The Carolina goalkeeper married the girl he dated in college

The wedding took place just a couple of weeks after winning the Stanley Cup.

Carolina Hurricanes goalie Brandon Bussey and his girlfriend Mary Raklawski, who have known each other since their days at Western Michigan University, were married July 17 at St. Paul Catholic Parish in Cambridge (Massachusetts, USA). The ceremony was attended by 187 guests — relatives and close friends of the couple.

The 28-year-old hockey player and the 25-year-old content creator chose Boston for the celebration not by chance: it was here that their life together began after college, while Bussi trained as a goalkeeper, notes xrust. Every summer while they were still a couple, the Raklawskis came to visit him in the city—so Boston holds a special place in their history. Raklavsky told People that it was fundamentally important for them to get married in a church — faith plays a big role in the couple’s relationship.

The bride walked to the altar to the sounds of an organ and trumpet playing Pachelbel's Canon in D major. She picked out a ballgown from designer Monte Durham from a bridal salon near her hometown of Chicago—an outfit she describes as both simple and majestic. The look was completed with Dolce Vita shoes, and the bride's hair and makeup were done by makeup artists Terin Brewer and Lauren Reddington. The couple ordered their wedding rings from the jewelry house REEDS Jewelers, which also selected jewelry for the bride.

The decoration in white and pink tones was created by the florist studio Poppy Flowers: the abundance of delicate flowers and soft greenery was supposed to create the feeling of a garden, smoothly flowing into the Granite Links banquet hall, where the reception was held. For the bride's bouquet and the groom's boutonniere, they chose white orchids — according to Raklavsky, a symbol of perseverance and patience, which are also needed in marriage.

In the church, the newlyweds pronounced traditional vows, and saved personal ones, written independently, for the reception — they were exchanged at sunset. Guests at the buffet were treated to seafood: oysters, clams and shrimp cocktail, as well as mini lobster rolls and Margherita pizza. The main course was filet mignon, salmon or ravioli, and for dessert there was a four-tier dark chocolate cake with raspberry filling, specially made by the Dessert Works confectionery. Instead of the usual champagne, the reception featured a separate bar with espresso-martini cocktails.

The newlyweds performed their first dance to the song “A-Frame” by the duet of Jeremy Zucker and Chelsea Cutler — according to Raklavsky, the line that home is not a place, but a person nearby, accurately describes their relationship with constant moving due to Bussey’s hockey career. The evening also included a separate dance in honor of the couples who exemplified strong relationships for the newlyweds.

The celebration continued the next day: the couple raised a toast to the Bussey family at The Tall Ship pub in Boston. Raklavsky admitted to the publication that preparing a wedding in parallel with the NHL playoffs and the Stanley Cup final was not easy, but it was the Hurricanes’ victory this season that made the moment of marriage even more symbolic — the couple celebrated two main events of the year at once.

In a conversation with People, the newlyweds admitted that the wedding was not the finale for them, but the beginning of a new stage. Raklavsky noted that both promised to be there for each other in any circumstances — both in easy times and in difficult times, and what gives her confidence in the future is that now they will always be together. Bussi, in turn, admitted that what inspires him most is the thought of the future — what he and Mary will be like in twenty to thirty years, about future children and growing old together. According to him, the current busy life of a hockey player is just the beginning of a long story.

Source: People.com

Xrust The Carolina goalkeeper married the girl he dated in college