Bruins draft picks took some time off the ice Wednesday to learn more about Boston.
As a part of development camp, the young players had the chance to meet some of the organizations in town that serve the people.
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"When anyone watches us go by in the canoes, we're all sitting in the canoe. So no one can tell what impairments people have. And that's the kind of beauty, it's an equalizer," said Kathleen Salas, a physical therapist with Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital.
It was a lesson in teamwork on the Charles River as members of Spaulding Rehab's sled hockey teams edjoin forces with the Boston Bruins draft picks.
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"I think it's awesome," said Bruins prospect and current Harvard player Mason Langenbrunner. "I think stuff like this shows us what it's like to be a Bruin and what it's like to really give back."
The young Bruins are learning that playing pro hockey in Boston means getting outside the arena to meet locals like Jeff Bauman, who was injured in the Boston Marathon bombings.
The lifelong hockey player started playing sled hockey a few years ago and even took on some pros on the ice.
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"They'll be good at shooting, but they can't move, not like they do on the ice with standup hockey. It's funny to watch how passionate they get, though," said Bauman.
He led the way outside on a hot July day, trading in the sled for the cycle.
"When we find ice, we all play. When there's no ice, we find something else to do, either cycling, swimming," he said.
"After going through and seeing some of the hard times to go through in a hockey career, it makes it so much less when you see some of these kids and some of the stuff that they have to go through," said Langenbrunner, whose father is Bruins Assistant General Manager of Player Personnel Jamie Langenbrunner.
"We're all playing sport together, and that's what matters," added Salas.
The young players also headed to the Greater Boston Food Bank to volunteer with food distribution, making a final stop in Belmont to play floor hockey organized by the Belmont-Watertown SPORT program for individuals with special needs.
