Most Bruins’ fans were cognizant that Tim Thomas was an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season and felt confident General Manager Peter Chiarelli would hammer out an agreement with Thomas’ camp shortly after the Bruins season concluded. However, on April 3, roughly two weeks before the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Bruins announced that a multi-year contract extension had been reached with Thomas, catching many followers of the team off-guard.
In hindsight, the timing may have been by design as it gave Thomas a “vote of confidence” by team brass prior to the start of the playoffs. Chiarelli may have realized that the weight of impending contract negotiations may not be ideal for a goaltender gearing up for what was expected to be an extended playoff run. A few soft goals or bad games in the playoffs could potentially have a goalie thinking of future years rather than the task at hand.
Thomas has been more than effective and has looked comfortable in the six playoff games thus far and credit must be given to team management for acting swiftly and decisively in identifying Thomas as a key ingredient for their playoff success this season and going forward, presumably in tandem with the grooming of Tuukka Rask.
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