Win or lose Game 7, Tim Thomas should get the Conne Smythe trophy.
This is the biggest Conn job since Paul Newman and Robert Redford filmed The Sting in 1973.
Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas has been the best player through this year's Stanley Cup final and regardless of which team wins the championship, the veteran stopper is a good bet to take home the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
Needing just one more save to establish a single-season record for most stops in the playoffs, Thomas kept his team in the games on the road when it was unable to find its offence and has been equally stellar at home. It is indeed rare for one player to run away with the Conn Smythe voting the way Thomas has this season. A year ago Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews won the award despite not registering a goal in the final.
The feisty veteran, who often looks as though he has just been tasered before he makes a save, has kept his team in the running for the championship. Of course now he faces his toughest challenge - trying to win one on the road in Vancouver. Thomas has played superbly on the road in the final, but his teammates have been unable to find their offence. So unless he pitches a shutout, the chances of Boston winning Game 7 are slim.
Thomas is trying to keep things in stride with a Cup victory just one win away.
"You know, I'm very happy to be here and very happy to have this opportunity,:" Thomas said following Game 6. "I'm going to try to embrace that opportunity and take the same attitude I've taken throughout the whole playoffs. And you know, hopefully that will get me through that one last game to get the goal we've been shooting for all year long."
Frankly, it's hard to imagine Thomas not winning the Conn Smythe barring a total meltdown and from what we've seen in this year's final, that isn't likely to happen. He has been the model of consistency in the final.
Who else is in the mix for the Conn Smythe? Well, it's hard to imagine at this point anybody from the Canucks winning it. Had Vancouver goalie Roberto Luongo managed a third shutout in the final in Game 6, he may have taken it. Instead he was yanked from the game for the second time in the series after allowing four first period goals. He's out of the running. Henrik Sedin finally got his first point in the final in Game 6, but his inability to produce at the most critical time of the year has all but taken him out of the race despite the fact he stands second in playoff scoring. Same pretty much goes for Ryan Kesler who hasn't been a factor on offence in the final. David Krejci of the Bruins leads the post-season in scoring, but if the Bruins were to win the Cup, there's no way on earth he'd get the award ahead of Thomas.
