WORCESTER—Plans have a way of working out eventually, but rarely perfectly.
Friday night at the DCU Center was the exception for Worcester’s Nick Pennucci. Not only did he make his professional debut, he helped the Railers to one of their most dramatic victories of the season — one of their most dramatic ever, in fact — a 5-4 shootout triumph over the Trois-Rivieres Lions.
For most of the night, it looked like Pennucci’s entry into pro hockey would be overshadowed by a defeat. Worcester trailed by two goals with less than five minutes to play in the third period but rallied to tie it in regulation, then survived a sensational scoreless overtime and won the shootout.
Pennucci was, for the record, the 697th different player in the city’s pro hockey history. For the unofficial records, he is the most Worcester of them all.
He grew up in the city and played varsity hockey at Worcester State University. He and his late dad, also Nick Pennucci, were season ticket holders going back to the IceCats days. The senior Pennucci, who was only 58 when he died in 2020, was among the most important figures on the city’s hockey scene.
For the last 24 years of his life, Nick Pennucci Sr. managed Buffone Arena on Lake Avenue and was a friend to thousands of hockey players at all levels of the sport.
The Pennuccis were season ticket holders and at almost every Worcester pro game through the various teams and years. Friday night at game time their traditional seats were left vacant with Worcester hockey jerseys placed over them. They were surrounded by fans with Worcester State connections.
“I told people,” the younger Pennucci said, “that this would have been my dad’s Super Bowl. It was a helluva feeling. It was a surreal experience.”
Penucci, 24, had played in training camp with the Railers so they knew his talent level. The team needed a forward for at least the weekend and Pennucci had just the right resume to fill the spot.
“We had him in camp,” coach Jordan Smotherman said, “and he did a fantastic job. He knows the way we like to play, so for him to get that opportunity was incredible.
“Having him in the locker room was definitely a boost. He’s a local kid, a season ticket holder, his family came to all those games — even just seeing the jerseys on his dad’s and his seats before the game was great.
“We didn’t use him much, but he led the play that drew a penalty for us in the second period. He gave us a little energy. He was great on the bench, great with the guys, keeping them up.”
While it was a first for Pennucci playing in a game like Friday’s, the experience was not entirely new.
“What a crazy game,” he said. “I remember seeing games like that here, all the way back to the IceCats and Sharks days and of course with the group now. They’ve been great in overtime situations and tight games.”
Pennucci did not demonstrate any sense of being nervous, which was not just a show.
“Honestly, no, I wasn’t nervous,” he said. “Once I got out there I took a look around and was pretty excited. I’ve watched hundreds of games in this rink, and yeah, it was pretty heartwarming to see a lot of my friends and family there.”
There was a big Worcester State presence in the seats, and on the bench, too. The Railers’ assistant coach is Bob Deraney, a recent Lancers head coach. Former Worcester State head coach Shayne Toporowski was in the stands as well as Athletic Director Mike Mudd, formerly the president of the Sharks.
“Shayne is like a father figure to me,” Penucci said, “and I’m so close to Mike Mudd. All those guys over the years, everybody who helped me during my time as a Lancer.”
Pennucci is the second known Worcester State product to reach the ECHL level. Mike Moran played 17 games for Iowa in 2021-22 and is currently with Quad City of the Southern League.
The way the Railers came back to win Friday night’s game sent most of their fans home with a great memory, but none more so than fan turned player Pennucci.
“This night will stay with me for a while,” he said. “This is a game I’ll never forget. My pro debut was a pretty good game to see, I’d say.”
Pennucci has a lot of heads nodding in agreement.
Bill Ballou covered the Red Sox for the Worcester Telegram from 1997 through 2018. He has covered pro hockey in Worcester since 1994 and currently does a weekly column for the Worcester Red Sox. Ballou can be reached at vetgoalie@aol.com
