Joe Thornton
While he was not the Toronto Maple Leafs most important signing – that distinction goes to TJ Brodie –but he was easily the most high-profile acquisition Kyle Dubas made this offseason.
Luring the veteran of 22 NHL seasons away from the San Jose Sharks was never going to be an easy task. It took a communal effort to sell the 41-year old on coming home to Toronto and chase a cup with the Leafs.
But, as everyone would come to point out, signing Joe Thornton brought a significant question along with it – can Thornton still play? As the game continues to get younger and faster, being on the wrong side of 40 is not an enviable position to be in. Heck, even being on the wrong side of 30 and you are probably not going to get the payday you thought you might have deserved.
Think about this – last season, there were only three players 40+ to suit up for at least one game. Those players were Zdeno Chara, Patrick Marleau, and Thornton. That is it. Being 40+ and contributing at a high level in today’s NHL is a rarity.
With a lot of miles on Thornton’s body, the decline will not be a gradual drop. It is steep and it is sudden. However, there is one thing working in his favour – by the time the season starts up again, Thornton will have gone 9 months and 21 days since his last game action. That is a lot of time for the London, Ontario native to rest his ageing body and get back to full health in time for next season.