Wayne Thomas (ice hockey player)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
CanadaCanada  Wayne Thomas Ice hockey player
Date of birth September 9, 1947
place of birth Ottawa , Ontario , Canada
size 185 cm
position goalkeeper
Catch hand Left
Career stations
1965-1967 Ottawa Junior Senators
1967-1968 University of Minnesota Duluth
1968-1970 University of Wisconsin – Madison
1970-1971 Montréal Voyageurs
1971-1972 Nova Scotia Voyageurs
1972-1975 Montréal Canadiens
1975-1977 Toronto Maple Leafs
1977-1981 New York Rangers

Wayne Thomas (born September 9, 1947 in Ottawa , Ontario ) is a former Canadian ice hockey goalkeeper and current coach and functionary. During his career, he played for the Montréal Canadiens , Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Rangers in the National Hockey League from 1972 to 1981 . During the 2002/03 season , he briefly assumed the post of general manager of the San Jose Sharks . He is currently the vice president, assistant general manager and goalkeeping coach of the Northern California team and general manager of the Worcester Sharks .

Career as a player

Thomas played at the University of Minnesota Duluth and University of Wisconsin – Madison while in college . But before he played his first NHL game, he was first transferred from the Toronto Maple Leafs to the Los Angeles Kings and from these two years later to the Montréal Canadiens . There he was in January 1973 for the first time in the gate at an NHL game. Until the end of the 1974/75 season , in which he did not play a game, Thomas stayed with the Canadiens. In the summer of 1975, the Canadian returned to Toronto, where he stayed for two years and was invited to the 1976 NHL All-Star Game . Shortly after the start of the 1977/78 season , the New York Rangers took him from the waiver list under contract, with which he played until the end of the 1980/81 season. He then ended his active career and moved to the Rangers coaching staff.

NHL statistics

Seasons Games Victories Defeats draw Shutouts
Regular season 9 243 103 93 34 10
Playoffs 3 15th 6th 8th - 1

Career as a trainer and general manager

For four years Thomas was an assistant coach for the Rangers before he took his first job as head coach in the 1985/86 season. With the Salt Lake Golden Eagles in the International Hockey League (IHL) he took over the coaching office for two seasons and won the Turner Cup in 1986 , before he returned to the NHL as an assistant coach with the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1987/88 season. However, he only stayed there for a year. He left the NHL again for the IHL, this time for two years as head coach of the Peoria Rivermen . For the 1991/92 season , the Canadian came back to the NHL. In the service of the St. Louis Blues he was an assistant coach behind the gang until 1993. Thomas has been part of the San Jose Sharks franchise system since 1993 . From 1993 to 1996 he was assistant coach under Kevin Constantine and Jim Wiley . He then began his career as a general manager. His first stop was the Kentucky Thoroughblades , a former farm team of the Sharks, with whom Thomas moved to Cleveland in the summer of 2001 and thus became General Manager of the Cleveland Barons . After the Sharks dismissed the then General Manager Dean Lombardi during the 2002/03 season , Thomas also took over the position of General Manager of the NHL team for the rest of the season. Since the 2006/07 season he has been General Manager of the Worcester Sharks , the successor to the Cleveland Barons. He is also the assistant to the general manager of the San Jose Sharks and vice president of the organization. Since Warren Strelow's death in April 2007, he has also been working as a goalkeeping coach for the NHL team, with the support of former goalkeeper Corey Schwab since summer 2008 .

Achievements and Awards

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Thomas, Wayne
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Canadian ice hockey player, coach and official
DATE OF BIRTH September 9, 1947
PLACE OF BIRTH Ottawa , Ontario, Canada