For a long time after his playing career came to an end in 2014, Tim Thomas wanted nothing to do with hockey.
The two-time Vezina Trophy winner who helped lead the Bruins to the Stanley Cup in 2011 had disappeared from public view. No public appearances. No reunions with former teammates or returns to TD Garden. No scouting, coaching or media gigs. Thomas didn’t even respond to phone calls or texts from former teammates, and he stopped watching the sport as well.
Thomas revealed why in Dec. 2019 when he was inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame and made his first public appearance since retiring: He was dealing with symptoms of brain trauma as a result of concussions and had come to resent the game and his career because of it.
That induction ceremony in Washington, D.C., which included briefly reconnecting with a few former Boston teammates before the Bruins-Capitals game that night, cracked open a door for Thomas. Now, nearly a year and a half later, Thomas says he is starting to “let hockey be part of my life again.”
“About 16 months ago, I came through the other side, so to speak,” Thomas said in a recent interview with Sean Shapiro of The Athletic. “As I continued to get better and better, I’m looking for things to be involved in that are interesting. I’m looking to reconnect with friends and acquaintances that I built over my life.”
Last June, Thomas took part in a 2011 Bruins Zoom reunion. He says he has talked and texted with former teammates and other hockey contacts more, including recently talking to Tuukka Rask by phone and texting Milan Lucic to congratulate him on his 1,000th NHL game.
Next week, Thomas will take a more public step when he launches a line of NFTs -- non-fungible tokens -- to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of his and the Bruins’ 2011 Stanley Cup run. Thomas told The Athletic it’s the latest step in the process of finally being able to appreciate and celebrate his career, something he wasn’t able to do for years.
“It’s helped me to appreciate the experience that I had,” Thomas said. “The past year, and not just the NFT, it’s helped really appreciate the experiences I’ve had due to the game of hockey, to appreciate the relationships I’ve had that were built because of hockey. … When you are in the space I was in, I devalued everything I ever accomplished and devalued everything that hockey allowed me to be a part of.
“…And now I’m taking this first small step into the public. It’s part of that reconnect that I needed.”
You can read Thomas' full interview with The Athletic here (subscription required).