The Bruins netmnder did allow five goals, but Thomas made a lot of more important saves as he helped the Bruins even the Eastern Conference final against Tampa Bay at a game apiece with a 6-5 victory in Game 2 on Tuesday.
"In the third period, he just stood on his head and made the big saves at the right time," Bruins coach Claude Julien said. "He made some big saves at the end and allowed us to win that game."
Things didn't start well for Thomas, who gave up a goal on the game's first shot just 13 seconds into play. The Lightning struck for another with only 6.5 seconds left in the opening period. But the Bruins offense came alive with five goals in the second for a 6-3 lead.
Then it was up to Thomas to make it stand up. Tampa threw everything it had at him, eventually pulling within a goal on a controversial tally with 6:45 left in regulation, when Dominic Moore scored after Thomas had his mask knocked off.
Some goalies may have wilted under the pressure the Lightning put on Thomas, but the veteran goalie called up his past experience to weather the storm.
"I think experience helps in those situations," Thomas said. "Just this year we were in a few games. I think we beat Philly 7-5 or something like that, and we had a similar game against Montreal. Experience helps you to learn that each time a goal goes in, you've just got to put it behind you. You've got to start focusing on the next one. If you start thinking about the goals that just went in, it's going to lead to other goals, and it's not going to be helpful.
"With our big second period there, I knew we had a big lead going into the third period, and the plan wasn't to let them get close at all," Thomas added. "But when it gets to 6-4 and 6-5, when you're a younger goaltender, it might be hard for you to keep your focus. But I've been through enough situations similar to that. I was just trying to keep my focus, and when it got to 6-5, do everything I possibly could to keep it from becoming 6-6."
Thomas did plenty, stopping 13 of the 15 shots he faced in the third after making 14 saves on 15 shots in the second. Overall, he finished the night with 36 saves, including several on clean breakaways that could have completely changed the complexion of the game.
"He's playing unbelievable," Bruins defenseman Dennis Seidenberg said. "I don't know how many breakaways he stopped. It's good to have him back there. I mean, we definitely can't complain."
Thomas' biggest save may have come just over six minutes into the second period. The Bruins had rallied with a pair of goals for their first lead of the series at 3-2, but Ryan Malone had a chance to make it a short-lived lead as he swooped in on Thomas on a clean breakaway. Thomas stoned the Tampa winger, and the Bruins counterattacked the other way with Tyler Seguin finishing a 2-on-1 break with Nathan Horton for a 4-2 lead and the Bruins never looked back.
"He's unbelievable," Bruins center David Krejci said of Thomas. "I know there were five goals but some were lucky. He made some stops in the second period on some breakaways, so without him, I don't know what would happen. But it's a team sport. He's one of us and we're happy to have him."
Thomas has certainly had better statistical nights. He led the league with 2.00 GAA and set a new NHL record with a .938 save percentage in the regular season. Giving up five goals isn't something a netminder ever wants to do, but Thomas didn't mind the hit to his stats as long as he knew he made the saves that he needed to make and the Bruins came away with the victory.
"In the playoffs, it doesn't matter what the final score is as long as long as you're the one with the higher number," Thomas said. "I am not really worried that they scored five goals because we were able to score six and that was a really good thing. We found a way to win and the guys on this team deserve credit for that. They did an excellent job, but we still haven't played as well as we can."
