Cecil Ralph "Tiny" Thompson was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender.
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26 Facts About Tiny Thompson
2.
Tiny Thompson played 12 seasons in the National Hockey League, first for the Boston Bruins, and later for the Detroit Red Wings.
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3.
Tiny Thompson helped popularize the technique of the "glove save" which was catching the puck with his hands as a method of making a save.
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4.
Tiny Thompson was born in the mining community of Sandon, BC.
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6.
Tiny Thompson began his junior career playing for the Calgary Monarchs in 1919 at the age of 16.
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7.
Tiny Thompson competed for the Memorial Cup, awarded to the Canadian junior hockey champions that year, playing in two games and surrendering 11 goals, a respectable amount in that era.
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8.
The following season, Tiny Thompson joined the Minneapolis Millers of the American Hockey Association.
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9.
Tiny Thompson recorded three shutouts in the five playoff games, and allowed only three goals.
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10.
Surrendering only 98 goals, Tiny Thompson bested Chicago goaltender Charlie Gardiner to win the first of his four Vezina Trophies.
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11.
Tiny Thompson won only 13 games while appearing in 43 out of Boston's 48 games, which was the only time he missed games as a member of the Bruins.
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12.
The losing goaltender in the second-longest NHL game, Tiny Thompson received a standing ovation from fans at the Maple Leaf Gardens.
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13.
Tiny Thompson set a new record by winning his fourth and final Vezina Trophy.
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14.
Tiny Thompson was named to the first All-Star team for the second time.
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15.
Tiny Thompson is the Boston Bruins' all-time leader in regular-season shutouts with 74, far ahead of the 52 achieved by runner-up Tuukka Rask.
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16.
Tiny Thompson was one of the few scouts at the time who sought to discover a player's personality along with their playing ability.
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17.
Tiny Thompson often conversed with players as part of an effort to learn about the players he was watching.
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18.
Tiny Thompson was "the first of the great floppers" and frequently dove on his belly to stop a puck.
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19.
Tiny Thompson was one of the first NHL goaltenders to catch the puck with his hand to make a save, and helped popularize the technique.
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20.
Tiny Thompson stood in the way of the puck with minimal padding, risking being struck when moving to catch it instead of simply deflecting it away from the net.
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21.
Tiny Thompson was described by Johnny Bower, a former goaltender who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, as a good puckhandler, and one of the best of his time at forward passing.
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22.
Tiny Thompson is the all-time Bruins leader for shutouts and goals-against average.
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23.
Tiny Thompson held the records for most games played and wins by a Bruins goaltender until 2019, when both records were surpassed by Tuukka Rask.
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24.
Tiny Thompson is fifth all-time in goals-against average, allowing on average only 2.
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25.
Tiny Thompson led all goaltenders in regular-season games played 10 times, and in regular-season wins five times.
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26.
Tiny Thompson was survived by his wife, Edith, and his daughter, Sandra.
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