2 years ago
243
The American Hockey League’s champion goaltender was sitting astatine location successful the summertime of 2020 waiting for his adjacent opportunity.
Logan Thompson, passed implicit by NHL teams aft his inferior vocation with the Brandon Wheat Kings, took a uncommon way done Canadian assemblage hockey to participate the nonrecreational ranks. Once determination helium had a beardown play with the ECHL’s South Carolina Stingrays and decided to spot what different teams would travel calling.
Ultimately, a acquainted look did. Golden Knights wide manager Kelly McCrimmon, the Wheat Kings’ erstwhile GM and inactive proprietor astatine the time, wanted to cognize if Thompson wanted to travel to Las Vegas. Thompson did. So overmuch truthful that helium hopped successful his car and drove for 24 hours successful the mediate of a pandemic to amusement it.
The two-day, 1,500 mile-trip from Brandon, Manitoba — Thompson said helium drove astir 15 hours the archetypal time earlier resting — was the archetypal motion of the Silver Knights goaltender’s willingness to propulsion done obstacles. Combined with his competitory spirit, it’s helped substance his emergence from overlooked to awards-worthy to imaginable NHLer.
A batch of goaltenders were fixed much opportunities than Thompson. Few tin accidental they’ve done arsenic overmuch with theirs.
“I deliberation that’s benignant of what made maine huffy and lit a occurrence underneath me,” Thompson said. “I ever person thing to prove.”
Numbers game
The crushed Thompson was passed implicit successful his caput is simple. “My numbers were ne'er sparkling,” helium said.
In 4 seasons with the Wheat Kings, helium ne'er had a prevention percent supra .908 oregon a goals-against mean beneath 2.63. Nothing that would popular disconnected a leafage oregon origin a scout to instrumentality notice.
Thompson’s sanction was ne'er called successful the draft. Even a rookie campy audition with the Golden Knights for his erstwhile GM — helium started the franchise’s archetypal rookie campy crippled against Los Angeles — didn’t pb to anything. The message, arsenic helium took it?
“I wasn’t bully capable and ‘Go to school,’” Thompson said. “And that’s what I did.”
He went to Brock University for the 2018-19 season, which led him to autumn “in emotion with the crippled again.” He enactment up a .934 prevention percent and led the Badgers to a schoolhouse grounds successful wins.
Former Brock manager Marty Williamson said successful March helium could archer Thompson was astatine a antithetic level erstwhile helium came to play for him. Thompson brought vigor to each practice. He worked hard to prevention each changeable successful drills, adjacent successful the mediate of the week erstwhile a crippled wasn’t coming until the weekend.
It’s thing he’s ne'er stopped doing. Thompson is truthful competitory helium erstwhile fought during a crippled portion with the Stingrays.
“I mean, a feline similar him, helium doesn’t similar to lose,” Silver Knights goaltending manager Fred Brathwaite said. “He’s ever competing against the different goalie astatine the different end. When helium brings that vigor to the rink, our guys provender disconnected of that.”
Steep climb
Thompson’s outstanding play astatine Brock hardly portended aboriginal nonrecreational success. Far from it.
U Sports, the nationalist governing assemblage of assemblage athletics successful Canada, isn’t considered a beardown feeder strategy for the NHL. Most Canadian players with a nonrecreational aboriginal motion contracts retired of inferior hockey.
There are exceptions — Silver Knights adjunct manager Joel Ward had an 11-year NHL vocation aft playing for the University of Prince Edward Island — but they are fewer and acold between.
Goaltender Robert Dopson from Wilfrid Laurier University made 2 appearances totaling 45:25 for the Pittsburgh Penguins successful 1994. That was 3 years earlier Thompson was born. No different U Sports goalie played an NHL crippled afterward until March 12.
That’s erstwhile the Golden Knights were successful Minnesota and Thompson was serving arsenic their backup acknowledgment to an wounded to Robin Lehner. The crippled was tied 1-1 entering the 3rd period, but Marc-Andre Fleury gave up 3 goals successful the archetypal 7:41 to autumn down 4-1.
Thompson could spot the team’s coaching unit whispering to each different from his spot connected the bench. He started to recognize what that meant.
“I benignant of looked the different direction,” Thompson said. “I didn’t truly privation to spell in. I was nervous.”
Forty seconds of crippled clip later, aft a Knights icing, Thompson skated to the nett for his NHL debut. He stopped some shots helium faced successful 8:15 and astir received an improbable win.
The Knights scored doubly to marque it 4-3 and close helping Alex Tuch astir tied the crippled earlier the last buzzer.
“I got a accidental (and) I was truly thankful for it,” Thompson said. “It was exciting. Hopefully there’s much opportunities to come.”
Getting notice
Thompson’s archetypal NHL enactment lone came 2 months into his archetypal play with the organization.
It didn’t instrumentality agelong for him to crook heads with the Silver Knights. He was 16-6-2 his archetypal afloat AHL play with a 1.96 goals-against mean and .943 prevention percentage.
The key? Not needfully his mitt manus oregon his post-to-post movement. Brathwaite said the archetypal happening helium noticed astir Thompson was his determination.
“You haven’t been drafted,” Brathwaite said. “Now you’re getting this accidental to spell and beryllium that you belong. And I deliberation that’s thing that he’s doing close present is each time conscionable moving hard and trying to amusement everyone that helium tin play astatine this level.”
Thompson won the AHL’s goalie of the period grant successful February and March earlier being named goaltender of the twelvemonth successful June. Other winners of the year-end grant see existent NHL goaltenders Jonathan Bernier, Jake Allen, Matt Murray, Alex Nedeljkovic and Kaapo Kahkonen.
The Silver Knights person needed Thompson much than ever this season. They’ve had injuries, call-ups and a four-game permission of lack by manager Manny Viveiros aft helium was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
Thompson hasn’t blinked contempt the rotating formed astir him. He has a .920 prevention percent and 2.93 goals-against mean portion starring the league successful shots faced (415) by 66.
“It’s a bully feeling erstwhile you cognize you got a backbone betwixt the pipes,” guardant Colt Conrad said. “He’s making immoderate large saves for us. It gives you much assurance erstwhile you cognize you person a coagulated goalie.”
Future
Thompson doesn’t anticipation to enactment 1 of the AHL’s champion goalies forever.
He’s No. 3 connected the Golden Knights’ extent illustration and manager Pete DeBoer said successful grooming campy he’d beryllium assured if the squad needed to crook to Thompson successful an NHL game. When that clip comes remains to beryllium seen with Lehner and backup Laurent Brossoit healthy.
Brathwaite, who appeared successful 254 NHL games, said helium believes Thompson tin play successful the large leagues if helium keeps moving connected his crippled and stays healthy. Thompson inactive tin refine his skating and marque definite helium plays up to his 6-foot-4 framework consistently.
Thompson seems to person taken that connection to heart. If he’s made it this far, what’s 1 much step?
“I conscionable got to support playing down here,” Thompson said. “I’ll support getting that acquisition and support taking steps successful the close absorption and doing what the goalie coaches privation maine to bash and marque a mates small adjustments to my game. I deliberation if I support doing that, I deliberation there’s a bully accidental I tin instrumentality successful the NHL.”
Contact Ben Gotz astatine bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz connected Twitter.
English (US) ·