Ok, so were officially in the All-Star Break, the fantasy draft will happen tonight in Ottawa. So while we have a few days away from the season I want to squash the Thomas issue and say my final words.
Today Joe Haggerty of Comcast Sports New England had a story about Thomas on csnne.com today. He had this today;
The 37-year-old netminder has been in the middle of a media/political firestorm over the last three days after choosing an individual political decision over joining the rest of his teammates in Washington D.C.
The move was admirable on the level of standing up for one’s belief system. That, after all, is what freedom is all about.
But it was also inherently selfish, given the predictable way it overshadowed that day’s celebration of the Bruins’ Cup championship. Thomas has been painted in the past as a “me-first guy”, and there were big elements of that in deciding to go rogue while the rest of his teammates were with the President.
The Bruins knew about Thomas’ decision for months, but didn’t announce it beforehand. They didn’t want to compromise the enjoyment level of their players visiting the White House by worrying about Thomas’ political inactivity.
Ok so here we go:
Point #1 – It was a TEAM event, no part of the Bruins trip to the White House had any political meaning other than just being honored as a champion of their sport. Every major sports champion gets a day at the White House as invited guest of the president. By Thomas choosing not to go, he made it a political issue and put himself first over the TEAM.
Point #2 – Be a man. Ok, so Thomas chose to make his big political point by refusing to set foot in the White House. A move you told management, months ago, you were going to make. Be a man about it and face the media and give them your reasons why. Instead he waited until the end of the day and from behind the locked door of his hotel room, he wrote a Facebook post on his fan page stating his reasons. Give me a break. Be a man, get in front of the camera (because this isn’t going away and now he has to face national media at the All-Star Game) and just take the heat and make your comments.
Point #3 – How will this affect the team. When you have 30 guys (lets include the practice squad) in a locker room, there will be 30 different personalities. Obviously the topic of politics is always a hot-button issue even amongst family at the dinner table. Will Thomas not showing up for a team event affect how the team will play down the stretch. Probably not. I don’t think guys on the team will hold a grudge against Thomas for being a no show. However, I think for the length of time this is a hot topic and all the players on the team are forced to answer questions about it because (back to point number 2) Thomas won’t speak to the media, this is how it has become a distraction.
Point #4 – My final point. I think Thomas is on his last legs in Boston. If we remember back to when Curt Schilling was a prominent member of the 2004, curse breaking, Red Sox team. He played a key role in brining the team a championship. Schilling is a guy who should be greeted with a hero’s welcome anytime he shows up in Boston. But how is he viewed? Most people hate him, because his is opinionated, political and constantly runs his mouth when he should keep his mouth shut. Now, I’m not saying Thomas runs his mouth but he is now a political issue, which is going to have people wondering what he will do next. Not to mention he made his big political statement during a time in the season where he has been playing his worse hockey.
If this media frenzy doesn’t go away any time soon, I wouldn’t be surprised if Thomas is traded. He would not be traded because of his political beliefs but more because he is 37 years-old, becoming a distraction and the 23 year old Rask has been playing like he did in the 2009-10 season when he was the starter. Not to mention Thomas’ job is Rask’s for the taking and its only a matter of time before Thomas is just too old to play on a nightly basis. Which is a case of age and would be the same even if Thomas kept his mouth shut and went to the White House.
The Bruins play four games in six days coming out of the All-Star break. The team is two points behind the Rangers for first in the Eastern Conference. They also begin their second half against the surprisingly hot Ottawa Senators who sit four points behind the Bruins in the division.
There is no room for distraction the rest of the season. Its time to buckle down and focus on defending the Cup.
By the way. Thomas, if you have such a problem with the US government. You didn’t seem to hae a big problem when you were elected to the Olympic team to represent our COUNTRY
It’s irritating when a photo-op turns political. Just irritating.