Tim Thomas and Dwayne Roloson are pretty ancient species when it comes to NHL goaltenders. The Bruins netminder, the favorite for the Vezina Trophy this year, is 37 years old, while Roloson, one of the main reasons the Lightning are in the Eastern Conference Finals, is 41 years old.
Tim Thomas, Dwayne Roloson Have College Connection
It seems like an eternity then since the two played in college, and while we know that Martin St. Louis played with Thomas at the University of Vermont, what are the chances of the two goaltenders having a college connection that dates back almost 20 years as well?
Well, they do.
[Thomas] originally wanted to go to Massachusetts-Lowell or Michigan Tech, but both had senior goaltenders who would prevent him from playing as a freshman. At the latter, it was Jamie Ram. At Lowell, it was Dwayne Roloson.
This was back when Vermont, the school Thomas ultimately chose, played in the ECAC. Roloson and UMass-Lowell played in Hockey East, but the teams did meet up once in the regular season. A freshman Thomas and the Catamounts topped the senior Roloson and his River Hawks by a score of 4-1.
We can’t find a box score anywhere from that game, but it’s safe to assume that Thomas and Roloson went head to head, considering Roloson played in 40 of Lowell’s 41 games that season and Thomas played in all 33 of Vermont’s games that year.
Now it’s come full circle, although the Eastern Conference Finals in the NHL are a little more intense than a non-conference game in November at Gutterson Fieldhouse in Burlington, Vt.
See More:
