Amherst native and former Boston College hockey star Ryan Leonard helped the Washington Capitals defeat the lowly Boston Bruins, 4-3, during his NHL debut April 1 at the TD Garden.

Leonard signed his entry-level contract with the Capitals a day earlier, less than 24 hours after the Eagles were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament by Denver on Sunday in Manchester, N.H., then slotted right into Washington’s starting lineup against the Bruins just 48 hours later.

“I can’t really explain it, honestly,” Leonard told reporters afterward. “If you told me this a couple years ago, it just wouldn’t be real… it’s just really cool. I’m just trying to embrace the moment.”

Leonard skated on the second forward line for the Caps with Aliaksei Protas and Dylan Strome. The Hockey East Player of the Year didn’t register a point during his debut, but Leonard finished a plus-1 in 14 minutes, 14 seconds of time-on-ice.

“It’s definitely a lot faster than college,” Leonard said. “Got to manage the puck a little bit better, bad turnovers, but I learned as the game went on. Just hopefully keep learning and getting better.”

A handful of Leonard’s now-former teammates at BC showed up in the stands to support him in his first game, including goalie Jacob Fowler. Leonard took the ice first for warmups and got a few laps in by himself, before the rest of the Capitals joined him shortly after.

“First lap I looked to my right and there's a couple of my teammates on the glass,” Leonard said. “They all told me it was going to happen and they were going to be there but it didn't really sink in until that first lap."

Leonard’s family were also in attendance.

The likely Hobey Baker frontrunner joins a Capitals squad poised to be the top seed in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. Following Tuesday’s win, the Caps had compiled 105 points, 11 points clear of second place in the East.

Leonard will also have a front-row seat whenever Alex Ovechkin breaks Wayne Gretzky’s goals-record. Ovechkin — who debuted in the NHL in 2005, the same year Leonard was born — scored in Boston on Tuesday for goal No. 891 of his career to put him four away from clinching the milestone.

“He’s one of a kind and it’s fun to see him get some goals for sure,” Leonard said.

The Pope Francis product knows a thing or two about scoring goals himself, tallying 61 for BC across two seasons.

Leonard ultimately made his Capital One Arena debut (Washington’s home rink) on Friday, April 4 against the Chicago Blackhawks.