Hip Surgery Has Tim Thomas, Bruins Standing Tall

Filed under: Bruins What a difference two legs make for Tim Thomas. Until he underwent hip surgery in May, the 36-year-old Boston Bruins veteran regarded himself as a one-legged goalie because of a hip injury. "I had about two years there where I could only recover (after making a save) with one leg," he says. "I went over it with Bob Essensa, our goalie coach. He was trying to get me to practice using the correct leg and it was just impossible. I couldn't do it." But now he can, and the Bruins are benefiting. With Thomas playing at the top of his game, Boston ranks as one of the Eastern Conference's elite teams. He kept his NHL-leading goals against average below two per game Saturday as he backstopped the Bruins to a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks, who sit first overall. Thomas made 27 saves and improved his career record against the league-leading Canucks to 3-0 with just the one goal against.