By: Andrew Bluestein | Follow Me On Twitter @adbblue
On July 1st, 2015 the Boston Bruins traded Reilly Smith and Marc Savard’s contract to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Jimmy Hayes. The former Boston College Eagle returned to where he played college hockey, just a few miles from his hometown of Dorchester.
Tragically, Hayes passed away in the summer of 2021 at the young age of 31. He was well known and highly praised for being a great person and for community involvement.
The big forward played for the Bruins for only two seasons, but he had some memorable moments on the ice. He recorded a line of 15-19-34 during his time in Boston and was a physical presence at 6’5″. Undoubtedly, his greatest game wearing the Black and Gold came on December 29th, 2015, at home against the Ottawa Senators.
Boston came away with a dominant 7-3 victory, which was highlighted by Hayes recording the first and only hat trick of his NHL career. What made the hat trick significant was that Hayes completed it with 00.2 seconds left on the clock in the third period. It yielded a thunderous eruption from the TD Garden crowd, and hundreds of hats rained on the ice. His teammates embraced him immediately, and it was a joyous celebration on the bench. It now holds as one of the many great all-time moments in Bruins History.
During the 2021-22 season, the Bruins paid tribute to Hayes. This included wearing jerseys during warmups with “Hayesy” on the back, a moment of silence, and an emotional montage on the TD Garden video board before puck drop. On October 30th, against the Florida Panthers, his life and career were honored by both teams and the fans. The video montage was followed by a moving ovation from the TD Garden crowd and stick taps from the players. It was a powerful way to remember Jimmy Hayes, who was and will always be a humongous part of the Boston community.
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