Island Park hockey player bumped

Defenseman Anthony Bitetto was leaving Utica, NY, getting ready to head to Glen’s Falls to play hockey with his Milwaukee team when he received a call from the General Manager of the Nashville Predators, David Poile.

His parents and friends were planning their drive to see him play, when his mother, Marie Bitetto, got a call from her son, “Mom I’m not going see you tomorrow—they are driving me to the airport now.”

With that, the Island Park native found his life long dream of playing for the majors had come true, he was now a Nashville Predator. It’s his first career recall.

The 24 year old led Milwaukee defensemen in points while appearing in all 38 of the team’s games in 2014-15. During the team’s current six-game winning streak, the Island Park native has six points moving him into a tie for eighth among all AHL blueliners in assists, and into the Top 15 League d-men in points. Nashville’s fourth choice, 168th overall in the 2010 Entry Draft, Bitetto did not miss a game during a two-year collegiate career at Northeastern University from 2010-12.

Marie said they were scrambling to get to the game; no one had passports so they had to drive the long way around to Detroit.

She said she was thrilled when they entered the Joe Louis Arena, “there is so much history there,” she said, “and I cried all through the national anthem.”

After the game, which Nashville lost 2-5, her son was very relaxed. “He has been doing it all his life,” she said.

“He just says he is so fortunate,” she said, “it was an unbelievable moment, not many kids get to live out their dreams”. He played 11:01 in his NHL debut at Detroit.

Poile announced on Jan. 19 that the team has reassigned defenseman Bitetto back to Milwaukee.