Tim Thomas Timothy James Thomas , Jr . ( born April 15 , 1974 ) is an American professional ice hockey goaltender with the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) . Raised in Davison , Michigan , Thomas played college hockey for the University of Vermont for four years , from 1993 – 1997 , during which he was drafted 217th overall by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft . He played for several years in the minor leagues and Europe , before making it to the NHL at age 28 , with the Boston Bruins . He finally emerged as the Bruins ' starting goaltender at age 32 . Thomas was the winner of the 2009 Vezina Trophy as the league ' s best goaltender and played as a backup for Team USA in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver . Thomas won the Conn Smythe Trophy for Most Valuable Player in the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs . Winning it , along with the Stanley Cup , at age 37 , he became the oldest player and second American - born player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy in NHL history , after Brian Leetch . On June 22 , 2011 , Tim Thomas was awarded the Vezina Trophy for the second time in his career . Personal life . Thomas grew up around Amityville , a suburb of Flint , and graduated from Davison High School . In order to pay for his hockey tournaments , his parents Tim Sr . and Kathy sold their wedding rings . Thomas and wife Melissa have three children : daughters Kiley , born August 2000 and Kelsey , born May 2005 , and son Keegan , born September 2006 . Thomas is bilingual , having learned Finnish while playing in Finland . Playing career . College hockey . Thomas played four seasons ( 1993 – 97 ) of college hockey for the University of Vermont , posting an 81 – 43 – 15 record to go with a 2 . 70 GAA and . 924 save percentage . He ranks third in the NCAA Division I record book in career saves ( 3 , 950 ) . He led the nation in save percentage in 1996 ( . 924 ) and helped UVM ' s Catamounts to NCAA tournament appearances in his final two seasons , including a berth in the 1996 NCAA Frozen Four ( a program first ) . He was a two - time All - ECAC Conference selection and a two - time NCAA East All - American . He ranks first all - time amongst Vermont goalies in games played ( 140 ) , wins ( 81 ) and saves ( 3 , 950 ) . At Vermont , Thomas played on the same team as Tampa Bay Lightning right wing Martin St . Louis . Early pro years . Completing his four - year tenure at Vermont , Thomas played briefly for the Birmingham Bulls of the East Coast Hockey League ( ECHL ) and Houston Aeros of the International Hockey League ( IHL ) in 1997 – 98 , before transferring overseas mid - season to HIFK of the Finnish SM - Liiga . Thomas played 18 games with a save percentage of . 947 as the team advanced through the playoffs to defeat Ilves in the finals and win the Finnish championship . After signing with the Edmonton Oilers on June 4 , 1998 , Thomas initially moved to the AHL the following season with the Hamilton Bulldogs , where he played 15 games , before again transferring to HIFK . Thomas recorded a . 917 save percentage in 14 games as HIFK made it to the league finals once more but finished as runners - up to TPS . In 1999 – 2000 , Thomas returned once again to North America to play for the Detroit Vipers of the IHL , then spent the next season with AIK of Sweden ' s Elitserien . In 2001 , # 30 Thomas joined the Boston Bruins organization , but chose to continue playing in Europe , spending his first full SM - liiga season in 2001 – 02 with Kärpät of Oulu . Although the team didn ' t get far in the playoffs , Thomas played a successful season of 32 games with a . 925 save percentage . AHL seasons , NHL debut . Beginning in 2002 – 03 , Thomas played his initial two seasons with Boston ' s AHL affiliate , the Providence Bruins . He made his National Hockey League ( NHL ) debut with the Bruins during the 2002 – 03 season , appearing in four games total , with a . 907 save percentage and a 3 – 1 record . Thomas recorded his first NHL win in his league debut with the Bruins on October 19 , 2002 , in a 31 - save , 4 – 3 win against the Edmonton Oilers . Return to Finland . As a result of the one - season duration NHL lockout in North America , in 2004 – 05 Thomas joined Jokerit of the SM - Liiga , his fourth stint in Finland . He played in all games of the season except one , 54 games in total , and racked up a league - high . 946 save percentage . He also surpassed the previous record of 13 shutout s in the league by achieving 15 shutouts during the regular season . Thomas continued to perform in the playoffs , where he played 12 games with a . 938 save percentage . The team was unable to defeat Kärpät in the finals , however , and Thomas was awarded his second silver medal in the SM - liiga . He received the Lasse Oksanen trophy ( as the league ' s best player ) and the Kultainen kypärä award ( as the league ' s best player award as voted by the players ) , becoming the first Jokerit player to win the award since Teemu Selänne . Boston Bruins . 2005 - 2006 . In August 2005 , Thomas signed to play with Jokerit for the 2005 – 06 season , but his contract included an NHL option and on September 14 , one day before the regular season in the SM - liiga started , Thomas announced he had signed with the Boston Bruins , leaving Jokerit with rookie goaltender Joonas Hallikainen as their sole goaltender . Eventually Jokerit used three North American goaltenders ( Karl Goehring , Steve Passmore and Tom Askey ) that season but missed the playoffs . When he returned to North America , he was assigned to Providence of the AHL out of training camp . However , as Boston suffered injuries to their two goalies Andrew Raycroft and Hannu Toivonen , Thomas earned his first call - up to the NHL in three years and took over as the Bruins starting goalie , completing the 2005 – 06 season with a 12 – 13 – 7 record , 2 . 77 goals against average ( GAA ) , . 917 save percentage and his first NHL shutout . As a result , Thomas was awarded the Boston Bruins 7th Player Award , voted by the fans as having gone beyond expectations . In the off - season , Thomas was re - signed by the Bruins to a three - year deal . 2006 - 2008 . Although Boston ' s previous starter , Andrew Raycroft , was traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the off - season , Thomas began the 2006 – 07 season as the Bruins ' backup , behind Hannu Toivonen instead . However , as Toivonen struggled , Thomas was again promoted as the Bruins ' starting goaltender , eventually posting a 30 – 29 – 4 record with a . 904 save percentage . He won the 7th Player Award for the second consecutive season and became the first goalie in team history to win the award twice . During the summer of 2007 , Thomas began a yoga - based physical conditioning program to increase his flexibility and strength , a concept that would greatly increase his abilities during the 2007 – 08 NHL season and onwards . On July 1 , 2007 , the Bruins acquired goaltender Manny Fernandez from the Minnesota Wild and later traded Thomas ' previous backup , Toivonen , to the St . Louis Blues . Many hockey analysts presumed that Thomas would support Fernandez as a backup goaltender once again for the 2007 – 08 season . However , as Fernandez went down to injury early in the season , Thomas seized the opportunity and once again emerged as the Bruins ' starting goalie . He was selected for his first NHL All - Star Game on January 22 , 2008 as a replacement for Martin Brodeur and played in the third period of the game , stopping 14 of 18 shots . Thomas was credited with the win , as the Eastern Conference defeated the Western Conference 8 – 7 . Early in the 2008 – 09 season , Thomas became the first Bruins goalie to record back - to - back shutouts since Byron Dafoe in 1999 , winning 1 – 0 games against the Edmonton Oilers on October 27 , 2008 and the Vancouver Canucks on October 28 . His overall shutout streak came to end the next game at 154 : 43 minutes against the Calgary Flames on October 30 . In late November , Thomas missed a few games due to an illness . He was chosen to play in his second All - Star Game in 2009 and was once again the winning goaltender for the Eastern Conference , beating the Western Conference 12 – 11 in a shootout ( the first time the All - Star Game required the tie - breaker since 2005 ) . A month later , on February 26 , 2009 , Thomas recorded his 100th NHL win , in a 6 – 0 shutout against the Anaheim Ducks . 2008 - 2010 . On April 2 , 2009 Thomas agreed to a four - year extension with the Bruins , through the 2012 – 13 season . The contract will see him make $ 6 million the first two seasons , then $ 5 million and $ 3 million the final two seasons for an average annual salary of $ 5 million . Two days later , on April 4 , he posted his career - high fifth shutout of the season in a 1 – 0 win against the New York Rangers , clinching the top spot in the Eastern Conference , Boston ' s first title since 2001 – 02 . His strong play allowed the Bruins to sweep the Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs , but the Bruins bowed out to the Carolina Hurricanes in seven games in Round 2 . On June 18 , 2009 , Thomas was awarded the Vezina Trophy at the NHL awards , beating out Minnesota Wild netminder Niklas Bäckström and the Blue Jackets ' rookie goaltender Steve Mason . He led the NHL with his 2 . 10 goals - against average and . 933 save percentage . Thomas started for the Bruins in the 3rd NHL Winter Classic on January 1 , 2010 . The game , held at Fenway Park in Boston , resulted in a 2 – 1 overtime victory over the visiting Philadelphia Flyers . But Thomas suffered a drop - off in form during the regular season , posting just a 17 – 18 – 8 record , albeit with a still - strong 2 . 56 GAA . He did not play at all in the playoffs , as Tuukka Rask played all the games for Boston . The Bruins won their Conference quarter - final series , and led the Philadelphia Flyers three games to none in the Conference semi - final . But Boston then lost the next four games to drop the series ; the Flyers became just the third team in NHL history ( after the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs and the 1975 New York Islanders ) to win a series after losing the first three games . Named to his third straight NHL All - Star Game in 2011 – the game was not played in 2010 due to the Winter Olympics – Thomas became the first goaltender in league history to earn the win in three consecutive All - Star Games . 2010 - 2011 and Stanley Cup win . In the 2010 – 2011 season , following off - season hip surgery during the summer of 2010 , Tim Thomas broke the NHL record for save percentage , beating Dominik Hasek ' s record of . 937 , with a . 938 percentage . On Friday , April 22 , 2011 , Thomas was named a finalist for the 2010 – 2011 Vezina Trophy , which he won on Wednesday , June 22 , 2011 . On Friday , May 27 , 2011 , Thomas posted a shutout victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals , sending the Boston Bruins to their first Stanley Cup appearance since 1990 . In the Finals , Thomas again posted a shutout victory in Game 7 against the Vancouver Canucks . He was selected as the Conn Smythe Trophy winner , being only the second American - born NHL player to ever win the award , and the first in 17 years . During the Bruins ' playoff run , he set the record for most saves in a single postseason with 798 and the most saves in a Stanley Cup series with 238 , and broke Frank McCool ' s 66 - year old record of fewest goals allowed in a 7 - game Stanley Cup Finals , allowing only eight goals total ( for an all - time record . 967 save percentage in the Stanley Cup Finals ) . Thomas also became the first goaltender ever to post a shutout in a Game 7 on the road . At 37 years , 62 days , Thomas is the oldest recipient of the Conn Smythe Trophy , the first American - born winner of the trophy since Brian Leetch in 1994 , and the first American - born goaltender to win the award . Tim Thomas took the 2012 - 13 season off due to personal reasons , and should come back for next season . International play . During Thomas ' college career with the University of Vermont , he was named to Team USA twice for the World Championships . Following his sophomore year , he was chosen for the 1995 World Championships , but did not appear in any games as the United States finished in sixth place . He was chosen for the tournament for the second consecutive year in 1996 and made his international debut , playing in 21 minutes for one game , allowing one goal . Thomas picked up his first medal as the United States won bronze . After graduating from the college program , Thomas was named to Team USA for the 1998 World Championships following his rookie professional season and played his first full international game . However , the United States finished a disappointing twelfth . Thomas would not make another World Championships appearance until 2005 , where he was named to Team USA in another limited role , not appearing in any games behind starter Rick DiPietro as they failed to earn a medal . Established as an NHL starter following the 2007 – 08 NHL season , Thomas was named to his fifth World Championships in 2008 . He appeared in three games before suffering a groin injury , splitting starts with Robert Esche and posting a 1 . 50 GAA with one shutout against Latvia in the preliminaries . Team USA finished in sixth place . On January 1 , 2010 , Thomas was selected to be a member of the U . S . men ' s hockey team for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics . On February 26 , 2010 , Thomas made his Olympic debut in the USA – Finland semifinal , entering the game with approximately 11 : 30 remaining in the 3rd period and a 6 – 0 lead . He replaced Ryan Miller to prevent any chance of injury to the American starter . Awards . College SM - Liiga NHL Other Career statistics . Regular season . Figures in boldface italics are NHL records .