"I Wanted A Shot. I've Been Hunting This Thing Down For 22 Years" - Joe Thornton After Getting Left High And Dry Yesterday
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Damn. That was a tough one to read.
I said it in the blog yesterday but the San Jose Sharks owed it to Joe Thornton to do everything they possibly could to find a Cup contender to trade Jumbo to. Yes, I'm very much aware that Thornton ultimately had the say on waiving his NTC to get traded but after seeing those quotes, it's pretty damn apparent that he wasn't going to say no to a trade just because he wanted to finish off his career in San Jose.
Now according to Pierre LeBrun, he doesn't think that any of the teams that Jumbo would have waived his NTC for had any real interest in him. But there were a couple of hours before the deadline yesterday when it seemed like we were going to get the storybook ending for Joe Thornton. It looked like we were going to get the Reverse Bourque where Joe Thornton gets sent to Boston to finish out his career hoisting Lord Stanley's Cup over his head. I'm not sure how valid those rumors were (looking at you, Commie), but it at least seemed that way until about the final hour before the deadline.
So then you have to wonder--just whose ass do we have to kick for breaking Joe Thornton's heart like this? Do we need to beat up Doug Wilson for not finding a suitable trade partner for Jumbo? He couldn't have just told Boston he'd give him to them for free? Do we need to beat up the Cup contenders for apparently not showing any legitimate interest in bringing him into the locker room for a Cup run like a bunch of idiots? Do we need to beat up the media for putting the rumors out there in the first place and potentially getting his hopes up? I really don't know, but I'd love to get some answers. Because anybody who makes Joe Thornton sad deserves a quick punch to the throat and a kick to the sack. You just don't do that to a legend like Jumbo.