When he took the ice for warmups, Duke admitted he flashed a smile toward some family and friends near the glass. Duke’s younger brother, Tyler Duke, played on the same ice sheet hours later for the University of Michigan against No. 2 Michigan State in the annual ‘Duel in the D’ game that’s played at the home of the Detroit Red Wings.
Duke’s family already had tickets for the college game, and suddenly there was a rush for more tickets. His former teammates on the Michigan Wolverines and his family got to see his first NHL goal in person, not far from the place that helped develop an NHL player.
“It was such a whirlwind of emotions coming back here and getting to play in my first NHL game,” Duke said. “Obviously you think about it a lot, but to have it here just made it a little bit more special.”
Only nine players in franchise history had scored in their NHL debut prior to Duke. Duke became the first Lightning player to achieve the feat since Ross Colton scored in his first game on Feb. 24, 2021. Current Bolts Anthony Cirelli (Nov. 25, 2013) and Anthony Cirelli (March 1, 2018) also scored a goal in their first game.
Another former Wolverine, 35-year-old forward Luke Glendening, was quick to find Duke for a celebratory hug on Saturday. The television broadcast was brisk to scope his family and friends, who also didn’t hide their excitement and pride for the newest addition to the Lightning goal scorers’ club.
They weren’t the only ones who shared that excitement.
“It’s amazing. He played his first game, he got his first goal in front of his family,” Lightning defenseman Erik Cernak said. “It’s an exciting moment for him and we were really happy for him and for his family. He played well, so we were glad he could be here with us, and hopefully he’s gonna stick around for longer.”
The Lightning have one more game before the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off break on Sunday in Montreal, and Duke could make his second NHL appearance in that contest.
Regardless of what comes next for Duke in his hockey career, the start is one worth remembering, according to Lightning coach Jon Cooper.
“I learned a lot about him in training camp, and he’s definitely a kid that everybody’s pulling for. He’s full of life. There’s positive energy that just surrounds that kid everywhere he goes. I think everyone in the organization was hoping to see this kid play a game for the Lightning one day,” Cooper said.
“It just turns out it was the perfect storm of it’s where he went to college and his whole family is here, his brother’s playing in the building tonight three hours, four hours after our game. That’s a pretty cool experience, and that’s one that family will never forget.”