Yesterday news came out that the Bandits goaltender Michael Thompson would be retiring from the league after a solid seven season career in the NLL. Last season Thompson lost the starting job to acquisition Anthony Cosmo, who was franchised two days ago by the team. The team had a goaltender controversy that is made much easier by the retirement of Thompson, who played six seasons in Buffalo. Recently fans may be down on Thompson, but his time in Buffalo was memorable to say the least.
Thompson’s time in Buffalo started in 2006, when he was brought to the team to back-up recent HOF nominated goaltender Steve Dietrich. In 2007 Dietrich got hurt, leading to Thompson playing in all 16 games. He posted a 5-2 record and convinced the team of his skill, which led to the team letting Dietrich go in the off-season. Then came 2008, the year most remember when it comes to Thompson.
In 2008 the Bandits saw an incredible emergence of both of their goaltenders, Thompson and Ken Montour. The team finished the season with a 10-6 record, tops in the Eastern Division. In the playoffs the Bandits made it all the way to the Championship Game, which they hosted at the HSBC Arena. The Portland Lumberjax were the opposing team, and although they were only the 4th seed in the west they had looked excellent of late. The game was close as expected, and it came down to the wire. With only minutes left the Bandits were up by only one goal, with Portland on the attack. One of the most memorable moments of Thompson’s time in Buffalo were the last few seconds of that game. One last shot was fired on the Bandits keeper, a quick rebound off of another save. Thompson snared it as the buzzer went, giving the Bandits their fourth championship.
With Montour’s injury, Thompson had taken over the Bandits starting job in recent years. What will unfortunately stand out most to people is his last season, where he was very hot and cold. The beginning of the year was very rough, with Thompson losing his first six games. This led to Buffalo trading for Anthony Cosmo, who eventually pushed Thompson out of the starting job. They ran with a two goalie system for a few games until Cosmo shook of the rust and took command of the job. In the end, Thompson retired a backup goaltender.
Although he may not be remembered for it in the long run, when Michael Thompson was at his best he was one of the best goaltenders in the league. He was a huge component in Buffalo’s first championship in 12 years, which will always be the crowning jewel of his NLL career. Mikey should be remembered for his great play, remarkable saves, and great memories he helped create for everyone in Banditland. As someone on the message boards said when the news was announced, one last time, “What’s he got?”
