“HELLO, LENO!!” the Washington Capitals wrote while announcing they had signed 20-year-old NCAA talent Ryan Leonard to a three-year entry-level contract. Even that entry-level salary almost touched a million for the Capitals’ top 10 NHL draft pick. Yet, everything happened in what seemed like a blur for the Boston College Eagles forward.

Despite his formidable form in front of the net, scoring 30 goals in 37 games this season, his team fell short in the NCAA Championships. Denver’s Matt Davis stopped 35 shots, allowing only one shot to get past his gloves. Meanwhile, Denver bit back during the counters, ultimately knocking Boston out with a 3-1 win. And just as one dream shattered for Leonard, another one materialized.

Ryan Leonard pinched himself when he signed his NHL contract with the Capitals just a day after BC’s NCAA heartbreak. The 20-year-old still thought it was all a dream until he looked through the glass during his first lap in the Capitals’ colors. And right there, behind the screen, stood the debutant’s Eagles teammates. Leonard described the unforgettable and emotional moment after the game.

“First lap. I looked to my right, and there’s a couple of my teammates on the glass,” Leonard said during his first Capitals locker room interview. There stood the friends and teammates who believed in the hockey forward even when he didn’t. “They all told me it was going to happen, and they were going to be there, but it didn’t really sink in until that first lap,” confessed Leonard.

The young hockey star also struggled to find the words to describe his first NHL match. “I can’t really explain it, honestly… If you told me this a couple years ago, it just wouldn’t be real,” the Capitals’ newest player told reporters as per the Daily Hampshire Gazette. That being said, Leonard was also feeling the crunch of the debut from the Stanley Cup contenders.

Ryan Leonard’s friends weren’t the only ones to extend their support

Thankfully for Leonard, the entire Capitals team and coaching staff had his back. With 9 matches left for Washington before the Stanley Cup playoffs, Coach Spencer Carbery isn’t asking a lot from the rookie. “There’s not a lot of expectations other than to go out there and compete your b*tt off,” Coach Carbery told reports after the match.

For now, the coach just wants the young player “to see what it’s like to play in the NHL,” amidst more experienced players. Moreover, Ryan Leonard himself has also identified things he needs to work on. Although he was a goalscoring machine in the NCAA, this is the National Hockey League. Naturally, the 20-year-old realized the difference in pace and overall intensity.

However, the newest Washington Capital won’t have a shortage of mentors to learn from. The team’s captain, Alex Ovechkin, is already on it. Ovechkin invited the former BC Eagles player to have sushi with him and the rest of the team ahead of the Boston Bruins game, where he gave the ice hockey player some valuable advice.

The 39-year-old veteran in pursuit of Gretzky’s record discussed how he could relate to the NHL rookie. “I’ve been there… The guys who have been in the locker room helped me out big time. I just try to do little things and help the new faces,” Ovechkin told reporters after the Capitals’ morning practice ahead of the Bruin game. So it’s safe to say that Ryan Leonard is in good hands.