We will not see him again on the ice in the NHL, Joe Thornton made public through the social network X (formerly Twitter) that he is retiring from the NHL, thus closing the speculation and ending the constant questions about his career, which had not had continuity since the 2021-22 season in which he wore the jersey of the Florida Panthers.
May 23, 2022 will be the date of his last game, the third game of the second round series against the Tampa Bay Lightning, the culmination of a very long and fruitful career that began after being selected number one in the 1997 draft by the Boston Bruins.
Expectation of a franchise player
Thornton came to the Bruins as the player on which to build the future of the Boston franchise, a goal that the Canadian center did not get to complete, which made him leave the franchise via trade in November 2005 to northern California to become a player of San Jose Sharks.
The Bruins of 2005-06, after the lockout of 2005 began the season on the wrong foot, and from the management decided that the team needed a revulsive that Thornton was not part of and decided to use it as a bargaining chip to find other players who would give a new air to the franchise, and there he crossed what is probably the franchise in which he has been everything, San Jose Sharks.
With the Bruins he had his best season in 2002-03, scoring a then-high 101 points (36 goals, 65 assists) that he would never reach again with the New Englanders.
Legend in San Jose
The change of scenery propelled Thornton's career, in that same season he won the Hart Trophy (league MVP), the only player to have won it playing the season with more than one team, and the Art Ross Trophy (maximum number of points).
Criticized in Boston for not being a playoff player, with the aquamarine jersey he was the protagonist in the occasions he played the postseason with it. With the SAP Center, he has built a legacy on the ice that has made him the first player of the franchise in assists, second in points, third in games and fourth in goals, without forgetting the waste of charisma both on the ice and in front of the public that made him one of the most beloved players by the fans.
In search of the grail
After giving his all in San Jose, Thornton sought the opportunity to win the Stanley Cup after it eluded him in California. Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers were the destinations where he sought the cherry on top of a career that, although not crowned with the highest trophy in field hockey, will undoubtedly deserve an inclusion in the Hall of Fame and a dorsal retirement in San Jose, accompanying the former first of the franchise, Patrick Marleau.