BOSTON — There was a long pause as Dans Locmelis scanned the faces in front of him waiting for a reaction.

Standing in the Warrior Arena dressing room after the first day of rookie camp, the Bruins prospect was asked about his brief conversation with Sidney Crosby after Locmelis and Latvia faced Canada in the World Championships this summer.

“He said he hasn’t seen anything like that before. I could maybe be the next Wayne Gretzky,” Locmelis said. “He was impressed with me.”

The combination of Locmelis’ slight accent, his unrevealing straight face and the fact that the media doesn’t know him well enough yet left everybody wondering:

“What exactly did he just say?”

The former UMass standout then broke out in a smile.

“I’m just kidding,” he said as the group caught up and laughed

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