Joe Thornton spent his first eight-plus seasons in Boston, and Tuesday may be the last time he visits TD Garden.
The Bruins are set to take on the San Jose Sharks for their first of two meetings in the 2019-20 season. Thornton, 40, netted a hat trick against his former club the last time these two teams met back in February.
Now at 40 years old, Thornton is closer to the end of his career than the start. But the center isn’t putting too much thought into possibly stepping foot on TD Garden ice for the final time.
“No. No. I didn’t think about that,” Thornton told NBC Sports Boston’s Joe Haggerty. “It never has (been in my mind).
“I’ve been coming back a lot of years now, so I’ve still got some friends here. Great memories,” he added. “I came here at 18 (years old) so I grew up in this city. The people were great to me. It really has changed over the last 15 years. It’s one of the best cities in the U.S., that’s for sure. I always enjoy coming here and playing the Bruins.”
Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET.
