BOSTON — Tim Thomas will always be revered as the goalie who backstopped the Boston Bruins to the Stanley Cup championship in 2011.
After hanging up his pads and skates in 2014, Thomas hadn’t spent much time in the hockey community due to brain damage he suffered during his career that forced him from the spotlight.
That changed last weekend when Thomas sported the Black and Gold Spoked-B crest for the Boston Bruins Alumni Association in the “Faceoff for Heroes” benefit game against the Warrior For Life Fund at Warrior Ice Arena.
Thomas joined Brad Marchand on the bench as the coach for the Alumni roster, which included members of the 2011 championship team. As much fun as Thomas had leading the Black and Gold to a 9-5 victory, the two-time Vezina Trophy winner wasn’t quick to commit to the same role next year with the Bruins Alumni.
“Maybe, we’ll see,” Thomas told NESN.com. “Maybe I’ll come back as a forward. I don’t know. I mean, I’m already 1-0 as a coach, I might just retire.”
The reception Thomas receives from the Bruins faithful may make his decision to return a little bit easier.
“I’m at a loss for words,” Thomas said. “It means a lot to me. … I don’t know what to say, except I am very appreciative of the love I get from all the Boston Bruins fans.”
Thomas admitted being on the bench didn’t really translate into him “coaching”
his former teammates.
“No, no, what am I going to tell these guys, for one thing?” Thomas said. “Marchy did more coaching than I did. … I didn’t come in with that many expectations because I didn’t know what it was going to be like (as a coach). I guess it surpassed my expectations because we had a heck of a lot of fun together, and it looked like the Warriors For Life were also having a lot of fun, too.”
