet the Bruins 2015 draft class
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