Conor Sheary isn’t done.
Even if he never played another game, he’d have authored a story most hockey players could only dream of:
Overlooked by Boston powerhouse programs, the Melrose native made a name for himself at UMass. Overlooked again by NHL teams because of his 5-foot-8 frame, he signed an AHL tryout deal with Scranton Wilkes-Barre. He played well enough to get called up to the Pittsburgh Penguins, land on a line with the best hockey player on the planet and win a Stanley Cup.
It all happened before he turned 25.
That is far more than anybody expected out of him, but Sheary, who played against the Bruins in Boston Thursday night, has never measured himself against external expectations. He’s proud of what he’s done so far. But in his mind, he’s just getting started.
“I’ve always been a little bit overlooked. I just took every opportunity I had and did what I could with it,” Sheary said Wednesday before the Penguins left for Boston. “It’s ended up working out for me.”
Thursday’s game marked the second matchup in a week with the Bruins and Frank Vatrano, whom Sheary not only played with, but lived with at UMass. The Graves Street apartment in Amherst housed three future pros, Sheary, Vatrano and Conor Allen, who played in seven games over two seasons with the New York Rangers and is currently in the AHL with the Grand Rapids Griffins.
Sheary said he’s kept tabs on Vatrano from a distance.
“I check to see how he’s going. After each game I’ll check the box score. When he comes into town or I go into Boston I’ll send him a text,” said Sheary, who said the two shared a quick greeting on the ice before Sunday’s game in Pittsburgh. “It was cool. I didn’t get to see him much off the ice, but we said hello. It was a cool experience because not too many guys are playing after college.”
Sheary is one of a handful of former Minutemen playing in the NHL. In addition to injured Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick, Matt Irwin is playing on the Nashville Predators blue line while Justin Braun remains a fixture on the San Jose Sharks defense.
Joel Hanley played in seven games this season with the Montreal Canadiens and Brandon Montour appeared in five for Anaheim. Montour will represent the San Diego Gulls in Sunday’s AHL All-Star game in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
New UMass coach Greg Carvel spent 12 years as an NHL assistant coach for the Ducks and Senators. Sheary said people who knew Carvel then have predicted success.
“He was around the NHL for a while so guys tell me all the time that he’s going to do good things for the school. That’s good to hear as an alum,” he said. “Coach Carvel has been in touch with me. I met him at the (UMass hockey) golf tournament. I like to follow along. I’d like to see them have some success.”
Sheary’s own success helps promote the UMass program as he looks poised to be a fixture in the NHL now. Thursday’s game marked the halfway point of his first full season with the Penguins after getting called up part way though last year. He arrived to play in front of family and friends on a hot streak. He has six goals in his last five games and was named one of the NHL’s 3 Stars of the Week last week. He has 17 goals and 17 assists in 40 games this season.
“It’s been pretty crazy from my first call-up around this time last year all the way to the Stanley Cup,” he said. “It’s been kind of a whirlwind. I’m happy with where I’m at right now.”
He’s proven to be a good running mate for Penguins all-world center Sidney Crosby. Sheary’s college and professional success has come largely from his ability to use not only his skilled hands, but his mind and vision to overcome his lack of brawn. That meshes well with Crosby’s elite intuition on the ice.
“People call it hockey smarts or hockey IQ. I think I have that. As an undersized guy you want to have that patience and poise. I just try to think the game as well as I can. I think that’s a huge part of my game,” Sheary said. “I don’t think anyone has the hockey IQ that (Crosby) has. He’s probably the best at it. I think he sees plays most people don’t even see. The fact that I get to play along side him, I can learn that stuff from him. I think he likes that I can do a small sample of what he does and see some of what he does. It’s helped us grow some chemistry here.”
Sheary is trying to grow all aspects of his game so that winning the Stanley Cup as a rookie won’t be the high point.
“There’s always room to improve. I don’t think you can ever be satisfied with where you’re at. You want to make sure you improve every day,” he said. “I’ve only played one year in the NHL. I wouldn’t want to call that a career.”
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage