Tim Thomas to Take a Year Off?

Boston Bruins general manager, Peter Chiarelli, confirmed today that goaltender Tim Thomas is considering taking a one-year sabbatical.

Source

This sabbatical would have an immediate negative consequence for the team; they would be stuck with his $5M cap hit. From a fantasy hockey perspective, this news raises more questions than it addresses:

1. What impact does the news have on Tuukka Rask owners?

- I’d say Rask owners are probably in the best position possible at this point. Despite the pain the Bruins might feel due to the cap squeeze, Rask now becomes the #1 in Boston. He’d likely be getting 65 starts making him a solid draft choice come Fall.

2. What impact does the news have on Tim Thomas owners?

- If Thomas takes the year off, obviously this is terrible news. If he is using this as a bargaining chip to dictate a favorable trade destination, then the news can be considered neutral at best. Where else would Thomas land where he could put up statistics as good as he has over the last few years in Boston? Could he land somewhere where his numbers would take a hit? Sure he could. We’ve never been huge fans of drafting goalies who get less than 60 starts and Thomas has only broken the 55 start ceiling once in his career. Thomas is 38 years old and likely leaving a team that has earned over 100 points in each of the last two years.

3. What about the CBA?

- The current CBA expires in September, so we really don’t know the rules under which Thomas’ last year of his contract with the Bruins will be governed.

If you’re a Rask owner, you can comfortably enter next season with him as a possible keeper goalie. For the Thomas owners out there, you might not be sleeping well over the coming weeks.