Cape Breton’s Colten Ellis shines in NHL debut before family, friends

Cape Breton’s Colten Ellis makes his NHL debut surrounded by friends and family from home.

The road to the NHL has been a long one for Colten Ellis of River Denys, N.S.

“It’s been 25 years to get to this point, and it’s kind of realized my dream”, the 25-year-old goaltender said Wednesday night following his NHL debut for the Buffalo Sabres at home to the Detroit Red Wings.

Ellis’s first start in net in the big league couldn’t have gone much better.

He made 27 saves in a 4-2 win - including a number of highlight-reel stops - and was named the game’s first star.

It all took place in front of a big crowd of family and friends watching from a private box.

“I found out yesterday morning coming into the rink [that he would play that night], so I kind of had the day to prepare and get a bunch of my family and everybody in.”

“I don’t know if you could have wrote a better script for it, actually,” said Ellis’s father Brian, who was in attendance.

The elder Ellis remembers the challenges helping his son find the proper playing time - and competition - to pursue his goal of going professionally.

“Well, there has been a lot of miles,” Brian Ellis said. “A lot of rinks we went through, and Colten has put a lot of time and effort in as well as we did. He was determined and he had a dream and he stuck with it, and it’s starting to pay off now.”

Brad Chandler, who has been close friends with Ellis since childhood, said becoming an NHLer has not changed his best friend a bit.

“Nothing was given to him whatsoever,” Chandler said. “From where we came - even his resources, I mean we didn’t even have a rink in Whycocomagh for the majority of his childhood. So he definitely is very grateful for what he’s got.”

During a postgame broadcast interview with former NHLers including Henrik Lundqvist and Paul Bissonnette, Ellis expressed his appreciation to the family and friends who came to see him play.

“I was actually pretty emotional before the game, before I got to the rink, just kind of thinking about all the sacrifices they’ve made to kind of get me where I am today,” he said. “I definitely couldn’t have done it without any of them here tonight.”

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