Boston Bruins: Tim Thomas makes return to public life

Tim Thomas made his return to public life and the former Boston Bruins goaltender spoke about the struggles he has dealt with.

It seemed like Tim Thomas had just disappeared. After he retired from the Boston Bruins we didn’t hear anything from him. Now we have an explanation.

Thomas is being inducted into the US Hockey Hall of Fame. It is definitely well deserved. Thomas is one of the best goaltenders in Boston Bruins history.

Bruins fans will always remember Thomas for his miraculous run in 2011. He helped carry that team to a Stanley Cup championship.

The 2010-11 season was Thomas’ best as a pro. In the regular season he had a 35-11-9 record with a goals against average of 2 and a .938 save percentage.

Then in the postseason he was even better. Thomas had a .940 save percentage and a goals against average of 1.98. He even won the Conn Smyth trophy which is given out to the MVP of the postseason.

But then Thomas disappeared. Once he retired from hockey no one heard from him. It seems like now we know why.

Thomas had dealt with concussions during his NHL career. The toll they have taken has been immense.

It was tough to see Thomas get emotional as he continued to speak. At one point he just stopped loving the game.

There is no doubt that concussions are a problem in multiple sports. Back in the day you were told to shake it off.

Now with the information we are armed with we know just how dangerous they are. The long term effects can cripple a person’s life.

Thomas underwent a test a year after he retired that measures the flow of blood to the brain by using radioactive isotopes. The results were terrifying.

"Thomas claims the numbers showed two thirds of his brain was getting less than five percent of the necessary blood flow and the other third was getting about 50 percent."

After hearing all that it is good to see that Thomas is back in public and he appears to be in good shape. Maybe we will soon see him back at TD Garden?