« He deserved tonight. »
Danton Heinen had no shortage of options as he glided across the TD Garden ice on Saturday night.
As the Bruins’ goal horn blared through Boston’s barn for a ninth time, an avalanche of baseball brims, scally caps, and woolen toques descended upon Heinen — a fitting bounty for a player who buried the first hat trick of his career.
As is tradition for any Bruins player who lights the lamp three times, Heinen had his pick of the pile of headwear gathered on the frozen sheet — getting to keep one cap as a token for his memorable night.
It’s the first time in a long time where the 28-year-old forward has several possibilities on his plate.
After an underwhelming 2022-23 season in Pittsburgh, Heinen didn’t receive a phone call from any team during free agency. Boston eventually handed Heinen a professional tryout (PTO) contract in early September, more than two weeks after doling out a similar tryout deal to fellow veteran Alex Chiasson.
He outlasted Chiasson following weeks of preseason bouts, but Heinen was forced to play the waiting game once again as Boston tried to carve out a roster spot for him.
It wasn’t until Oct. 30 — eight games into the 2023-24 regular season — that the Bruins finally crafted a one-year, $775,000 contract for Heinen, giving him his sought-after second chance after a summer mired in limbo.
So far, Heinen has made the most of his return to the Bruins.
“I was pumped when I heard he was coming to camp,” Charlie Coyle said of Heinen following Saturday’s 9-4 win over Montreal. “I had a pretty good feeling we’d be seeing him in this lineup and that’s a tough spot to be in — a guy who earned a spot in training camp and kind of had to play the waiting game.
