Phoenix Coyotes defenseman Keith Yandle has felt the impact of the Boston Marathon bombings a bit more than many players across the NHL. Yandle is a Massachusetts native who grew up near Boston. Last week, he wrote the words “pray for Boston” across his skates to pay tribute to those affected by the tragedy. He put an even more personal touch on it Saturday night.
Martin Richard, an 8-year-old boy from Dorchester, Mass., was one of three people killed during the explosions on Monday. As you can see from the photo above that Coyotes Sr. Director of Communications Rich Nairn passed along, Yandle wore Richard’s name across the back of his warmup jersey before his team’s game against the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday night.
“One of my best friends finished four minutes before the bombs went off, and his parents were right at the flags where the bombs went off,” Yandle told FOX Sports Arizona earlier in the week. “My high school coach runs it every year, and he was 500 yards away before he was stopped by the police and just started running in the opposite direction.”
Yandle also said that his wife Kristyn grew up in Richard’s neighborhood, so the loss really hit home for his family. Hopefully gestures like the ones Yandle has been making help the Richard family continue to heal.
H/T Puck Daddy
