Rickard Rakell stepped out into a hallway outside the Ducks’ locker room wearing his skates and a smile that said he was happy to be back in familiar surroundings.
It wasn’t quite like the first day of school, but he did catch the media up on how he spent his summer during the weeks and months leading up to his re-signing with the the Ducks following a prolonged contract negotiation.
Part of it was spent skating with his cousin’s junior team in his home Sweden, made up of 14-year-olds who were quietly in awe of the NHL forward.