Only Croat in the NHL: ‘Americans are Cold’

The first Croatian born and raised player to play in the NHL says that he is ‘living his dream’…

Zagreb’s Borna Rendulić, who signed a 2-year deal with the Colorado Avalanche reportedly worth 1.2 million USD in 2014, has been enjoying his first stint in the toughest hockey league in the world and created history when he scored his very first goal against the Philadelphia Flyers last month.

Rendulić, who spent 7 years playing in Finland, is living in an apartment in Cleveland and says it took him a while to get used to the flash hotels and planes that comes with life in the NHL.

“My teammates are great, they are all accommodating and friendly off the ice and on it,” the former Medveščak player told Jutarnji list, saying that he has not really sampled the nightlife there yet.

“I do not go out a lot to the bars and clubs, but what I did see I liked,” he said, saying that he prefers to stay at home and play PlayStation with a ‘good beer’.

Rendulić says that whilst he is enjoying his time and ‘living his sporting dream’, he still misses Europe.

“Americans are different from us in the Balkans, a little colder and in their own world. Making a change is never easy. I prefer the European way of life and people more, but in the NHL I am having a great time on the ice and I feel am I where I need to be,” said Rendulić, who says one thing he misses from home is his family.

“My sister Ana planned to come but she had some problems with her visa and did not end up coming, which I was sorry about. I can say that I miss them.”