They could not be more unlike, Tim Thomas and Roberto Luongo, other than the fact that they squared off as starting goalies in an epic Stanley Cup final. Thomas grew up in the rust belt of Flint, MI; toiling in obscurity for Davison high school as an 18 year old before getting a break to play at University of Vermont. Luongo spent his teenage years starring in the Quebec Major Junior League, a goaltender's breeding ground that produced goaltending immortals like Patrick Roy (4 Cups) and Martin Brodeur (3). Roberto was the "next one", the first goalie chosen in the 1997 draft, the goalie to build teams around, the goalie that could get an executive's name engraved on Lord Stanley's Cup. Luongo was 6'3" with an octopus-like reach. Thomas was a stumpy 5'11". Luongo was drafted 4th overall, Thomas 217th. Luongo was the hottest item at the Young Stars junior showcase at Maple Leaf Gardens after Joe Thornton; Thomas was scoffed at by scouts because of his unorthodox style, even though he was an NCAA All-American at Vermont. Luongo became a regular at All-Star Games by 2004; Thomas was still toiling in Europe in 2005, having had a mere 4 games of NHL experience. In 2005 Thomas completed his third tour playing for Jokerit Helsinki, 11 years after being drafted by Colorado, seemingly a lifetime ago. He is quoted as saying he would have been happy playing his entire career in Finland. He was 31 years old at the time.
Meanwhile Luongo found himself getting moved a lot. Mike Milbury and the Islanders got sweet on another goalie, trading away their franchise goalie and several other assets to clear the way for their latest love interest Rick Dipietro. The Panthers got Roberto, and flipped him to Vancouver. He was always the girl with the curl, incredibly attractive to whomever was not with him. His reputation, based on size and breeding, always had him near the top of all goalie discussions, yet he led no one to any Championships. He made Canada's 2006 Olympic Team, but split a couple of games as Canada failed to earn a medal in Torino, let alone defend their gold. In his 7th year as a pro he was 27 years old and joining his 3rd NHL team. Not once had he had a sniff of hockey's Holy Grail.
Meanwhile, Tim Thomas got his shot with the Bruins as a 30-something goalie, a backup in 2005-06 following the NHL's missed season. His time in Finland had kept him sharp and he made a serviceable NHL goalie. The following year he became a starter, after a decade tuning his craft around the world. His numbers were good, not great, but he showed a spirited work ethic which appealed to Boston's lunch-pail Boston hockey culture. At age 33, he had found a professional home, and a platform from which to launch an amazing late-life run at pro-hockey greatness.
In Vancouver, Luongo was again the great tease, making two All-Star teams, getting to conference finals, but ultimately failing when the games mattered most. Pro scouts and GM's had discovered a chink in his professional armor--Luongo had a poor glove hand. The whispers were getting louder--Vancouver had a one-armed goalie.
Thomas, on the other hand, was impossible to define, other than being a fiercely competitive athlete. He flopped here, dove there, and stretched his 5'11" frame beyond physical limits to prevent goals, more on instinct than form. His style goes against the NHL's Quebec-driven ideal standard that limits movement to a minimum, simply let the puck hit you and just take up space. But the All-Star voters didn't care, they placed Thomas in the mid-season All-Star game in 2008 and he hasn't missed one since. He's been the winning goalie in the last three. For those of you who believe in hockey Gods (all of us, right?), they appear to have been won over by the Tim Thomas perseverance. He fought his way but lost valiantly in the 7th Game of the 2nd round of the 09 playoffs, winning the Vezina trophy at year's end. The next season he won the Winter Classic and was named to the USA Olympic team in the post game ceremony at Fenway Park. The kid from Flint was in the spotlight, giving amazingly frank and thoughtful press conferences after each amazing chapter of his rags to riches story. At the Vancouver Games, Thomas was relegated to bench in favor of Olympic MVP Ryan Miller, and he watched Luongo take on Miller in the riveting gold medal game. Luongo survived two soft goals, allowing the Yanks to send the gold medal game into overtime, before Syd Crosby won the gold for Canada. It was a source of redemption for Luongo, the goalie who couldn't solve the Chicago Blackhawks in the playoffs. He finally had something tangible--an Olympic gold medal--to show for a decade-long title of being goaltending's "Next One." Two months later he failed once again against the Blackhawks, and Vancouver had to contemplate the unthinkable--was Luongo the man for the job?
Thomas had his own adversity to deal with in the form of a nagging hip injury. He found himself on the bench in yet another historic clash, as he watched the Bruins 4-game collapse against the Flyers. In the NHL's 2010 opening game in the Czech Republic, Thomas was the Bruins overpaid backup goalie, and no one would have been surprised if this were the end of the line for a guy who had clearly over-achieved. Three All-Star games, a Vezina trophy and an Olympic Silver. Pretty nice booty for a NHL career started when many are retiring. But this is where the Thomas magic begins to show itself more prominently. He admitted that prior to the 2010-11 season he had a vivid dream, a dream where he was hoisting the Stanley Cup. It's one thing to talk about these dreams a generation after one's childhood, but to put it out there as a 36 year old backup coming off of major hip surgery, that comes from a guy comfortable in his own skin.
And the season was magical for Thomas. By November his role as backup to Tukuu Rask was replaced with MVP talk. Thomas was setting new NHL save percentage records and carrying the Bruins on his back. Rask, who was scarred by the collapse against the Flyers the pervious spring, was only too happy to carry Thomas's water. Luongo was leading the NHL in wins, and the Canucks finally had all their pieces in place. Two first-place teams marched through the playoffs, the Bruins overcame a scare against Montreal and then vanquished the Flyers; Luongo stared down the Blackhawks after facing a potential disaster in overtime of game 7.
So finally they met, two veteran goalies who prepped for the NHL on both sides of the Quebec/Vermont border. The utiltarian Michigander who was enjoying a magical career after his 35th birthday; and the anointed one from Quebec, finally ready to get his name engraved on the Cup alongside Roy and Brodeur, the inevitable succession.
The games were fascinating studies in the two goalies: Luongo outplaying Thomas by a shade in tight contests in Vancouver, Thomas being impenetrable in Boston with Luongo completely lost away from home. After losing game two in overtime, critics pounced on Thomas's style, which caused to the winning goal because he had wandered too far. Thomas held his ground. "Not changing a thing." Nuff said.
Luongo, meanwhile took major lumps giving up a dozen goals in two games in Boston. He was given a choice whether to come out in Game 3 after giving up 4 second period goals. He chose to stay in, and gave up another 4 spot in the third. 4-goal periods became a signature for Luongo's efforts in Boston. But his most notable act in the Finals, one that may define him historically, was the press-conference gaffe after game 5, a game in which Luongo made a case for being the best goalie in the game, shutting down the Bruins 1-0 to put the Canucks 1 game away from immortality. A reporter asked Roberto about the goal Thomas gave up, because he had again wandered too far from the crease, and incredibly, Luongo took the bait. "I would have saved it," said Luongo, pointing out that Thomas frequently wanders, making splashy saves but getting burned occassionally. Reporters smelled blood and followed up. And here was where Luongo committed media suicide. Commenting about breaking the goaltender's union code about commenting about each other, Luongo revealed his character. "I've been pumping his tires all series long," then adding that Thomas hasn't said anything nice about him. Roberto sounded like the spoiled, petulant child many fear he is. Thomas was asked to follow up in the ensuing media stampede. "I didn't know it was my job to pump his tires," said Thomas, honest and direct. Now Luongo had put all the pressure on himself.
As a fan, I was disappointed that there was no fan artwork in Boston Garden, caricatures of the two goalies on fat tired bikes, standing over bicycle pumps, huffing and puffing. I thought maybe the fans were too loaded to get out the water colors and paint some sheets with classic sports art, but a loyal reader mentioned that post 9/11 fans aren't allowed to bring in much of anything, whether it be a poster or a ham sandwich. Duly noted.
Luongo answered the pressure with his worst outing of the Finals, which had seen some wretched moments. 4 goals in under 4 minutes, including the first, an unobstructed wrist shot by Brad Marchand from the side hash marks that cleanly beat Roberto's invisible glove hand. A one-armed goalie. The rout was on. If he wasn't such a bloody wanker (as my friends from the BBC might say), you might have felt sorry for Luongo as he was chased from the game. He was replaced by a Boston area guy (yes, Winthrop, for all you Mike Eruzione fans) Cory Schneider, who technically, is a BETTER GOALIE than Luongo. Hey, how about that? The world's most expensive goalie, the goy who historically chokes with the best of them, is not as good as his backup. More on that later in the post mortem.
So it all comes down to Game 7, in Vancouver, where Luongo has been nearly impenetrable, and where he won his only career scalp, his Olympic gold, 15 months prior. Everything was positioned for him, had he been a champion. But he's not. Doesn't have the talent or the fortitude. Two goals in the first, one would have taken a miraculous save, but only because he was so deep in his crease. Maybe if he were at the top of the blue, Patrice's Bergeron's one-timer hits him. But being the cautious goalie he is, Luongo laid back and watched the puck careen off the far post, 1-0. Then the wraparound by Marchand was initially saved by Luongo, but in his exuberance to prevent the goal, his leg slammed into his glove, and dislodged the puck for goal number 2. First period and the best he Canucks could hope for was sending this game into OT 'cause Thomas was not about to give up 3 goals in regulation.
Then the piece de resistance in period 2. Bergeron again, bolts through neutral ice on a partial breakaway, got hauled down, Ref's arm goes up. A pile of bodies moving between 10 and 15 miles and hour towards the net, the puck somewhere in the mass of humanity. This is a Tim Thomas layup. Place your body in front of the moving train, brace yourself, the net will move if they are going to bust through you, because you are firmly square and braced for impact. This is basic instinct for Thomas-- sacrifice your person for the cause. Elemental. But not to Luongo. Just a different value system for the anointed one. Putting your person in harm's way is not part of his daily life equation.
Bergeron, playing two series past suffering a serious concussion, blasted through Luongo with the puck before him. Roberto did a bit of a matador, and then began pointing that the puck must have been thrust in illegally. No sale. 3-0. Game over, season over. Roberto left a big mess on the rug and someone has to clean it up. He certainly isn't equipped.
Thomas, the Playoff MVP, won the grandest trophy of them all because the Conn Smythe is normally accompanied by Lord Stanley's mug. The guy who has never ducked a hard question in his life, was stumped for two long seconds when asked what Luongo said to him in their lengthy exchange in the hand shake line. Finally, a reply. "He didn't say anything. I just told him what a great goalie I thought he was."
Is there anything left to say? One man, who has paid countless dues, is still giving, using his language to "pump the tires" of his vanquished opponent in the perfect forum, one on one, eyeball to eyeball with hands clasped in a man's shake. The loser, and I use that word with no remorse, stays mum. I think that concludes this tale of two 'tenders.
Post Script 1. A week after the Cup thomas claimed his second Vezina trophy in three years. He now has a Smythe, two Vezinas, an Olympic silver and 4 All-star Game appearances, including being credited for three victories in a row. His accolades now surpass Mike Richter, and he has made a legitimate case for himself being the best U.S. goalie of all time and a serious candidate for the Hall of Fame. All of those accomplishments after the age of 33. An amazing tale, spiced by the fact that his parents sold their wedding bands to keep him outfitted in goalie gear while a teen in Flint, Michigan. (Flint!)
Post Script 2. The Vancouver Canucks have the most talent on any team in the world, but a flawed goalie. A flawed style that was revealed for all to see (1-armed goalie) in the Finals, and flawed psychologically as a guy who has spent his entire career being told he is the best and the next great goalie from Quebec, the land of the best goalies. Will he be able to confront the fact that he is an athlete who has a tendency to choke in big spots? He just turned 31. Does he have the tools or advisors necessary to help him evolve? To concede that he has flaws that must be worked through? Hmmm...
Post Script 3. What do you do if you are the Canucks? Your backup goalie is better than your starter, a psychologically scarred 31 year old who has the richest and longest contract this side of DiPietro. Can you win with Luongo as your guy? Not if recent history is your guide.
Tale of two 'tenders. Black hat vs white. College vs Major Junior. Quebec vs Flint.
