On July 1, 2022, shortly before the Buttercup Cafe’s 2 p.m. closing time, two diners remained on the Cape Cod restaurant’s patio. As the customers talked over iced coffees, a coworker approached busboy Lucas Matta inside the cafe. The coworker informed Matta they could close the patio once the two customers left.
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Matta peeked out a window. The teenager noticed the healthy crop of curly brown hair atop the head of one of the diners. It looked familiar.
Matta, 17 at the time, went outside to see if the diners’ table was ready to be cleared. The man with the curly hair turned his head to look at Matta.
A realization came to the busboy instantly: “Is that Jack Eichel?”
An important meeting
By that day last July, Bruce Cassidy was what he had been for some time: a Massachusetts resident who spent his summers with his family on the Cape. One thing had changed. He was no longer the Bruins coach, fired less than a month before.
It took only eight days, though, between Cassidy’s sacking and his NHL re-entry. On June 14, the Golden Knights hired him to take over a veteran roster with Stanley Cup aspirations.
Cassidy dove into work with his new employer. Initiating a relationship with Eichel was one of his top priorities.
During his time in Boston, Cassidy had leaned heavily on Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, his top two centers. Not only did they drive offense, but they also executed heavy lifting in the defensive end. Cassidy prefers zone defense. He counts on his centers to support down low, seal off passing lanes up high and be board-to-board defenders.
For six seasons of Atlantic Division games against the Sabres, Cassidy studied Eichel on video to mute him as an opponent. Now, as a fellow Golden Knight, Cassidy had to get to know Eichel in person to do the opposite — express more out of his game to fulfill his expectations as the No. 2 pick (after Connor McDavid) in 2015.
It just so happened that last July, Eichel would be on the Cape for a wedding. Cassidy was back East after his initial tour of Summerlin, home of the Golden Knights’ practice facility and the preferred neighborhood of most of the team.
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Cassidy suggested a sitdown. He had a place in mind.
Summer sitdown
The Buttercup Cafe opened on Main St., in Barnstable in September of 2020, replacing the Blue Plate Diner. It has become a popular spot, not only for Cape visitors but for regulars from Barnstable’s district, probate, superior and juvenile courts, all located within a municipal complex across the street. One hockey coach, in particular, has come to know it too.
The restaurant opens at 8 a.m. daily. On July 1, 2022, Matta had arrived an hour before with grandmother Barbara Matta, a server at the restaurant.
Matta worked four days a week last summer. Each day, upon his 7 a.m. arrival, Matta’s duties included brewing coffee, setting tables and preparing the patio for service. Once guests finished their meals, Matta was responsible for clearing their dishes, cups and silverware and prepping the spots once more for parties to follow. In the summers, there is not much downtime at the Buttercup Cafe.
“From June 1 right until the end of August, it’s a madhouse. It really is,” said Chris Hall, Lucas’s father and a Cape referee. “It’s hard to find a great place for breakfast on the Cape that’s not busy.”
By early afternoon, around the time Eichel and Cassidy sat down on the patio, Hall had been on the job for more than five hours. The lunch crowd was winding down.
After first recognizing Eichel, Matta ducked inside to look up his picture on his phone to confirm his suspicion. He was so excited about Eichel’s presence that he did not think about the identity of his older companion.
“I thought he was just somebody Jack had tagged along with,” Matta recalled.
As Eichel and Cassidy continued to talk, 2 p.m. was approaching. Some of Matta’s coworkers were anxious for the two to end their conversation so they could close the patio.
The time finally came. Cassidy went inside to pay the bill.
As Matta got ready to go outside and bus their table, Melissa Jankowski, the cafe’s owner, gave her employee permission to say hello to Eichel. Matta was both excited and nervous.
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“Are you Jack Eichel?” Matta asked.
“Yeah,” the center responded, extending his hand.
After exchanging some words, Matta asked for a picture. By then, Cassidy had paid and returned to the patio. Cassidy introduced himself to Matta. It was only then that the 17-year-old realized that Eichel had been speaking to the former Bruins coach and his new boss.
Cassidy asked Matta if he wanted to take a picture. Matta said yes. Eichel snapped the shot. Then they switched places. Eichel learned that Matta was a goalie at Plymouth North High School. He asked how Matta’s season had gone.
Eichel and Cassidy stayed on the patio a little longer. A little after 2 p.m., Jankowski was about to inform them that the restaurant was closing. But before she went out, the two had left. By Matta’s recollection, they left a $20 tip. That night, Matta, a summer hockey coach, had quite a story to tell everybody else on the ice.
Matta has since graduated from high school. He has started EMT training. At the Buttercup Cafe, the 18-year-old has been promoted to cooking on the line. Younger brother Drew, 16, has taken his busing job.
Eichel, Cassidy and the Golden Knights, meanwhile, are up 2-1 on the Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final. Eichel has 23 points in 20 games, tied for Vegas’ leading scorer, and has expanded his 200-foot game. With two more wins, Eichel and Cassidy can make their offseason plans with the Cup. If Vegas wins and Cassidy brings the Cup to the Cape, Hall is hoping the Buttercup Cafe is among his stops.
“That,” Matta said, “would be sick.”
(Photo of Jack Eichel: Sean M. Haffey / Getty Images)
