What stands out about Matt Thomson is crystal clear to Chris Dyment, his assistant coach this past year with the USPHL’s Islanders Hockey Club and a fellow Reading, Mass., native.
"He has a shot that is right up there in the top three of anyone I’ve ever played with, whether it’s my time at (Boston University) or pro," Dyment said. "He can just rip a snap shot like nobody else I’ve ever seen. It’s something pretty special."
Dyment’s remarks explain why the winger, who just wrapped up a 53-point season with the Islanders, will venture to the USHL next year with the Youngstown Phantoms and then will embark on his Northeastern University career come the 2018-19 school year. The read on Thomson, though, extends beyond any stat line or team and into what he’s like as a person.
Three to four times a week, he coaches at clinics and camps Dyment puts on through Reading Youth Hockey, all at Burbank Ice Arena, a few minutes from Thomson’s house. Thomson acknowledged that most 18-year-olds aren’t taking that time out of their life to give back, but it’s something he values and enjoys.
"When little kids come up to me and are like, ‘Oh, I can’t wait to see you play in the Beanpot,’ it makes me pretty happy," Thomson said. "Then I let them know that they need to focus and work hard all practice and they too can get there. It’s not hard."
Thomson played high school hockey in Reading for three years, largely because it’s in his DNA. His father, Kevin, played high school hockey there, before moving on to New Hampshire, and the same goes for his uncle Brian, who played at Northeastern.
Thomson wants aspiring players to know that they can reach new heights by staying local, just like he has. He finds it so rewarding, in fact, that Dyment said there’s a coaching caveat involved.
"I pay my instructors, but when it came time to pay Matt, he refused to get paid," Dyment said. "He was just thanking me for giving him more ice time and a chance to skate around with his little brother. He has that type of passion for the game. It wasn’t about getting a pay-check."
Those character-type moments also show through with Pat Gigante, Thomson’s trainer at Xcelerated Performance in Wilmington, Mass.
Recently, when Jake Wise (North Andover, Mass.), a NTDP forward and future Boston University player, was training, Thomson went out of his way to work with Wise on his shot. Instances such as those have caught Gigante’s eye, and in turn led to a level of trust where he’s left a key for Thomson to shoot pucks late on Friday nights.
"Instead of going out partying with his buddies, he’s in there working at his game," Gigante said. "It’s not an accident that his shot is that good. That’s where he’s different. For an 18-year-old kid to come in and chose to shoot pucks on synthetic ice instead of going to a party, it says a lot."
When asked about that decision, Thomson approached it matter-of-factly, calling himself a "loner at points" in terms of his work ethic. Even if he’s sore, he said, getting that second workout in at Gigante’s gym serves as his fix.
"I’m almost paranoid that the other guy next to me is working harder than me," Thomson said. "That always pushes me to keep going."
Stories about Thomson’s character also emerge in conversations with Sean Tremblay (Newburyport, Mass.), his coach at the Islanders, who recalled a game from this past winter against the Junior Bruins. The winger had just recovered from an injury, so he was struggling to find his way back into the flow of things.
Without hesitation, Tremblay shut Thomson down for the rest of the game midway through the second period. The Islanders came back to win, and Thomson’s reaction was cool, calm and collected.
"I grabbed him after and said, ‘There’s never anything personal with that, Matt. I just felt like your timing wasn’t there,’" Tremblay said. "He goes, ‘Coach, you did the right thing. I was playing terribly and that helped us win the hockey game.’ There was no bad feeling whatsoever. He gets it and shows what type of character that he has. It’s about the team, it’s not about him. That’s a special person right there in and of itself. I’ll never forget that moment."
Together, each anecdote speaks to Thomson as a person, but his hockey goals are still sky high. He dreams of playing in the National Hockey League one day, an aspiration that will truly kick into second gear this fall when he’ll play USHL puck in Ohio, his first time away from home.
Then it’s right back to his roots, where Hockey East and Matthews Arena will become his domain. A bonus of that chapter, he said, will be playing in front of his friends and family. Still, Thomson’s not satisfied with where his game’s at.
"I’m in the process of following my dreams, but it doesn’t matter how far I am at this point," Thomson said. "I really haven’t done anything yet. My goal is to improve and get bigger, faster, stronger, better and smarter so I can excel."
And, if Tremblay had to guess, Thomson will do exactly that.
"He’s only going to get better," Tremblay said. "We did a lot of drills and things without the puck that are only going to make him a better player when he ends up at Northeastern. Just a lot there to work with. His drive and determination to be a great player is what will separate him in time."
