SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) – A year after being stripped of his captaincy, publicly feuding with his general manager and missing the playoffs for the first time in 14 years, Joe Thornton has had a renaissance season.
The 36-year-old Thornton is playing his best hockey in years, combining his creative passes with an increased commitment on the defensive end to help lead the San Jose Sharks back to the postseason, where they will open the first round against rival Los Angeles on Thursday night.
“He just keeps getting better,” coach Peter DeBoer said. “Everyone’s waiting for him to slow down and he keeps showing up at the rink. He’s got great legs, he’s playing with a lot of jump. A lot of night he’s the best player on the ice on either team for us. He’s been fantastic.”
Thornton scored 82 points while playing all 82 games for the most productive season by any player 36 years or older since 2007. He scored at least one point in San Jose’s final 33 wins in the regular season for the second longest streak in the past 25 years.
Perhaps even more impressively, when Thornton has been on the ice in even strength situations, the Sharks have scored more than 70 percent of the goals for the best rate of any player in the league.