I don't agree. In terms of Bruins lore, and how beloved a player was, I don't think there is a single Bruins fan (who was a fan of the team when Neely played) that didn't love what Neely brought to the team. Thomas didn't have that same level of affect on the fans, but he accomplished more and had a larger impact on the team than Neely did over his 10 years.
Neely's argument is that Thomas wasn't here long enough to have his number retired. I think it doesn't matter given Thomas's accomplishments over that time.
How exactly did Thomas accomplish more? If you are referring to the Stanley Cup, that is a team award, not an individual one. Yes Thomas made the save on Gionta, but Horton also finished it (edit: obviously referring to the MTL series).
As far as individual accomplishments, Neely did more.
They basically created a category of player based on Neely's play (Power Forward). Thomas was very good, but did he have that kind of impact?
When a goalie makes a scrambling save, we don't say, "he pulled a Thomas". We say, "he pulled a Hasek."
Someone correct me if I am wrong, but Neely didn't bring Thomas up. I believe one of the reporters asked him who the next retired number would be and suggested Thomas, which prompted the response.
It should be noted that Neely is probably looking at it as a member of the front office and not as a player, so he likely is biased. As a member of the FO, with the negative attention that Thomas brought to the team after the White House stuff, I would imagine that Neely might not be as big a fan of Thomas as he is of somebody like Middleton?
