The date is June 21, 1997. <\/p>\n
The Boston Bruins are on the clock at the NHL Draft in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, holding the first-overall pick with the San Jose Sharks scheduled to pick right behind them. The Bruins\u2019 then-general manager, Harry Sinden, steps up to the podium and selects a big centerman from the Soo Greyhounds who just dominated the Ontario Hockey League, scoring 41 goals and 122 points in 59 games.\u00a0<\/p>\n
That centerman\u2019s name was Joe Thornton. Eventually he\u2019d be traded to the San Jose Sharks, where he\u2019d spend 0ver a decade playing with the man selected right behind him, Patrick Marleau. The dynamic duo would become synonymous with the Bay Area, and \u201cJumbo\u201d, as Thornton was affectionately called, led the team through some of their most iconic moments.<\/p>\n
10,369 days after Thornton\u2019s name was called on the stage in Pittsburgh, his name was called once again. This time, it was under very different circumstances. Now 46, he was being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The night started on a humorous note for Thornton, as NHL commissioner Gary Bettman mistakenly referred to the newest member of the Hockey Hall of Fame as \u201cDumbo\u201d before correcting himself.<\/p>\n
After the rest of the Hockey Hall of Fame\u2019s 2025 class gave their speeches, it was time for our main event of the evening. Following an introduction by James Duthie and a video package, Thornton took the stage to close out the night. Hall of Famer Lanny McDonald met the San Jose Sharks\u2019 great, handing him his plaque.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Normally known for his silly, childlike demeanor, Thornton was more serious than normal during his speech, although he was quick to implement some of his humor into his opening lines.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe last time I was here in the hall, here in the Hockey Hall of Fame, I was attending the wedding of a teammate,\u201d Thornton recalled. \u201cLet me tell you, we rocked so hard that night, I didn\u2019t think I\u2019d be invited back, but here I am, and this time, I stay forever.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Emotions overtook him as he reflected on his early days, specifically regarding his parents, who were in attendance, and his childhood home. \u201cI was Gordie Howe. I was Bobby Orr. I was the Great One. I was Johnny Bower. I was the Magnificent One,\u201d Thornton remembered about his days on his backyard rink. \u201cI wanted to be Pat LaFontaine, Cam Neely, Eric Lindros, Steve Yzerman, and so many more. So I want to thank all those greats for setting the bar and creating a dream inside of me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat dream was made on Creston Ave, in a 1200 square foot house that my mom and dad built, and they still live in today,\u201d Thornton said, as he fought off tears. \u201cWayne and Mary, my parents, you are the beginning, the middle, and the end of my story.\u201d<\/p>\n
The tears continued to flow as Thornton spoke about his hockey journey ultimately coming full circle: \u201cI was lucky enough to play Junior B in my hometown of St. Thomas for the Stars, and it was a huge deal for me.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember the old Memorial Garden packed with fans, and fast forward to today. I go there with my son. I get to skate with his buddies at an arena called the Joe Thornton Community Center. It\u2019s pretty darn cool.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thornton then shifted the focus to his NHL career. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat was another dream come true,\u201d he said of being drafted first-overall by Boston. He talked about the ups, the downs, and how the alumni group in Beantown helped \u201c[teach] me how to be a man.\u201d He made sure to specifically shout out Bruins legend Johnny Bucyk stating: \u201dChiefer, you taught me how to get back to the game that I love.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then, it came time for a change.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn 2005, I was at dinner with my parents [and] my girlfriend, when I got a phone call and I was told I was traded to San Jose,\u201d Thornton recalled. \u201cIt was a hard few hours, but then it hit me. I\u2019m 26. I\u2019m in the prime of my career. So let\u2019s go west, and let\u2019s go. I played two nights later, and our head coach, Ronnie Wilson, one of the best, said, \u2018Joe, just go hunt.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe never won the ultimate trophy, but going to the Stanley Cup Final in 2016 has to be the biggest highlight,\u201d Thornton stated about his time with the San Jose Sharks. \u201cAlthough beating Vegas in game seven [in] 2019 was pretty cool, too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing a Shark is something I\u2019m extremely proud of, and I sure have been enjoying watching the team play this year,\u201d Thornton added, before calling out his current tenant and the Sharks\u2019 up-and-coming superstar. \u201cMacklin, I can\u2019t wait to continue Rummikub with you. I\u2019ll be coming in hot.\u201d<\/p>\n
Humor and emotion mixed when Thornton reflected on a conversation he had with Bettman. <\/p>\n
\u201cLastly, when Gary Bettman came out to San Jose a few years ago, I told him that he cost me $7 million because he shut down the league that year,\u201d Thornton said with a smile. Then, as emotion overtook him once again, he added, \u201cI also told him, I\u2019m not going to give him a left hook, because going to Switzerland changed my life forever. It was there [that] I met my wife.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201c[Tabea], I enjoy every day. I laugh, I smile, I think, I cry, all because of you,\u201d Thornton said to his wife. \u201cYou\u2019re my best friend and a great mother to my two best buddies, Ayla and River. I really am a simple man, and with the love that you three show me and our new addition, Phoebe, I know there isn\u2019t anything else in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
In classic Jumbo fashion, he quickly put emotion aside to conclude his speech with his trademark upbeat personality.<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you for everyone. This is an honor of a lifetime. Now, James, bring on the bagpipes. It\u2019s time to party. Thank you everyone. I love you.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The date is June 21, 1997. The Boston Bruins are on the clock at the NHL Draft in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":47792,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[93,30961,31109,29792,1035,31110,88,90,89,98,27119],"class_list":["post-47791","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-jose","tag-featured","tag-hockey-hall-of-fame","tag-induction","tag-joe-thornton","tag-macklin-celebrini","tag-patrick-marleau","tag-san-jose","tag-san-jose-headlines","tag-san-jose-news","tag-san-jose-sharks","tag-speech"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47791","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47791"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47791\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47792"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47791"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47791"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47791"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}