Wayne Thomas

Robert Wayne Thomas (October 9, 1947 – July 16, 2025) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, and New York Rangers between 1972 and 1981. He also held several positions in coaching and management in the NHL and the minor leagues, including 22 years in management with the San Jose Sharks.

Playing career Born in Ottawa, Ontario, on October 9, 1947, and was the league's top goaltender in 1965–66. Thomas then attended University of Wisconsin, where played varsity hockey with the Wisconsin Badgers under coach Bob Johnson. He was second-team All-WCHA for the 1969–70 season and was with the team in its first appearance in the Frozen Four tournament in Lake Placid, New York, in 1970. That same season he was named the team's MVP. Thomas played two seasons with the Montreal and Nova Scotia Voyageurs, the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Montreal Canadiens. With the Voyageurs, he won the Calder Cup in 1972.

The following season, 1972–73, Thomas joined the Canadiens in Montreal and became the tenth goalie to record a shutout in his NHL debut, a 3–0 victory against the Vancouver Canucks. and despite an overall 8–1 regular season record, he did not make an appearance in the team's Stanley Cup playoff run; Thomas was the number 3 goalie behind Ken Dryden and Michel Plasse. In 1973–74, with Dryden sitting out the season to complete his bar exam, he shared duties with Plasse and Michel Larocque, playing 42 games and sporting a 2.76 goals against average, but again was not used in the playoffs. On March 10, 1974, Thomas made 53 saves in a 5–4 victory against the Pittsburgh Penguins, setting a Canadiens record that has since been tied by Carey Price. Thomas held the NHL's fourth-best goals against average and was Montreal's winner of that year's Molson Cup. He then spent the entire 1974–75 season as Montreal's number 3 goalie, but did not see action in a single game as Dryden returned with Larocque as his backup.

After three seasons in Montreal, he was acquired by the Toronto Maple Leafs in June 1975 in exchange for a first-round draft pick. He played in the 1976 All Star game and recorded the win. He finished his eight-year NHL career with a 103–93–34 record, 3.34 GAA and .891 SV% while recording 10 shutouts.

Coaching and management career After retiring as a player, he was hired by the New York Rangers and became one of the first goaltending coaches in professional hockey. By January 1981, Thomas was third on the Rangers' goalie depth chart behind John Davidson and Doug Soetaert, and was seen by coach and general manager Craig Patrick to be more useful to the team as a coach; Thomas was announced to be coaching the team's goalies on January 28. He remained in that post till the end of the 1984–85 season, after which he became the head coach of the Salt Lake Golden Eagles, the Rangers' affiliate in the International Hockey League (IHL). A season later, the Golden Eagles won the Turner Cup

In 1986, he returned to the NHL as assistant coach of the Chicago Blackhawks, a hiring based in part on his work with goalies such as Mike Vernon with the Golden Eagles, and Glen Hanlon and John Vanbiesbrouck with the Rangers. Under head coach Bob Murdoch, Thomas focused on Chicago's goalies and was involved in the development of Jimmy Waite and Ed Belfour. During the 1989–90 season, Thomas served as head coach of the St. Louis Blues' IHL affiliate, the Peoria Rivermen. In January 1990, the Blues temporarily brought him to St. Louis as a de facto goaltender coach to consult on the development of Blues prospects Vincent Riendeau and Curtis Joseph. with specialty in goaltending, and was specifically hired by head coach Brian Sutter for his experience. Thomas stayed on as an assistant coach in 1992 when St. Louis replaced Sutter with Bob Plager.

In 1993, Thomas left the Blues to become an assistant coach as well as an assistant to the general manager with the San Jose Sharks. He remained in that role until the 1995–96 season, when he was named assistant general manager. He was named vice president of the Sharks in 2001. He remained vice president and assistant general manager until his retirement in 2015.

Personal life and death Thomas had a bachelor's degree in physical education from the University of Wisconsin.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA SV% GP W L MIN GA SO GAA SV% 1966–67 Morrisburg Combines Al-Cup — — — — — — — — — 3 0 2 127 13 0 6.14 — 1968–69 University of Wisconsin WCHA 16 9 6 1 943 44 2 2.80 .901 — — — — — — — — 1969–70 University of Wisconsin WCHA 21 14 7 0 1250 60 1 2.88 — 4 3 1 240 10 0 2.50 — 1970–71 Montreal Voyageurs AHL 33 8 17 6 1845 111 1 3.57 — 3 0 3 179 12 0 4.02 — 1971–72 Nova Scotia Voyageurs AHL 41 22 8 10 2393 100 1 2.51 — — — — — — — — — 1972–73 Montreal Canadiens NHL 10 8 1 0 583 23 1 2.37 .911 — — — — — — — — 1972–73 Nova Scotia Voyageurs AHL 6 — — — 300 8 1 1.60 — — — — — — — — — 1973–74 Montreal Canadiens NHL 42 23 12 5 2410 111 1 2.76 .905 — — — — — — — — 1975–76 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 64 28 24 12 3684 196 2 3.19 .900 10 5 5 587 34 1 3.48 .906 1976–77 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 33 10 13 6 1799 116 1 3.87 .890 4 1 2 201 12 0 3.58 .886 1977–78 New York Rangers NHL 41 12 20 7 2349 141 4 3.60 .883 1 0 1 60 4 0 4.00 .852 1978–79 New York Rangers NHL 31 15 10 3 1666 101 1 3.64 .866 — — — — — — — — 1979–80 New York Rangers NHL 12 4 7 0 664 44 0 3.98 .873 — — — — — — — — 1979–80 New Haven Nighthawks AHL 5 5 0 0 280 11 0 2.36 .927 — — — — — — — — 1980–81 New York Rangers NHL 10 3 6 1 597 34 0 3.42 .868 — — — — — — — — NHL totals 243 103 93 34 13,743 766 10 3.34 .891 15 6 8 848 50 1 3.54 .898 Source:

Awards and honours Award Year All-WCHA Second Team 1969–70