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New Bruin Riley Tufte has had to deal with a lot of ups and downs in his hockey career, including Type 1 diabetes
By
Jim McBride Globe Staff,Updated August 17, 2024, 10:41 a.m.
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The Bruins signed Riley Tufte (left) to a one-way deal with a salary-cap hit of $775,000.BRIANA SANCHEZ/EL PASO TIMES/Associated Press
Riley Tufte knows all about the highs and lows.
One of the Bruins’ free agent signees last month, Tufte has been through the ups and downs of hockey and also the ebbs and flows of managing Type 1 diabetes.
Like seemingly every kid growing up in Minnesota, Tufte spent his sweltering summer days in the rinks and his wicked winter days on the state of hockey’s myriad lakes.
He couldn’t get enough of the ice, eagerly strapping on the blades whenever the opportunity arose.
Then, during his pee-wee season, things changed. His energy levels dropped, and he had an unquenchable thirst.
Tufte’s mother,
Amy, sensed something was amiss and took Riley for tests that confirmed the diagnosis.
“It was pretty crazy,” Tufte said via telephone after a recent workout in Minnesota. “I mean, I got diagnosed when I was 11 years old. So my mom, thankfully, was a nurse at the time, so she knew my symptoms and stuff, which helped me out a ton.”
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Tufte’s initial reaction to the news was pretty standard. Exactly what you’d expect from a preteen.
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“It was such a shock to find out that I had it,” he said. “And you kind of go in denial at the beginning for me anyway. Like, ‘How can this be happening to me? I was always in good shape.’ "
After the initial jolt wore off, Tufte, with the support of his family, faced the diagnosis head on.
So began the tedious regimen of finger sticks (to check blood sugar levels) and corresponding doses of insulin shots to keep everything steady (to minimize/avoid the dangers of high and low levels).
In the 15 years since his diagnosis, Tufte’s game evolved, as did the technology to cope with and fight diabetes.
Continuous glucose monitors (or CGMs) and insulin pumps have made finger sticks and needles obsolete for many Type 1 diabetics.
“The technology has really taken off. I have an automated pump now, so if I go high in the middle of the night, it’ll automatically correct me. So, I wake up every morning, it’s the same number,” said Tufte.
Refusing to use the disease as an excuse, Tufte continued to excel on the ice.
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Tufte was on the roster for the US select team at the 2014 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge and for the 2015 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup in the Czech Republic.
He played four seasons for Blaine High School, splitting his junior and senior seasons between the Bengals and the USHL’s Fargo Force. He was named Minnesota’s Mr. Hockey in 2016 after leading the state with 47 goals in 25 games.
“I was really thankful to get that award, it kind of kickstarted my hockey career,” Tufte said of the honor that previously had been bestowed on future NHLers
Ryan McDonagh (2007),
Nick Leddy (2009), and
Nick Bjugstad (2010).
The 6-foot-6-inch, 230-pound Tufte was taken 25th overall by the Dallas Stars in 2016 before moving on to the University of Minnesota Duluth.
Related:
Bruins rookie Riley Duran, of Woburn, is gunning for a roster spot with his hometown team
In three seasons with the Bulldogs, Tufte, known for his strong skating and soft hands, put up 34 goals and 64 points. UMD reached the Frozen Four title game all three campaigns, losing to
Jim Montgomery’s Denver squad in 2017 before earning back-to-back titles over Notre Dame and UMass.
“It was awesome,” said Tufte, noting that the first crown came in St. Paul, just a short skate down I-694 from his hometown of Coon Rapids.
During his final season in Duluth, Tufte helped the US to a bronze medal at the 2018 World Junior Championship in Buffalo, where his teammates included current Bruins
Jeremy Swayman and
Andrew Peeke.
From there, Tufte moved on to Texas, where he spent most of his four seasons in Cedar Park playing with Dallas’s AHL affiliate (also the Stars). He showed improvement every season in that organization (where he crossed paths with Montgomery again), collecting 19 goals and 35 points in his final tour with the AHL Stars. He had one goal in 10 total games with the big club.
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Tufte’s rise continued last season, when he put up career-high numbers (23 goals, 45 points) with the Colorado Eagles, the Avalanche’s top minor league affiliate. He had a goal and an assist in a five-game cameo with the Avalanche.
“Obviously, I was young in my career when I was with Dallas. I thought my development has been tremendously going upward. I think every year especially I’ve gotten better, which is good. You don’t want to see you going backward. And I’m going forward,” said Tufte. “I’ve said it all along, but I think it takes bigger guys a little bit longer to grow into their bodies and kind of figure out the game. And everywhere I’ve played, I kind of had to figure out the game. And this will be my fifth year as a pro, I believe, with the COVID year. But I was young in my Dallas and Texas career and probably got better every year, and kudos to them for my development. And I kind of played a fourth-line role there too, all four of my years. And I had to work for everything that I got, which I think was something pretty special.”
The Bruins put a premium on size this offseason. In addition to Tufte, they signed forwards
Elias Lindholm (6-1),
Max Jones (6-3), and
Cole Koepke (6-1), as well as defenseman
Nikita Zadorov (6-6).
“You look at the roster and every guy’s big and got some meat to them,” said Tufte. “So, I think the Boston Bruins are going to be pretty hard to play against. I mean, they already are, but I think this year especially they wanted to get bigger and stronger and harder to play against. So, I think that’s going to be our identity is going to be hard to play against, for sure.”
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General manager
Don Sweeney’s message to the incoming group who will be battling for roster spots was simple: “Just pin your ears back, train your ass off this summer, and come with the intent that there’ll be an opportunity here. If you’re the best player, then we’ll find a way to get you in the lineup.”
That’s the blueprint followed by Tufte, a player the Bruins have tracked for several seasons.
“I think I knew going into free agency just from the year before they were really interested, and once free agency started, my agents thought that this would be the best fit and they were the most interested,” said Tufte, who signed a one-way deal with a salary-cap hit of $775,000. “And there were a couple other teams in the mix too, but we just felt like Boston was the best fit for me and really trying to take off with my career here in the next year. So, looking to get that good opportunity and obviously you have to earn it, but they don’t just hand out one-ways anymore and they gave me a one-way, so it must tell you something.”
Though he hasn’t donned the Black and Gold yet, Tufte said he already feels a sense of camaraderie with his new teammates.
“I’ve been so impressed with this organization, just as far as people reaching out,” he said. “A couple of the players reached out to me right away and I’ve never really seen that before. So, I think that tells you a lot about the organization. It’s really special.”
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Tufte expects to be in Boston at the end of this month as he wraps up his summer, which included hosting a camp for young players with diabetes in Vadnais Heights, Minn.
“That was something that was pretty special to me,” said Tufte, who is hoping to make it an annual event.
“I put them through some meetings every day and just kind of talked to them a little bit about what I do and their struggles and kind of talked them out a little bit and gave them the floor to ask me questions and stuff,” he said. “So, I think it was the biggest thing you want to do is just keep these young diabetics motivated and keep their dreams alive because there’s a lot of tough days with diabetes, and I still have a lot of tough days, too. So, it’s more about just getting all together and keeping them motivated.”
TAKING ON THE NCAA
Lawsuit seeks to change landscape
The NCAA was hit with a lawsuit recently over, you guessed it, eligibility.
It’s a new suit, but it’s the same old story when it comes to the NCAA, which historically finds itself on the wrong side of common-sense issues.
This suit was filed by Canadian junior hockey player
Rylan Masterson, who is suing the billion-dollar organization (which makes its money off the backs of student-athletes) and 10 universities, claiming the NCAA is violating antitrust laws by banning players who have been paid in junior leagues.
The 10 schools named are Boston College, Boston University, Stonehill, Quinnipiac, Denver, Notre Dame, Niagara, Canisius, Rochester Institute of Technology, and St. Thomas.
Though it’s not clear why those specific schools were named in the suit, it’s likely those were among Masterson’s desired destinations.
Masterson, 19, forfeited his NCAA eligibility when he played two exhibition games (yes, two exhibition games!) with the Ontario Hockey League’s Windsor Spitfires. He currently plays for the Fort Erie Meteors (great name, by the way) of the amateur Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League.
Players who compete in the Canadian Hockey League (which encompasses the OHL, WHL, and QMJHL) are currently deemed ineligible by the NCAA. CHL players don’t draw traditional paychecks, rather they are given a stipend of no more than $600 a month, according to the suit. Most stay with billet families.
If Masterson’s suit is successful, it would change the college hockey landscape considerably. The suit alleges that kids must decide at the tender age of 16 whether they want to play for a Division 1 college program or take the junior route. A win for Masterson would be a win for all skaters who wish to play both.
No 16-year-old should be forced to make that big of a life decision at that age.
In the suit, Masterson points out that other athletes have been financially compensated and still retained their eligibility. He cites US Olympic swimmer
Katie Ledecky (Stanford) and
Tom Willander, who played professional hockey in Sweden and suited up for BU last season, as examples.
In a time when college athletes are making life-altering money before ever matriculating (thank you, NIL), this seems like no-brainer for the NCAA.
Charlie Baker should run and rubber stamp a bylaw amendment to change the way the NCAA views and treats CHL players. The organization already shortchanges hockey (16 teams in the Division 1 tournament compared with 68 for basketball? Please!), so this would go a long way in leveling the playing surface.
Charlie Baker and the NCAA are facing a lawsuit from hockey player Rylan Masterson. Matthew J. Lee/Globe Staff
ETC.
No deals but no need to panic
Jeremy Swayman has yet to put ink to paper on a new deal with the Bruins, but the All-Star goalie is scheduled to put rubber to the road Sunday as a part of the Boston Triathlon relay at Southie’s Carson Beach.
Swayman will participate in the 17.5-kilometer bike portion of the relay.
While it’s a little disconcerting that Swayman isn’t under contract, there is no need to panic. The feeling is, with no arbitration, that the sides will hammer out a pact in time for the start of training camp Sept. 18.
Swayman isn’t the only big-name restricted free agent yet to sign.
Matty Beniers, the Kraken’s best player and the pride of Hingham, is also awaiting a new contract. While the slick center’s status may have Seattle fans a bit jittery, it’s unnecessary. Put the coffee down, there’s no way smart and savvy GM
Ron Francis lets Beniers skate away.
Are Jeremy Swayman and the Bruins close to a deal?
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4:10
WATCH: The goalie’s contract is the final order of business this offseason. Reporter Jim McBride explains how much it could cost.
Loose pucks
NHL Network unveiled its list of the top 20 wingers in the game and a pair of Bruins made the cut. Three-time All-Star (and world champion)
David Pastrnak checked in at No. 4, behind Tampa Bay’s
Nikita Kucherov, Florida’s
Matthew Tkachuk, and Colorado’s
Mikko Rantanen. Captain and Stanley Cup champion
Brad Marchand came in at No. 18, one spot ahead of Washington’s
Alex Ovechkin . . . Speaking of Ovechkin, he’s just 42 goals shy of bumping
Wayne Gretzky (894) off the top spot on the all-time list. Ovechkin reached 42 as recently as two seasons ago and it would come as no surprise for the electric winger to come out laser focused this season . . . And speaking of Gretzky, one stat that gets forgotten but always amazes is that if you took away all the Great One’s goals, he would still be the NHL’s all-time leading point getter with 1,963 assists (just ahead of
Jaromir Jagr’s 1,921 points) . . .
Auston Matthews said he was “honored and humbled” to be named Maple Leafs captain — the first American to wear the “C” for the storied franchise.
John Tavares, Toronto’s captain for the last five seasons, made a classy gesture out of what could have been an awkward situation by calling Matthews with the news of the switch in leadership. “I was, like, shaking,” Matthews said at his introductory news conference. “I had the chills.” Tavares told reporters the move “will allow Auston to fully embrace the leader that he is and have an even greater impact on our team.” . . . The Sabres, Blackhawks, Kraken, Lightning, and Utah Hockey Club (get off the pot and pick a name!) have yet to name captains for the 2024-25 season . . . This unabashed
Jack Edwards fan will miss his distinctive style but also is looking forward to the start of
Judd Sirott era on NESN. Sirott’s radio calls the last seven seasons were nothing short of sublime . . . The Bruins, TD Garden, and the Salvation Army gave away 3,000 backpacks full of supplies in their annual “Back to School Celebration” (sorry kids, sorry teachers) this past week . . . Bold (and clever) move by Blues GM
Doug Armstrong to sign a pair of Oilers (defenseman
Philip Broberg and forward
Dylan Holloway) to offer sheets. The Oilers, who need to sign stars
Leon Draisaitl (this summer) and
Connor McDavid (next), will be hard-pressed to match the offers to Broberg (two years, $4.58 million annually) and Holloway (two years, $2.29 million annually) . . . Non-hockey nugget: The Francis Ouimet Scholarship Fund continued its 75th anniversary celebration with an outing at George Wright Golf Course this past week. Since 1996, the Fund has partnered with George Wright and Franklin Park to provide underserved communities the chance to earn a college scholarship. For 28 years, a total of 175 scholars from these courses have received more than $2.4 million in need-based college scholarships from the Ouimet Fund . . . Looking to boost the cardio in anticipation of fall hockey league tryouts? Check out the Malden Irish American Road Race (5 and 10K) on Labor Day. You’ll get in a good sweat, and all proceeds will benefit the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Head to
runsignup.com for more information.
Jim McBride can be reached at
[email protected]. Follow him
@globejimmcbride.
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