Shawn Thornton
| Shawn Thornton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | July 23, 1977 Oshawa, ON, CAN |
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Weight | 217 lb (98 kg; 15 st 7 lb) |
| Position | Left/right wing |
| Shoots | Right |
| NHL team Former teams |
Boston Bruins Chicago Blackhawks Anaheim Ducks |
| NHL Draft | 190th overall, 1997 Toronto Maple Leafs |
| Playing career | 1997–present |
Shawn Thornton (born July 23, 1977) is a Canadian professional Ice hockey forward for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League.
Playing career
Thornton grew up playing minor hockey for his hometown Oshawa Minor Generals of the OMHA's Eastern AAA League. He was drafted in the 9th round (145th overall) by the Peterborough Petes in the 1995 OHL Priority Selection, one year after being originally passed over in the draft as a Midget-aged player.
He was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1997, 190th overall. He won the Stanley Cup in 2007 with the Anaheim Ducks and again in 2011 with the Boston Bruins.
On July 1, 2007, he became an unrestricted free agent and signed a three-year, 1.5 million dollar deal with the Boston Bruins.[1]
With the Bruins, Thornton finally became an NHL regular, and he has become famous for taking on famous enforcers like Georges Laraque, Donald Brashear and Derek Boogaard. He also has his own video blog on the Bruins website.
Thornton was involved in the first fight in the history of the Winter Classic with Philadelphia Flyers agitator Daniel Carcillo on January 1, 2010 at Boston's Fenway Park.[2]
During the 2011 Stanley Cup run, Thornton was a healthy scratch for several games as the Bruins chose to play rookie Tyler Seguin to gain more offense. However, Thornton was inserted into the lineup during Game 3 of the Finals as a turning point for the series. Thornton's physical play changed the tone of the series and the Bruins went on to win four of the last five games with him in the lineup. On June 15, 2011, Shawn Thornton got to lift the Stanley Cup for the second time in 2011, the first time Boston has won since 1972.
On December 7, 2013, Thornton punched Penguin Brooks Orpik, which resulted in Orpik losing consciousness and later being diagnosed with a concussion. He expressed remorse, but added: "That’s always my job, I guess, to defend my teammates..."[3] On December 14, 2013, he was suspended for fifteen games for "punching and injurying an unsuspecting player."[4]
Restaurant ownership
Thornton is a part-owner of a restaurant in Pembroke, Massachusetts named Turner's Yard. One of Thornton's partners in the venture is retired Major League Baseball pitcher Tim Wakefield.
Personal life
On October 2, 2010, he and the Boston Bruins played an exhibition game against the Belfast Giants in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where his mother was born.[5]
Thornton is a cousin of Bill Greer of the Toronto Rock (NLL), Zack Greer of the Edmonton Rush (NLL) and Denver Outlaws (MLL), and Chris Brunt of West Bromwich Albion (EPL). He is neither related to Joe Thornton (San Jose Sharks) or Scott Thornton (Retired).[6][7]
Thornton appeared in the movie Ted.
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1994–95 | Oshawa Kiwanis | OMHA | 43 | 8 | 19 | 28 | 113 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1995–96 | Peterborough Petes | OHL | 63 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 192 | 24 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 25 | ||
| 1996–97 | Peterborough Petes | OHL | 61 | 19 | 10 | 29 | 204 | 11 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 20 | ||
| 1997–98 | St. John's Maple Leafs | AHL | 59 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 225 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | St. John's Maple Leafs | AHL | 78 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 354 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | ||
| 1999–00 | St. John's Maple Leafs | AHL | 60 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 316 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | St. John's Maple Leafs | AHL | 79 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 320 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2001–02 | Norfolk Admirals | AHL | 70 | 8 | 14 | 22 | 281 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 2002–03 | Norfolk Admirals | AHL | 50 | 11 | 2 | 13 | 213 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 28 | ||
| 2002–03 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 13 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Norfolk Admirals | AHL | 64 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 259 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 2003–04 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 23 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | Norfolk Admirals | AHL | 71 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 263 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | ||
| 2005–06 | Norfolk Admirals | AHL | 59 | 10 | 22 | 32 | 192 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | ||
| 2005–06 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Portland Pirates | AHL | 15 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 55 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Anaheim Ducks | NHL | 48 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 88 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | ||
| 2007–08 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 58 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 74 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 2008–09 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 79 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 123 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 2009–10 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 74 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 141 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 2010–11 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 79 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 122 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 24 | ||
| 2011–12 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 81 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 154 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2012–13 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 45 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 60 | 22 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 18 | ||
| NHL totals | 495 | 33 | 47 | 80 | 832 | 89 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 77 | ||||
References
- ↑ Boston Bruins
- ↑ http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=4788862
- ↑ Thornton-Orpic attack, boston.com/sports, December 7, 2013
- ↑ Klein, Jeff (December 15, 2013) Breaking the code of justiceNew York Times, retrieved December 15, 2013
- ↑ Boston Bruins’ Shawn Thornton explores Irish roots in Belfast
- ↑ For Dawson, '09 Truly a Career Year
- ↑ http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=536946#&navid=nhl-search
External links
- Shawn Thornton's career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
- Shawn Thornton's career statistics at EliteProspects.com
- Shawn Thornton's player profile at NHL.com