from Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald,

The first question for Tim Thomas at the Marriott Marquis was as basic as it gets. The former Bruin and one-time greatest goaltender on the planet was asked what the honor of being inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame meant to him.

But as he immediately hinted at the emotion welling up inside of him, it was clear that this was not going to be a boilerplate media scrum with the ever-thoughtful Thomas. In a session marked by tears — and a few laughs, as Thomas himself did his best to lighten the mood — the goalie described a living hell that he’s been going through since suffering a concussion in his final NHL season in Florida and Dallas, his complicated relationship with the game that once was all-consuming and, later with a just a couple of familiar reporters, his fleeting thoughts of suicide.

“I’m a survivor,” said Thomas prior to the induction dinner.

That was not a boast, but rather a declaration of gratitude of what could have, but did not befall him, having avoided the fate of deceased hockey players that he knew such as Steve Montador, Derek Boogaard and Wade Belak.

Though he still needs a couple hours each morning to “re-order things,” he has started to feel like himself in just the past couple of years. While Thomas did not know how many concussions he had suffered during an active lifetime that’s included boxing on the street in Flint, Michigan, playing football and, of course, hockey, the one that sent him for a tailspin occurred while he was with the Panthers in 2013-14 when, in warmups, he took a puck off the chin.

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