Islanders' Samuel Bolduc returns to Montreal for first time as an NHLer

MONTREAL – Local kid Samuel Bolduc found it much easier hopping over the boards to get on the ice at Bell Centre this time.

Then again, the Islanders rookie defenseman and native of suburban Laval, Quebec was only 10 the last time he skated in a game at the rink.

“I went a couple of times but not as much as I would have liked to,” Bolduc told Newsday of attending Canadiens’ games. “I even had a chance when I was younger to play at the Bell Centre. It was just an exhibition game. The benches were pretty high for me. Now they’re pretty small.”

The Islanders faced the Canadiens on Saturday night as they concluded a back-to-back set after finishing their 4-0-2 homestand with a 5-4 shootout loss to the Eastern Conference-leading Bruins on Friday.

Saturday marked the 6-4, 220-pound Bolduc’s first game at Bell Centre as an NHLer, though he did play his hometown Canadiens once last season. Bolduc logged 7:23 without a point as the Islanders earned a wild-card berth with 4-2 win at UBS Arena on April 12 in their regular-season finale.

“When the puck drops it’s pretty much like another team,” Bolduc said. “It might be a little bit different in the Bell Centre but that’s how I need to treat all my games and that’s what I’m doing so far.”

The 23-year-old Bolduc entered Saturday with one assist in 19 games as he dressed for his ninth straight game with the Islanders beset by injuries in their defense corps. Adam Pelech, Ryan Pulock and Scott Mayfield all remain sidelined.

“It’s going great so far,” Bolduc said of his extended stretch in the lineup. “Point-wise not like I would have wanted it. But it’s part of the learning. I think now I’ve adjusted pretty much to the speed of the game.”

Bolduc, paired with newly-acquired veteran Robert Bortuzzo for the fifth game, entered Saturday averaging 12:09 of ice time. But whereas Bolduc exceeded 10 minutes just twice in his first eight games and three times played fewer than eight minutes, he had played more than 13 minutes all but once in his previous seven games.

“When you look at guys that maybe don’t make it at 18, 19, 20 years old, it’s something where you’ve got to learn that consistency,” right wing Kyle Palmieri said. “You’re not going to have your best every night. You’re not going to play a perfect game, especially as a young defenseman. You see how long it takes them, sometimes, to develop that confidence and consistency.

“You’ve really just got to stick with it. He’s got guys to lean on over there and are guys that have been around the league and found ways to make themselves everyday players. That’s a good opportunity for him to learn and just watch those guys.”

Bolduc nearly had a homecoming game last season when he was selected as an AHL All-Star – that league’s All-Star festivities were in Laval – in the midst of compiling 10 goals and 25 assists in 56 games in his third season with the Islanders’ affiliate in Bridgeport.

But the Islanders recalled him to the NHL and he did not participate in the AHL All-Star game. Bolduc did spend parts of four seasons playing for Blainville-Boisbriand in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League about a half hour from Montreal.

Still, Saturday was a chance for friends and family to catch up with him.

Yes, there were a ton of ticket requests.

“I told all my friends I’m going to focus on my family and my girlfriends’ family,’ ” Bolduc said. “I’m going to keep it simple.”

By Andrew Gross

andrew.gross@newsday.comAGrossNewsday

Andrew Gross joined Newsday in 2018 to cover the Islanders. He began reporting on the NHL in 2003 and has previously covered the Rangers and Devils. Other assignments have included the Jets, St. John’s and MLB.