Tim Thomas wants back in the NHL

Who will Tim Thomas play for in '13-'14? (photo via Boston Globe)

We all knew the day was coming.

Sooner or later, and now it seems its much sooner, former Boston Bruin goalie and 2011 Goalie Triple Crown Winner Tim Thomas is ready to make his comeback.

According to Thomas' agent Bill Zito, the 39-year old goalie wants to "explore his playing options" in the upcoming NHL season. I guess Thomas wasn't BSing when he insisted on taking a year off from the game and coming back shortly after.

So who gets first dibs? The early favorite to land Thomas' services seem to be the Philadelphia Flyers, as he has been linked to the franchise before. Also, considering the Flyers have just recently bought out the much-criticized Ilya Bryzgalov and only have former Calder Trophy winner Steve Mason on the roster as a proven NHL goalie, the Flyers certainly would not balk at the chance to add Thomas to their team.

His contract rights are currently held by the New York Islanders, but it has already reported that the Islanders will not pick up Thomas' contract whenever he decided to return.

photo via Zimbio.com

We all know Thomas is the ultimate competitor, and it's hard to forget his promise to play in the upcoming 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. So his motiviation to perform the best he could would be an all-time level.

The question with Thomas is can he reach back to 2011 and play at that Vezina-style level that put him on top of the world and carried the Bruins to the promised land. Taking a year off from the game for any professional athlete surely has some adverse effects on their body.

Put me in the camp that would love to see Thomas back in the NHL. As crazy as it may sound, I miss Thomas' play-style. I love Tuukka Rask as the Bruins goalie for the future and all that jazz, but a part of me would kill to see Thomas play for the B's again. However, the closest I'd get to seeing that scenario one more time would be to fire up Youtube and watch his highlight reel.

Thomas delivered the first Stanley Cup in my lifetime, and for the Bruins in 39 years. All of the political stuff, the White House incident, the end-of-the-world doomsday prophecies and bitter ending to his B's career aside, he still holds a special spot in my Boston sports memories, and nothing will ever change that.

And the other side of me would love the first question for him to be:

"So when the Flyers win the Stanley Cup, are you going to the White House?"


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