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Steve Thomas (ice hockey)

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Steve Thomas
Born
Stephen Antony Thomas

(1963-07-15) July 15, 1963 (age 63)
Stockport, England, UK
Other names"Stumpy"
Occupation(s)Ice hockey player, coach
Years active1984–2005 (player), 2010–2017 (coach)
Known forProfessional NHL right winger; assistant coach and player development consultant
Notable workPlayed for Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks, New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, Detroit Red Wings

Stephen Antony "Stumpy" Thomas (born July 15, 1963) is a former professional ice hockey right winger, originally from the United Kingdom and later a Canadian citizen. Over a 20-season career in the National Hockey League (NHL), he played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks, New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, and Detroit Red Wings.

Playing career

Thomas was born in Stockport, England, but grew up in Markham, Ontario, Canada, where he attended Markham District High School. His junior hockey tenure was with the Toronto Marlboros in the Ontario Hockey League, and he holds the distinction of being the last original Marlboro to advance to the Maple Leafs' NHL squad. Prior to joining the NHL, he received the Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award in 1985 as the American Hockey League's top rookie while playing for the St. Catharines Saints.

Undrafted following his junior career, Thomas signed as a free agent with the Toronto Maple Leafs, making his NHL debut during the 1984–85 season. He quickly established himself as a dependable goal scorer, achieving 35 goals in the 1986–87 campaign. That summer, he was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks, where he remained until the 1991–92 season before moving on to the New York Islanders.

Thomas reached his career zenith with the Islanders. In the 1992–93 season, he set personal records with 37 goals and 50 assists, totaling 87 points. During that postseason, after star Pierre Turgeon sustained an injury, Thomas and Ray Ferraro led New York to the Prince of Wales Conference finals. The following year, he surpassed his previous goal total by netting 42 goals.

He later returned to Toronto (1998–2001) and then Chicago (2001–2002) before being traded to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. This move rejuvenated his performance; after scoring only four goals with Chicago that season, Thomas notched ten goals in his final twelve regular-season games with Anaheim and added four more during their playoff run to their inaugural Stanley Cup Finals appearance. However, financial limitations prevented Anaheim from re-signing him for the 2003–04 season, which affected their offensive capabilities.

Although Thomas excelled in playoff situations, he never secured a Stanley Cup championship. His closest chance came during the 2002–03 season when Anaheim fell in a seven-game Finals series against the New Jersey Devils.

In 2003–04, Thomas inked a one-year deal with the Detroit Red Wings. Teaming up with Pavel Datsyuk and Brett Hull, he made valuable contributions, including scoring ten points over thirteen games within one stretch. The Red Wings finished atop the league standings but were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs by Calgary.

After the NHL lockout in 2004–05, Thomas attended a tryout with the Toronto Maple Leafs but was released prior to the start of that season.

Post-playing career

Following his playing days, Thomas took on assistant and mentorship coaching duties with the St. Michael's Buzzers, a Jr. A team based in Toronto. On September 3, 2010, he was hired as a player development consultant for the Tampa Bay Lightning, working alongside former teammate Steve Yzerman, who was then serving as Tampa Bay’s general manager. In this role, Thomas managed all prospects within Tampa Bay’s system and subsequently served as an assistant coach from 2012 through 2016.

On June 30, 2016, Thomas joined the coaching staff of the St. Louis Blues as an assistant coach for one season.

Personal life

Thomas and his spouse Lori are parents to two children: their daughter Lauren, born in 1994, and their son Christian, born in 1992, who is currently a player for HC Bozen-Bolzano in the Austrian Hockey League. Christian was selected 40th overall by the New York Rangers during the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. Lauren is married to Adam Henrique, who is an active forward for the Edmonton Oilers. In the 2010–11 OHL season, Christian secured second place for goals scored (54) and sixth place in overall points (99), sharing the top spot for power-play goals in the league. Notably, Steve and Christian Thomas represent the first father-son pair to each achieve 50 goals within a single OHL season.

Regular season and playoffs

  1990–91 NHL season     Chicago Blackhawks     NHL     69     19     35     54     129     6     1     2     3     15   1991–92 NHL season Chicago Blackhawks NHL 11 2 6 8 26 — — — — — 1991–92 New York Islanders NHL 71 28 42 70 71 — — — — — 1992–93 NHL season New York Islanders NHL 79 37 50 87 111 18 9 8 17 37 1993–94 NHL season New York Islanders NHL 78 42 33 75 139 4 1 0 1 8 1994–95 NHL season New York Islanders NHL 47 11 15 26 60 — — — — — 1995–96 NHL seasonNew Jersey Devils NHL 81 26 35 61 98 — — — — — 1996–97 NHL season New Jersey Devils NHL 57 15 19 34 46 10 1 1 2 18 1997–98 NHL season New Jersey Devils NHL 55 14 10 24 32 6 0 3 3 2 1998–99 NHL season Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 78 28 45 73 33 17 6 3 9 12 1999–2000 NHL season Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 81 26 37 63 68 12 6 3 9 10 2000–01 NHL season Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 57 8 26 34 46 11 6 3 9 4 2001–02 NHL season Chicago Blackhawks NHL 34 11 4 15 17 5 1 1 2 0 2002–03 NHL season Chicago Blackhawks NHL 69 4 13 17 51 — — — — — 2002–03 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim NHL 12 10 3 13 2 21 4 4 8 8 2003–04 NHL seasonDetroit Red Wings NHL 44 10 12 22 25 6 0 1 1 2
    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1980–81 Markham Waxers OPJHL 42 22 25 47 76 — — — — —
1980–81 Toronto Marlboros OHL 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
1981–82 Markham Waxers OPJHL 48 68 57 125 113 — — — — —
1981–82 Toronto Marlboros OHL — — — — — 7 4 1 5 4
1982–83 Toronto Marlboros OHL 61 18 20 38 42 — — — — —
1983–84 Toronto Marlboros OHL 70 51 54 105 77 9 2 6 8 26
1984–85 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 18 1 1 2 2
1984–85 St. Catharines Saints American Hockey League 64 42 48 90 56
1985–86 NHL season Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 65 20 37 57 36 10 6 8 14 9
1985–86 AHL season St. Catharines Saints AHL 19 18 14 32 35
1986–87 NHL season Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 78 35 27 62 114 13 2 3 5 13
1987–88 NHL season Chicago Blackhawks NHL 30 13 13 26 40 3 1 2 3 6
1988–89 NHL season Chicago Blackhawks NHL 45 21 19 40 69 12 3 5 8 10
1989–90 NHL season Chicago Blackhawks NHL 76 40 30 70

  91  |   20  |   7  |   6  |   13  |   33  |

NHL totals ! 1,235 !421 !512 !933 !1,306 !174 !54 !53 !107 !187 |

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International

Year Team Tournament   GP G A Pts PIM
1991 Canada WC 10 5 3 8 12
1992 Canada WC 5 2 2 4 4
1994 Canada WC 6 1 5 6 0
1996 Canada WC 8 2 3 5 29
Career Senior Totals 29 10 13 23 45

Trivia

In the 1986 film Youngblood, centered on hockey, Thomas appeared alongside Rob Lowe and Keanu Reeves, featuring in a memorable moment where Patrick Swayze snaps a towel at him.

See also

References

External links

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