If he hadn’t already, Tage Thompson officially achieved star status Wednesday in Columbus. The Sabres centre exploded for five goals, including four in the first period, and one assist against the Blue Jackets. Six-point nights in the NHL are rare, unless you’re Thompson, who has two in 26 games this season.
“I think it just leaves you hungrier,” Thompson told reporters after his historic performance. “You want more from yourself. You know you’re capable of it now, and I think it’s just something I’m excited for. You get a night like this, and now you just want to continue to grow and continue to test yourself.”
The seven-year, $50 million contract that Thompson signed in late summer, which doesn’t kick in until next season, looks like an incredible bargain.
Initially, the deal was met with plenty of skepticism. Even Thompson, who was coming off an out-of-nowhere career year, called it “a huge leap of faith” by the Sabres. After all, before going off for 38 goals and 68 points in 2021-22, Thompson had 18 goals and 35 points in 145 games over four seasons.
Thompson’s rise to stardom has been one of the league’s best stories. His breakout coincided with the Sabres’ decision to move him to centre at the start of last season in response to the departures of Jack Eichel and Sam Reinhart.
Thompson’s ice time increased accordingly, going from 13:52 per game in 2020-21 to 17:53 last season, when he joined Buffalo’s top line and No. 1 power-play unit.
More playing time meant more touches, which meant more opportunity for Thompson to show off his great hands. His 168 successful one-on-one dekes in the offensive zone (2.2 per game) ranked 27th among all forwards last season. He’s already up to 83 this season (3.2 per game), which sits fifth in the league behind Troy Terry, Connor McDavid, Mathew Barzal and Brayden Point.
Thompson, listed as 6-foot-6 and 220 pounds, also excels at the aspects of the game commonly associated with power forwards, such as creating scoring chances off the cycle and forecheck. Thompson is in the top 10 of both categories this season.
And when Thompson puts his full weight behind a slap shot, good luck stopping it. Thompson’s third goal Wednesday was measured at 100.3 MPH. Of the 14 triple-digit shots recorded by the league this season, Thompson is responsible for five of them. The shot Wednesday wasn’t even his hardest of the season; he hit 101.7 MPH on a one-timer against the Coyotes on Nov. 8.
There were some signs two seasons ago that Thompson was capable of busting out like this. He put 1.9 slot shots on net per 20 minutes in 2020-21, tied for 28th among 476 forwards who played a minimum of 100 minutes.
Thompson scored on 16 per cent of his slot shots that season (8-of-50), which suggested good things were coming. Over the past two seasons, Thompson has scored 45 goals on 202 slot shots — a 22.3 shooting percentage.
It appears it was only a matter of time before Thompson became the player he is today.
“To have a history with Tage, seeing him as a teenager and watching his growth and development, it’s really special for me to be a part of his success,” said Sabres coach Don Granato, who first encountered Thompson at the US National Team Development Program. “When you’ve seen a kid like him put the work in, it’s nice to see rewards like this.”
Data from Sportlogiq
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