Matt Thompson Biography [1/2]

[Beketov 9,125]

 

Matt Thompson, of Vancouver, British Columbia, was born to score. In his youth, Matt's father had joked that he had been born with a hockey stick already clutched in his tiny hand. Clearly this was false but it did nothing to dissuade the youth from pursuing hockey as a passion. Some would even call it a calling in his early days.

 

Matt's first time on skates was when he was 2 years old on a frozen pond behind the home of his grandmother. She had bought him a skating guide to follow around before realizing the toddler found the guide completely unnecessary; a hindrance if anything. It was quickly tossed aside in favour of a hockey stick. Matt's mother insisted on the stick for balance but the youngster had plenty of balance on his own and was a natural on skates without any assistance necessary. This child was born to play and his family recognized it immediately, but would his abilities translate to proper training?

 

There are certainly worse places to grow up playing.

 

Minor Hockey

 

Thompson's minor hockey career started as most would assume given his inherent abilities on the ice. At the age of 5 he was enrolled in tyke level minor hockey with boys his own age to learn the game; ultimately that knowledge seemed to be in his bones.

 

His tyke level counterparts couldn't hold a candle to his speed or stick handling abilities and teammates quickly learned that if they wanted to win it was best to get Matt the puck; even if that was less fun for themselves. This posed a problem for his coaches. Tyke level is for fun, not for competing, and ultimately Matt was simply too good for the other kids to handle. He played only 1 year at the level before being pushed ahead to Novice level at age 6 after scoring 216 points in only 42 games.

 

 

Catching Matt would prove difficult early on.

 

In novice the challenge was still not present for Matt. His opponents may have been bigger but he was ultimately still faster and getting the puck off his stick proved impossible or most. Matt took pride in his abilities to destroy opponents, refusing to slow down even when he had already scored more than enough times to humiliate the other team. Once again, coaches were not pleased and he spent only 2 years in the level; moving up to Atom level at age 8 to play against 10 year olds.

 

Atom, Peewee, and Bantom would all follow the same trend in the years to come. Regardless of who was placed against Matt, be it on defense or in net, they were no competition. He quickly earned the nickname “Tommy Gun” because of his ability to mow down the opposition without slowing down. He would ultimately spend 2 years in each of these higher levels, amassing a total of 1890 points in 378 games over 9 years in minor hockey before moving onto Midget AAA level at only 15.

 

Midget AAA would prove to be a small amount for difficult for Thompson playing against 17 and 18 year olds who were far larger and stronger than the opponents he had previously played against. His production with the Fraser Valley Thunderbirds would be lower than usual with 132 points in 42 games but that would still prove to be more than enough to garner the attention of WHL scouts.

 

Major Junior Hockey

 

At 16 years of age Matt Thompson was drafted in the first round of the WHL draft by the Medicine Hat Tigers and found himself in a level of competition that he had never before seen. Hits were hard, skaters were fast, goalies were faster still. Shifts were short and opportunities for big plays were few and far between.

 

Matt was young on a veteran team by WHL standards. No one was expecting a spectacular season out of him but he did perform respectfully averaging just over a point per game during the regular season and playing in all but 2 games. This pace would continue over the course of 2 years with the Tigers, though not leading the team to the playoffs in either year unfortunately.

 

Times were tough for the Tigers but for Matt, worse was yet to come.

 

In Matt's third season, at the age of 18, that would all change. His scoring levels improved slightly, as did that of his teammates, and the Tigers roared into the playoffs in third place and found themselves performing quite well leading to a birth in the WHL Finals. Thompson's playoff performance, however, was less than stellar, scoring only 4 times in the opening three rounds.

 

In an effort to push himself for better and lead his team to a Memorial cup berth, Thompson fought harder than ever, leading ultimately to disaster for the young Thompson during this final playoff round. In game 6 with the Tigers on the brink of losing the championship Matt went knee on knee with an opposing player in the neutral zone and knew something was wrong immediately. He couldn't stand to get off the ice and had to hear the final score, a Tigers loss, from the back of an ambulance.

 

Injured and Out?

 

The prognosis for Matt's knee was not promising to say the least. Kneecap shattered, ligaments torn. After months of training he could walk again but skating was excruciating. As the notes from doctors kept getting worse, the notes from NHL scouts started to dry up. Where once he had interest from 16 NHL teams, less than 4 continued contacting Thompson through the summer. By the time the NHL draft rolled around the 18 year old didn't have much hope and decided to stay home rather than make the trip to the draft floor: a wise choice given that no team took a shot on him.

 

It was a long summer for the teen. Hockey had been his entire life. He had no other aspirations, no other hopes or dreams. No other options at all; or so it seemed. Whilst browsing for different careers Matt stumbled upon the VHLM; a minor league for the VHL. It wasn't the NHL for sure but the VHLM allowed players to sign to any team that would take them on for partial seasons before being drafted. What did he have to lose? He quickly applied and was offered a position on the Yukon Rushes' fourth line. Not the minutes he was used to for sure but they were a strong team looking toward a deep playoff push to Thompson happily accepted.

 

Thompson Rushed at the opportunity

 

VHLM

 

That strong playoff push did in fact come. Thompson, unfortunately, was still strengthening his knee with low minutes and thus didn't score until late in the playoffs (and not at all in his 20 regular season games) but it was no matter. The Rush walked away with the championship and Thompson walked into the VHLM draft with a stronger knee and a ring on his finger.

 

There was no waiting around for his name this time. Thompson was picked up 7^th overall by the Ottawa Lynx and was tasked with leading a young team with high hopes but low expectations. Many doubted the team could pull off any kind of upset, especially with the Saskatoon Wild being stacked in that particular year. Not stepping back from the challenge the Lynx fought hard all season and Thompson ultimately finished just below a point per game with 35 goals and 28 assists for 63 points. In the playoffs the Lynx surprised everyone and made it all the way to game 7 of the Founder's Cup final against the Saskatoon Wild. Unfortunately their luck would finally run out as the Wild would ultimately win game 7 by 1 goal. Thompson finished the playoffs with 10 points in 13 games and set his sights upon the VHL.

 

The Lynx were left to watch another team celebrate but Thompson was far from done.

 

VHL

 

With his knee healed, ultimately proving all his doubters wrong, Thompson entered the Season 61 VHL entry draft. If he had been surprised by the short wait in the VHLM, the VHL draft downright floored the forward as he was selected first overall by the Seattle Bears.

 

Thompson (Centre), Gate (Right), and Cast (Left): the top three picks in the S61 Entry Draft.

 

While exciting to be drafted so early, this did present one challenge: a rebuilding team. Thus far in his VHL career Thompson had played on contending teams and was not used to being relied on so heavily. He had a respectful rookie season, finishing 4^th in rookie scoring with 56 points in 72 games but an abysmal -69 and only 101 hits; not great numbers for someone who was going to be needed on both ends of the ice.

 

Heading into his sophomore season Thompson vowed to bring back the abilities he knew he had but also play a better defensive game than he ever had before. The 20 year old hit the gym hard and bulked up to make sure that his defensive game was up to snuff with how offensive he planned on being. Thus far, it seems to have been successful. Though a scoring title seems unlikely with the pace of one Podrick Cast, Thompson currently sits second in league scoring with 140 points in 67 games; well over double his production from season 61. He has also played much better defensively sitting at +36 and 259 hits as of now. Awards are not yet prepared but in all likelihood Thompson will be bringing home the Funk award for Most Improved if nothing else; though his sights remain set on a ring with the Bears looking to make the playoffs.

 

With 6 full seasons left in the VHL it's anyone's guess for sure how Matt “Tommy Gun” Thompson's career will pan out. What teams may he choose to play on? Will he win any awards or cups? Will he one day grace the Hall of Fame? All of this remains uncertain but for now the young player from Vancouver is doing everything in his power to make sure that Seattle did not make a mistake in drafting him as all the NHL teams did in not picking him up.

[Quik 4,113]

Elite air intake #34

[Victor 11,037]

 

 

Not the same guy sorry,  gotta investigate you for identity fraud.

 

Recommendation for Thompson to sit out the upcoming season while the investigation continues.

[JG10 28]

Over 17 hundreds word. Great job. Love that you're using Matthews as your player pic