How well received is Jumbo Joe in New England?

[UConn126]

I'm a big fan. An exceptional, near generational talent. I was a kid when he was drafted here, and it was super exciting to have a couple blue chip draft picks joining the squad (him and Samsonov) in a time when there wasn't much to be excited about beyond Bourque.

I also moved from the Boston area to the Bay Area in 2000 (then back to MA in 2002) and grew a slight fondness for the Sharks in my time there, so Joe moved from one team I liked to another.

The trade happened in a period of my life where I was in a bit of a hockey blackout, so I don't really have any negative feelings about it. I quit watching the NHL for a few years after the 04 lockout, and quit playing a couple years after that so I could focus more on playing music, so in 2006 when the trade happened I really didn't give a crap.

By the time I got back into the Bruins in 2008, there was Savard/Chara/Bergeron/Kessel/Krejci/etc who were doing a good job making me forget Joe Thornton was even a thing here.

 

[aguineapig]

I receive mine Hot with milk only. A plain donut on occasion goes well with it. I recall once I had a coupon, any size Coffee one dollar. I handed the coupon to a young kid and jokingly said "I'll take a Box of Joe" (about 15 bucks), the poor kid froze and called the Manager over. Joe Thornton's time here was kind of like that coupon a lot of promise that somehow didn't seem it would deliver.

 

[The Hockey Tonk Man]

Always wanted to see him raise the cup after he left Boston, was rooting hard that one year against the Pens.

But now, this year with the Leafs, hoping he doesn't get his cup hah

 

[Dr Hook]

I always liked Jumbo, was burned about the trade because we didn't get nearly enough back, but it worked out in the end and I've enjoyed following Joe in his Sharks career and watching when I could. Now that he's a Leaf he is dead to me.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

Though the trade was terrible, I was glad to see him go.

 

[ODAAT]

Thornton was treated like a piece of dirt by the media, ownership/leadership upstairs and I would argue, more than a few fans too jumped to conclusions about his play in the post season in spite of pushing through the pain of broken ribs

O`Connell and Sinden, good lord

LeBrun: Thornton trade permanently altered two franchises

 

[ODAAT]

Though the trade was terrible, I was glad to see him go.

really? why? He was a player with flaws but I didn`t want him gone

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

Thornton was treated like a piece of dirt by the media, ownership/leadership upstairs and I would argue, more than a few fans too jumped to conclusions about his play in the post season in spite of pushing through the pain of broken ribs

O`Connell and Sinden, good lord

LeBrun: Thornton trade permanently altered two franchises

There's no excuse for blowing a 3-1 series lead in a 2/7 match up. There's also no excuse for posting a 0-0-0, -7 line in said series. We have seen plenty of players contribute more with similar and worse injuries. Hell, ROR torched us for 5-5-10 in the SCF with broken ribs

 

[WhalerTurnedBruin55]

No, you couldn't.

Chara was requiring the C wherever he signed

If we are playing Whatifs... what happens if the Bruins just stripped Joe of the captaincy instead of dumping him for JAGs, and then signed Chara and made him captain?

I mean it's all whatifs at this point, so anything number of millions of things could change.

 

[WhalerTurnedBruin55]

There's no excuse for blowing a 3-1 series lead in a 2/7 match up. There's also no excuse for posting a 0-0-0, -7 line in said series. We have seen plenty of players contribute more with similar and worse injuries. Hell, ROR torched us for 5-5-10 in the SCF with broken ribs

I mean yes, but does that mean we should trade a Franchise player for trash, especially when most teams didn't even know he was available?

I mean in what world did Wayne Primeaus name come up as part of the package that nets you Thornton. I guess the same world that also allows big names like Matt Fraser and Joe Morrow tips the scales to get another young center the Bruins gave up on.

Awful asset management. I understand reasons for moving him, and ultimately, don't care currently that we did. But had we NOT won in 2011... it would be a lot uglier historically.

 

[Kalus]

Two of the biggest fallacies that Bruins fans use to justify the Thornton trade:

1. They traded Thornton to “build around Bergeron”. Bullshit. Bergeron spent the ENTIRE previous season (2004-05) playing in Providence. Nobody dumps a 100 pt center to “build around” an untested player who spent the entire previous season in the AHL. If anything, that was a blatant salary dump.

2. Trading Thornton allowed them to sign Chara and Savard. Again, Bullshit. They could have signed Chara anyway. In 2010 Savard was making $7mil per year, basically within $500,000 of what Thornton was making in San Jose. Which center would you rather have?

At the end of the day, what’s done is done, and there’s no point dwelling on the past. But lets be honest and stop kidding ourselves to try to justify an awful trade.

The team did come out and try to justify the trade using your 1st point. It was bs. O'Connell was making a desperate attempt to save his job after the disastrous lockout strategy of not signing players.

The butterfly effect theory that they wouldn't have won a cup without trading him has always irked me. There are far too many variables to make that assertion. Maybe they win three cups if he stayed. Who knows.

 

[Kalus]

Everyone forgets the big cultural problem with that team and the clique around Thornton and Boynton vs. the players they brought in. I think they bullied Dave Scatchard out of town like 10 games into the season. Something had to break.

Scratchcard was awful. One of the many casualties of the post lockout speed game after the rule changes (lockout on clutching and grabbing, 2 line passing etc).

 

[Kalus]

There's no excuse for blowing a 3-1 series lead in a 2/7 match up. There's also no excuse for posting a 0-0-0, -7 line in said series. We have seen plenty of players contribute more with similar and worse injuries. Hell, ROR torched us for 5-5-10 in the SCF with broken ribs

Yes there is. He was playing with torn rib cartilage and should have been commended.

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

Yes there is. He was playing with torn rib cartilage and should have been commended.

Sorry, but no.

If you're injured to where you hurt the team because of your play you should sit out instead.

 

[McGarnagle]

There's no excuse for blowing a 3-1 series lead in a 2/7 match up. There's also no excuse for posting a 0-0-0, -7 line in said series. We have seen plenty of players contribute more with similar and worse injuries. Hell, ROR torched us for 5-5-10 in the SCF with broken ribs

The "Joe was injured" argument lost all of its merit at the end of the next round when Saku Koivu revealed he was playing through some bad injuries too and he lit us up in that series.

 

[KillerMillerTime]

Though the trade was terrible, I was glad to see him go.

Marco Sturm's 2008 G6 goal face almost made it platable...lol.

 

[Kalus]

Sorry, but no.

If you're injured to where you hurt the team because of your play you should sit out instead.

You don't have to apologize. If Joe sits, you have Nylander and a teenage Bergeron as your top 2 centers. He wasn't hurting the team, he just didn't produce.

I haven't had torn rib cartilage, but as I understand it, every move you make hurts. They were shooting him up with cortisone every game. Thats captain stuff.

 

[Dellstrom]

Awful trade, luckily it worked out for us but I don’t mind him. Would have wanted him to win a cup if he didn’t join the Leafs.

 

[ranold26]

I remember Jumbo Joe well...

1. I remember he and his agent brother throwing out the "might retire" schtick.
2. I remember some whining about taking ANY heat for subpar playoff performance.
3. I remember "not feeling loved" being floated out there during contract negotiations.
4. I remember the one year contract in '04 and the crap with that.
5. I remember the crap that led to the $6.66m/yr aav contract negotiations and what happened after.
6. I remember the New Jersey game..
7. I remember him not wanting to talk to the media and bailing out the dressing room before scrum.

I remember saying on here, one of the very few btw, that liked the trade.
I remember saying on here that he won't lead a team to a cup.

And nothing has changed.
That said, I did recommend last year that we acquire him for depth in a cup run.

 

[TD Charlie]

I remember Jumbo Joe well...

1. I remember he and his agent brother throwing out the "might retire" schtick.
2. I remember some whining about taking ANY heat for subpar playoff performance.
3. I remember "not feeling loved" being floated out there during contract negotiations.
4. I remember the one year contract in '04 and the crap with that.
5. I remember the crap that led to the $6.66m/yr aav contract negotiations and what happened after.
6. I remember the New Jersey game..
7. I remember him not wanting to talk to the media and bailing out the dressing room before scrum.

I remember saying on here, one of the very few btw, that liked the trade.
I remember saying on here that he won't lead a team to a cup.

And nothing has changed.
That said, I did recommend last year that we acquire him for depth in a cup run.

Yeah, that sums it up. While I don't think the return was enough, I don't fault them for moving the guy and it's obviously worked out fine since. Same goes for some other hotly debated franchise center that was traded for shit.

 

[McGarnagle]

I remember Jumbo Joe well...

1. I remember he and his agent brother throwing out the "might retire" schtick.
2. I remember some whining about taking ANY heat for subpar playoff performance.
3. I remember "not feeling loved" being floated out there during contract negotiations.
4. I remember the one year contract in '04 and the crap with that.
5. I remember the crap that led to the $6.66m/yr aav contract negotiations and what happened after.
6. I remember the New Jersey game..
7. I remember him not wanting to talk to the media and bailing out the dressing room before scrum.

I remember saying on here, one of the very few btw, that liked the trade.
I remember saying on here that he won't lead a team to a cup.

And nothing has changed.
That said, I did recommend last year that we acquire him for depth in a cup run.

Remember when he and his brother jumped that cop?

 

[GordonHowe]

I like Joe.

I liked Joe as a person, but a] he never should have been named captain and b] IMO, the Bruins were never going to win a Cup with him. He's had a great career, yet that certain something seems to have been missing from the start.

I wish him well in TO.

 

[Ladyfan]

I liked Joe as a person, but a] he never should have been named captain and b] IMO, the Bruins were never going to win a Cup with him. He's had a great career, yet that certain something seems to have been missing from the start.

I wish him well in TO.

He was too young to wear the "C" but that wasn't his fault

The guys who work for the B's (that were here when Joe was) still keep in touch with him and say he is a great guy.

 

[GordonHowe]

He was too young to wear the "C" but that wasn't his fault

The guys who work for the B's (that were here when Joe was) still keep in touch with him and say he is a great guy.

If you recall, as I'm certain you do, the B's finished dead last the season before choosing Thornton first overall. I think they named him captain his third or fourth season, after Ray departed.

He was absolutely too young for that responsibility. The only reason OC did it was PR & $. Big surpise.

I also remember years later OC telling Barstool Sports "Maybe I didn't kiss his *** enough."

 

[McGarnagle]

If you recall, as I'm certain you do, the B's finished dead last the season before choosing Thornton first overall. I think they named him captain his third or fourth season, after Ray departed.

He was absolutely too young for that responsibility. The only reason OC did it was PR & $. Big surpise.

I also remember years later OC telling Barstool Sports "Maybe I didn't kiss his *** enough."

Jason Allison was the captain between Bourque and Joe, but he held out for money after 2001 and demanded a trade. It was at the same time both the best and worst thing to happen to Joe in Boston. The trade brought Glen Murray, who was the best scoring winger he ever had and formed a great bond with. But when Allison left, it boosted Joe to the pressure of being the #1 center and being the captain, and that wasn't good for him.