Boston Bruins Goalie Makes Holiday Call to Abraham Lincoln Sailors

By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Seth Clarke, Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group Public Affairs

USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN, At Sea (NNS) -- A goalie for the Boston Bruins spoke to hockey fans aboard USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) during a phone call to the aircraft carrier Dec. 29.

Fourteen hockey fans aboard Abraham Lincoln gathered to ask Tim Thomas a number of questions throughout the call.

They asked about the Bruins' offensive approach, Thomas' early days in hockey and his early professional career playing in Finland and in the minor leagues.

Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Kaleb F. Brown asked what Thomas considered his most memorable moment as a hockey player.

Thomas said that although he has had quite a few memorable moments, his proudest moment came when he was named to the 2010 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team on the same day the Bruins won a shootout against the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2010 National Hockey League Winter Classic in front of 40,000 fans at Boston's Fenway Park.

"Being named to the Olympic Team had been my dream since I was five years old, and finally I was able to realize that dream," said Thomas. "It was a great day."

Brown also asked Thomas what kept him motivated to reach his goals.

"If you really want something, just work as hard as you can to try to accomplish it. If you do everything that you possibly can to reach a goal that you want to reach, you'll respect yourself at the end of the day. It's nice to be rewarded, and I think you will be if you want something bad enough and you work at it hard enough," said Thomas.

Thomas reminded the gathered fans that he still has a larger goal looming in his career.

"I want to win a Stanley Cup," said Thomas. "I'm still working on that one."

The hockey star's phone call is the latest in a series of recent calls from prominent Boston sports figures to Abraham Lincoln's sports fans. Ray Allen, Celtics shooting guard; Bill Belichick, New England Patriots Coach; and Wes Welker, New England Patriots wide receiver; called Sailors on Christmas Eve. Red Sox Manager Terry Francona called the ship Dec. 21.

The Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group is deployed in the U.S. 5th Fleet Area of Responsibility conducting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts to establish conditions for regional stability.

This article was sponsored by Military Books.