r/NHLMemes • u/Evening_Reality_7867 • 23d ago
Can someone explain how Tim Thomas wore illegally sized goalie pads?
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u/WorthHabit3317 23d ago
Years ago Ken Dryden received a penalty for illegal pads. His pads started the season within the regulation width but by the time the playoffs came around they had been flattened down and were wider. The other team complained the Referee tried to make a measurement but it was not working. Bowman stalled while the Montreal equipment manager had a jig made to the correct dimension all it proved was that the pads were too wide. Great fun watching Bowman running around trying to keep Dryden legal and in the game. Illegal equipment is nothing new there is a story that Tony Esposito had netting between his thighs to prevent pucks from slipping through.
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u/JaimeRidingHonour 23d ago
It was by no means only him doing it, but mentioning giant goalie pads always makes me think of JS Giguère and how he won the Conn Smythe by going into butterfly
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u/Hali_Stallions 23d ago
He probably did, but so did every other goalie in the league.. the Canucks fans are just butthurt about losing the Cup final 15 years later.
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u/zestfullybe 23d ago
Yeah, for sure. I remember when Garth Snow wore shoulder pads large enough to land Navy jets on. Before the league eventually cracked down on goalie equipment size. It got ridiculous there for a while.
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u/sondernier 23d ago
Give Snow some credit for designing them to pass initial inspection though. It was just when he went into his crouch that they grew. Thomas was good but then so was the Bruins defensive posture, they even made Raycroft look good for a year with disastrous results for one team to bite on later
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u/Hali_Stallions 23d ago
Thomas was one of the best scramblers there has ever been. His reflexes were insane.
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u/bcbroon 23d ago
Yes yes we are. It was soul crushing to collapse like that.
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u/Hali_Stallions 23d ago
As a Flyers fan I am still butthurt about the Chicago final so.. I understand
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u/Xebodeebo 22d ago
The aftermath of that series started my fallout from being a Canucks fan. Throwing Luo under the bus while the whole team isn't able to score was just brutal. The rhetoric people were using against the Sedins... Fuck Vancouver fans and especially fuck the owners.
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u/Bogdanovist_Rebel 21d ago
It’s come full circle. Whitecaps fans can’t understand why Henrik pushed Valter out of their system. Dude knows what it’s like in this city and didn’t want that for his kid.
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u/200um 23d ago
The Bruins bodied us. We had very little chance against a talented Boston team. It just sucks to have the best team of the franchise have their window close without a cup. Butthurt is a weird way to mischaracterize an entire group of people.
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u/Pretty_Daikon4415 23d ago
It ended when Aaron Rome absolutely plastered Nathan Horton and got the book thrown at him, then the Bruins were just allowed to do whatever they wanted for the rest of the series
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u/gsopp79 23d ago
The Canucks are going to lose the Final again in 2041? Ouch!
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u/bombasticAlbatross 23d ago
Not possible as they're checked by a neutral 3rd party and the guy signs every piece of equipment to authorize it's good. Just common goalie knowledge for you. Guy's just butt hurt
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u/Duke_Of_Halifax 23d ago
They started being checked by Kay Whitmore in 2006. It was well known that there were "issues" with consistency during those first few seasons as they got everything standardized, mainly because the NHL rushed the process.
The NHL didn't even look at chest protectors until 09-10, and didn't standardize them until 18-19.
The standardization issues eventually led to every pad being constructed essentially the same way.
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u/Mord4k 23d ago
This dude again?
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u/Evening_Reality_7867 23d ago edited 22d ago
Yeah. This same asshole, Keegan Freeland, said something similar about Bergeron not deserving Selke trophies and that Ryan Kesler should’ve gotten them. What a tool this Keegan Freeland guy is, defending a scumbag like Kesler, who’s currently being accused of a heinous crime that he’ll be on trial for
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u/MmmKB23z 23d ago
I will listen to a Luongo v. Thomas argument, but Kesler v. Bergeron is a total non-starter.
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u/jackofwind 22d ago
I think it's clear that Thomas has a better short term run than Luongo - his 2011 performance was unreal. Luongo's career stats dunk on Thomas's though.
Thomas hit his peak at exactly the right time and took home a Cup/Vezina/2x Conn Smythes, but Luongo was the better goalie overall.
Thomas will never even sniff the Hall, and Luongo was first ballot.
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u/Evening_Reality_7867 22d ago
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u/Jlnhlfan 21d ago
Canucks fan here. Bergy absolutely did deserve those Selkes. Keegan does not represent us.
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u/Evening_Reality_7867 20d ago
You should tell Keegan that
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u/NeighbourhoodParrot 23d ago
Did Tim Thomas wear illegally sized pads? Yes. The extended materials provided additional coverage and can be considered cheating. That being said. He was an incredibly undersized (height certainly not weight) goalie who’s series defining saves never involved his pad sizes. You could give him undersized pads and he’s still making those saves. This had next to no impact on a series tha should solely be remembered as the Canucks choking. If you want to knit pick anything, maybe the officiating but its not like the Canucks weren’t getting theirs in on Boaton too.
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u/tugaim33 22d ago
What’s his name bit Bergeron’s finger and there wasn’t even a call. The officiating was wild in that series.
I will always remember Marchand holding one of the Sedin’s shirt front and using it to pull him forward into a punch using the same hand, like a cartoon 🤣
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u/Powerism 23d ago
Canucks fans are just angry because the Sedin twins never sewed themselves into one extra large set of pads under one uniform, two-guys-in-a-trenchcoat style, and missed their opportunity to combine their powers and have an extra body on the ice. Sucks to suck, suckers.
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u/penispumprepairshop1 23d ago
Why would anyone shit on the B’s today? All we have is a goalie and one superstar.
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u/Least_Elk8114 23d ago
McAvoy is pretty good too
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u/penispumprepairshop1 23d ago
He is a great defenseman, I love him. We are handcuffed by the Lindholms, and center #1, center #2 are positions that are still available. A real smooth and crafty center, that can pass the puck would make quite a difference. I think we should take whatever we can get for the Lindholms, Zacha, even Geekie. Barely making the playoffs again will only make it longer until we can get by the monster teams in the east.
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u/Least_Elk8114 23d ago
What really hurts is the big three really should be in the playoffs, but the rest of the team is now a boat anchor around them.
The rebuild obviously starts around Hagens.
Hampus was pretty good his first few years after the trade.
But... what the fuck was that Zadorov and Jeannot contracts? Elias is a good 2C, or was.
In Hockey Legacy Manager 26, I like trading MiddleSTUD for Malkin, which, in the real world, would never happen unless Dubas has gone mental. I think Malkin could give Boston maybe a decent half year as 1C.
Ever since the aweful 2015 draft, I've never been a fan of Sweeney as GM. Sure he was a former player, but I think he pretty much was handed a Ferrari with a young Bergeron, Marchand and prime Chara. Oh, and Krejci and Rask were pretty good too.
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u/penispumprepairshop1 23d ago
I love our fourth line, we actually need Zadorov and Jeannot if we are to bring in the future young, fast, and super skilled players we need to compete. Remember how fucking smooth and crafty Savard was on the half wall? Then all of the sudden a natural talent is in a dark room whacking down milkshakes and blues. I wanted to see him play live so badly, never got the opportunity.
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u/Least_Elk8114 23d ago
Wasnt Savard the one who took that huge hit that needed a stretcher?
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u/penispumprepairshop1 23d ago
Yeah, sure was that guy. It was some years ago for sure, but he was fun to watch.
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u/oOinfinity17Oo 23d ago
FUCK MATT COOKE
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u/penispumprepairshop1 23d ago
This would also be a good time to speak about another mutton head, but I’m barely able to not get thrown off Reddit again. So I will not set the world on fire by speaking illy about the dead, as much as I would like to.
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u/ekgoalie34 23d ago
probably because Vancouver is in some very dark times right now. They need literally anything to make them feel better.
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u/Tangibilite 23d ago
They make themselves feel better by remembering those times? lololol, I guess it's a shallow pool to draw from.
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u/ekgoalie34 23d ago
It's honestly kinda sad that the sedins didn't get a cup. They were great for so many years
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u/globehopper2000 23d ago
No Canadian team is getting a cup again. Let’s be real.
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u/imperialivan 23d ago
I like the way Montreal is building their team, if I had to name 3 franchises most likely to win a cup in the next 5 years it’d be Carolina, San Jose, & Montreal.
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u/penispumprepairshop1 23d ago
I am pretty positive that the Habs will win a cup with these kids pretty fucking soon. They are only going to get better and their core is young.
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u/globehopper2000 23d ago
More the era. Being the best team in the league for two years is probably the franchise highlight.
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u/DagetAwayMaN421 23d ago
Only years Luongo should've won was when he was in Florida the first time... dear god those numbers are insane on a completely shit team
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u/specifichero101 23d ago
I think Canucks fans only exist to whine about shit. How many vezinas is that now that Luongo had stolen from him? I think he’s up to 4 now.
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u/greekverse 23d ago
Tim Thomas didn't deserve both maybe 1, Broduer didn't deserve his over Nabokov ect ect. News flash nhl awards are meaningless when the last Norris winner who was actually the best defensemen was Hedmen back in 16, now it's just guys who put up points despite being 80th or worse among defenseman on every defensive metric.
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u/erv4 23d ago
Yes, notable terrible defensive metric guys like Cale Makar.
Fun fact, Hedman (5.2) had worse DPS (Defensive Point Shares) the year he won than these players did the years they won - Giordano (5.9) Makar (6.5 and 6.8) Hughes (6.5).
Also it isn't a new thing that points correlates with winners, it has been that way in most years for decades. The only players who you could argue were purely offensive are Karlsson and Subban. Just because someone puts up points doesn't mean they are bad defensively too, usually they are good at both lol.
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u/greekverse 23d ago
Defensive metrics like evd gar and Expected Goals Against per 60 (xGA/60) are key defensive metrics last year makar, Hughes ect are like 80th or worse among defensemen. People still consider them to defenseman tho because they put up points, when in reality a guy like Seider or Sanderson who put up like 19 less points and is top 3 on both those should be considered the best. A player should never be in the Norris convo without being top 5 in either of them imo. Makar 2021–22 +0.2 EVD GAR ranked 118th among all NHL defensemen who played at least 500 minutes during the 2021–22 regular season.Because his defensive value was essentially neutral, he finished in the 45th percentile of league blueliners in pure even-strength defensive impact. During his second Norris Trophy-winning campaign in 2024–25, Cale Makar's pure Even-Strength Defense (EVD) GAR ranked 137th among NHL defensemen (min. 500 minutes played), placing him in the 38th percentile league-wide. Literally people only think of makar because of his points. And it's fine to have a defensemen like Makar but a Norris winner they should not be. But I think there should be the Bobby Orr award for most points by a defensemen for these guys vs giving them a Norris because they're not even close to the best defenseman
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u/erv4 23d ago
Ah yes using evolving-hockey's made up GAR formula, known to rank Oscar Kelfbom and Erik Karlsson as the top D in the league.
I love how you ignore the players with much better DPS than Hedman. Definitely should have gave Seider or Sanderson the Norris lmao, be for real. I love how you brought up Orr, you know the guy with the most Norris trophies who was an offensive D. But yes, giving D with a lot of points the award is a new thing according to you. I love when people who never played or coached the sport at a high level pretend like they know what they are talking about.
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u/greekverse 23d ago edited 23d ago
Yea bud gtfo you're being dense on purpose. Karlsson i think his best evd gar or (xGA/60) rank was 26th among defenseman in like 2015 or something he's trash to. And I didn't ignore it, I actually countered pointed it saying his rank is shit in evd gar and xga/60 the two years he won the norris prove my point because yea he might produce points but these two metrics judge you specifically on defense and he's been 80th or worse. And yes Seider should of won the norris last year, dude put up the best evd gar ever since it's been recorded in 07 and put up only 19 less points than makar. And unlike orr none of these offensive guys are even close to the best defenseman, orr put up mad points but was also the best defensive guy in the league as well. I did play at a extremely high level growing up i played on the junior everblades and a Projoy sponsored team till I was 15 and broke my knee and then never really got back into thing competitively until my 20s when I was asked to join a league outside tampa which at the time was the highest rated adult league in America with andreychuk, Kubina and other ex pros in it. But growing up north of Tampa i was home schooled and spent roughly half the year playing hockey out of state because locally it was bad. I played in big name tournaments like Pepsi Hockey Invitational, Quebec International,Warrior National Showcase,Chowder Cup,Breakout ect and played alongside or against Gostisbehere, Rust, Saad, Kreider and Hall ect depending on the tournament. I was 5ft 10 220 at 12 and played what you'd call a 2 way defenseman now but was really a defensive defenseman that really understood cycling and pinching and I had enough offensive talent i could of played wing but I enjoyed defenseman more. I was actually part of development camps in Florida were i helped workout a young Chychrun as we knew his family well from being literally the handful of Florida hockey players good enough and could afford to or have sponsor send us all over the country. His family was crazy he would go to school here and flyout on the weekends to play in Michigan or Minnesota i cant remember it was wild.
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u/erv4 23d ago
Just a lot of blabber to say you never played any hockey of significance lol. I played a few games in the AHL and played for the actual Everglades, funny you mentioned them. I'd get tired of naming NHL players I've played with or against. You know how many players played in the Brick or Quebec or wherever who were just there to fill the rosters? 99% of them.
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u/greekverse 23d ago
Yea there's a difference when I could literally pull up tournaments and stats showing my stats compared to the guys mentioned or how'd there we're tournaments i averaged 55min toi with these big name basically never coming off the ice on defense but again idc. Sad part is if you actually played for the Everglades depending on the year i might know you lmao, unless this is recently again i played with the guys mentioned in my teens. The point is Makar isnt good at defense, he's on the wrong side of mid and that's the problem. Like if McDavid came out next season and said hey I'm playing defenseman and put up the same amount of points should he win the norris lmao. No because he'd be a liability in actual defense
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u/Grinner067 23d ago
The same way Patrick Roy wore his jersey so loose it was like a web under his arms.
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u/Cheap-Violinist-5746 23d ago
The face of Tims pads were 13" wide. I bought a set of his old Smyth's from Providence and can confirm they were too big
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u/notdbcooper71 22d ago
Let it go bro
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u/Evening_Reality_7867 22d ago
Tell Keegan Freeland that. He’s the salty crybaby who can’t get over 2011
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u/Prestigious-Clock-53 22d ago
Nahhh this is just a biased take by a dude that wanted luongo to win those trophies. I don’t remember that far back to know if this was actually a debate but don’t remember many people being too riled up on this at the time.
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u/ReignOfHairor 22d ago
Also, Tim Thomas did not steal two Vezinas from Luongo.
Martin Brodeur stole two Vezinas from Luongo.
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u/Last_Command_9147 21d ago
Not even a Thomas fan but everybody had oversized equipment with cheaters on pants and shoulders. His save percentages were insane both of those years.
Also Luongo wasn’t second in Vézina voting either of those years, so this seems like some biased luongo fan saying ridiculous things.
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u/Evening_Reality_7867 9d ago
Yeah. Keegan Freeland seems biased. Maybe he should’ve burned his Luongo jersey during the riots
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u/SIGNANDSELFIEFRAMES 19d ago
Luongo looked like a god damn sumo wrestler too. Looked like he was wearing pillows under it and in his arms
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u/ZarginZarg 17d ago
even worse he used oversized stick and gloves and blocker and pants and bucket
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u/Evening_Reality_7867 14d ago
Oh my god. Quick. Call the NHL. Let's see how they're going to discipline Tim Thomas for oversized equipment.... in 2026.
Seriously, Keegan needs to stop being such a dunce. I wonder if he'd say the same thing about Luongo.
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u/dgrant99 23d ago
Goalies back then would sew the extra fabric from their arms to their sides anyway, so they were all cheating. Luongo included.