Prior to playing in Pittsburgh, Rodrigues spent five seasons [2015-20] with the Buffalo Sabres organization, where he had signed as a free agent in 2015 and after completing his four-year Division l hockey career at Boston University (BU).
In total, Rodrigues has totaled 129 points (53G, 76A) in 316 career NHL games with Buffalo and Pittsburgh. He has produced six points (3G, 3A) in nine total postseason contests.
Rodrigues, his wife Christina and their two sons, Grayson (almost four) and Noah (2), are all settled in the Mile High City and looking forward to the upcoming 2022-23 season. Get to know more about the Avalanche's newcomer, who will wear No. 9 for the club:
Where did you grow up and what was it like?
I grew up in Toronto. Obviously, it's a crazy hockey city. I have two older brothers who both were in hockey when I was younger. They're five and seven years older than me. Just growing up, that was really all I knew was to play hockey. I started playing probably around three [years old]. It's all I've known. I just worked through the ranks and now, here I am.
What was your favorite NHL team growing up?
Early on, I was actually an Avs fan and then, I was a Vancouver fan. Those were my two teams when I was young, young. You're obviously a Leafs fan just being from there, but even when I was young I more so liked players than I did teams.
Who were some of your favorite NHLers that you watched and/or admired?
I liked [Joe] Sakic and [Peter] Forsberg and then, when I became a Vancouver fan I liked [Markus] Naslund, [Brendan] Morrison, [Todd] Bertuzzi. I really liked Alexander Mogilny, he was one of my favorite players.
What's your favorite sport outside of hockey?
Right now, golf, but when I was younger I played lacrosse in the summers. I really liked that. I played box [lacrosse]. I loved it. We had probably three or four guys on our winter hockey team that played together on our summer box lacrosse team. It was cool. I was a big lacrosse fan.
What went into your decision to pursue the college hockey route?
Schooling was always a big deal in our household growing up. My brother played [Division lll] at Oswego and I followed in his footsteps. Everyone in Toronto goes the OHL [Ontario Hockey League] route, but I just felt like going to college was right for me. It worked out, I ended up going to BU and was extremely happy with my decision.
What did you receive your college degree in?
I have a business degree with concentrations in finance and law.
What career would you have pursued if you hadn't become a professional hockey player?
I'm a big numbers and math guy. I hate writing essays, I'm all about numbers. I enjoyed calculus. When I was younger, I wanted to be an accountant. It was always something that came naturally to me. After college, I would have gone into finance or something like that if I didn't become a [pro] hockey player.
What does life after playing professional hockey look like for you?
Lately, I've liked real estate and houses. Not necessarily, flipping. I am just interested in houses, maybe buying something and constructing, something like that. I would also like to be in hockey. I'd like to be a [General Manager] someday. I find myself interested in that. Probably one of those two, but if I can stay in the hockey world, then I'd probably try and do that.
