One of the coolest places to stay in Columbus isn’t on Airbnb. You won’t be able to find it on Vrbo, either.
That’s just the way the host likes it. In fact, he only lets people he knows crash in his extra bedroom.
Adam Fantilli may be just 21 years old, but he has a veteran’s mentality when it comes to being a host. When Blue Jackets rookie Luca Pinelli was recalled from Cleveland to make his NHL debut late last month, Fantilli opened his downtown spot to the young forward so he’d have a comfortable place to stay.
He’s done the same in the past with such players as Luca Del Bel Belluz and James Malatesta, and both sides give the living setup a five-star review.
“They’re all great guys,” Fantilli said. “My door is always open. I enjoy the company. They’re a great time to be around.”
Such stories are common in the NHL, a life that includes plenty of travel, nights in hotel rooms, and times when players may or may not know what city they’re in. For young players being called up to the league for the first time, it can be both exciting and imposing, as they're asked to leave their previous spots and show up to play on a new team without any interruption.
Veterans across the league often open up their homes to young players – Pittsburgh legend Mario Lemieux famously had Sidney Crosby stay with him at the start of his NHL career – and Fantilli is already a leader in the CBJ room in just his third season. He also knows what it’s like to be in a new place and not feel quite comfortable.
When he arrived for his rookie season, he spent some time crashing with Blue Jackets forward Patrik Laine, but as the year stretched on, he was on his own. Knowing what that experience was like, Fantilli understands exactly how young recalls would feel if they had to stay by themselves in an unfamiliar hotel room in a new city.
“For pretty much my whole rookie season, I lived alone,” Fantilli said. “There’s a lot of unwritten rules in the NHL with what time to show up, how to dress, how to act, and doing all that while living in a hotel sucks.
“I really feel bad for kids that have to spend extended time in a hotel. If I can open up my door and give them some homemade meals, have them just hang out on the couch, do whatever they want, have their own space, I think that contributes a lot to performance, too.”
It also helps that Fantilli has relationships with the players he’s brought in. He quickly became friends with Malatesta when he arrived as a rookie for the team’s 2023 development camp, and he grew up playing with Del Bel Belluz as well as Pinelli’s older brother Francesco, an LA Kings draft pick.
“He shot me a text when I was coming up and said, ‘You’re always welcome here,’” Pinelli said. “I said, ‘I don’t want to get in your way,’ but he said, ‘It’s fine, no worries.’ I’m pretty chill, so I told him I won’t mess with any of his routines or anything.”
Pinelli made his debut the night before Thanksgiving, so after a Thanksgiving Day meal with his family, he headed to Fantilli’s for the rest of the night. Fantilli cooked dinner that night as well, and a few days later, Pinelli helped decorate Fantilli’s Christmas tree.
And as you might imagine given the personalities at play, plenty of fun was had.
“This guy is a disaster all over the place,” Fantilli said with a laugh. “He’s not like messy or anything, but his personality is hilarious to have around. I love it. I have a good time.”
For Del Bel Belluz, who is in his third season of recalls to the NHL while spending the majority of the last three seasons in Cleveland, it’s a special time to be able to reconnect with someone he grew up with in the Greater Toronto Area.
“It’s a full-circle moment,” Del Bel Belluz said. “We played hockey together when we were really young, and then played U-16 together, and now we’re playing in the NHL together. It’s pretty special, and to share that with him and be in his apartment living with him, it’s a cool moment.
“We have that bond, and it’s a lot of fun. It makes you feel like you’re at home. He’s an awesome person, so it’s special to have someone like that on this team.”
For Fantilli, it all comes back to comfort. He’s happy to have people he considers friends around, but he also knows that feeling at home can go a long way to building a team and having success in a new situation.
“No matter how old you are when you first come into an NHL locker room, it takes a second to adjust,” Fantilli said. “All of them have done a fantastic job doing it. I’m just glad to help them be a little bit more comfortable.”
