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BOSTON – Fan favorite Matt Grzelcyk returned home Friday night and was welcomed back to TD Garden as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Grzelcyk, 30, of Charlestown, Mass., spent parts of eight seasons with the Bruins, but the free-agent defenseman signed with the Penguins in July. He was in the starting lineup Friday and the Bruins recognized him with a video tribute during a TV timeout in the first period and he received a nice ovation from the Boston fans.

“It was great,” Grzelcyk said of his return after Pittsburgh’s 2-1 win over the Bruins. “It was a long day. I didn’t know what to expect. A lot of anxiousness and I wasn’t really sure what to feel. It was cool to come back and play in front of friends and family again, so I’ve been thinking about this for a long time.”

He was thrilled with the team’s video tribute, especially for also recognizing his father, John, who is a longtime member of the Bull Gang at TD Garden.

“It brought back some good memories,” Grzelcyk said.

A product of Boston University, Grzelcyk played 445 games for the Bruins and posted 25 goals, 110 assists for 135 points, including a plus-137 rating.

“One of the things that attracted us to Grizz was his puck-moving ability. He passes the puck extremely well. He has the ability to get back to pucks, helps us on the breakout and can change the point of attack,” said Penguins coach Mike Sullivan. “He’s very good on the offensive blue line. He’s on one of our power plays and distributes it pretty well. That’s probably Grizz’s biggest strength and that was an area we felt we needed help, and he certainly helps us in that regard.”

The Bruins drafted Grzelcyk in the third round (85th overall) in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.

Former Bruin Matt Grzelcyk Returns Home