It took senior forward Alan Thompson nearly four seasons to record his first collegiate goal for the UNH men's hockey team.
It wasn't for a lack of physical skill, or because he was buried on the depth chart. It's because the 24-year-old senior has spent most of his career injured or rehabbing, but for the first time in his career, he seems to be completely healthy.
On Jan. 30, UNH hosted the University of Vermont. Scoreless after the first period, Thompson broke the tie with his first goal and put UNH up in a game they needed to win. The Wildcats ultimately prevailed by a final of 3-2, and not surprisingly, Thompson said that was the most important thing.
"It felt good obviously," he said. "But like I said to all of the other guys, that was such a big game that if we hadn't won that game, it wouldn't have meant as much as it did."
Entering the home-and-home series with Boston College on Feb. 20, Thompson had played in just 30 career games - four as a freshman, three as a sophomore, and 23 this season. For that reason, when the team matched with BC, it was business as usual for some of the seniors on the team, but not for Thompson.
"This will only be the second time I've played BC in my career," he said the week before, chuckling. "A lot of it is new to me, even though I am a senior. I know how everything works but in terms of experience on the ice, it's funny to say but I really am like a freshman."
A favorite in the locker room because of his laid back and easy-going attitude, the senior has earned much respect from his teammates and coaches, as the road of his college career has been full of potholes and dead ends.
"I've said this before in our meetings, he's a terrific kid and what he's accomplished, everybody's happy for him," said UNH head coach Dick Umile. "He's a great guy. He's a great student. Everything about him he does well, so it's nice to see him healthy and playing well."
A Gilford, N.H. native, Thompson originally tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) while playing football at Holderness School, in nearby Plymouth, in the team's season opener. Though Thompson had already scored two touchdowns in the game's first six minutes, this game tape would not go on his personal highlight reel. While returning a kick, he planted his foot wrong and his cleat got stuck in the grass. It didn't hurt right away, but soon Thompson realized it was not just a tweaked right knee.
"A couple of plays later, I was our running back too, and I was just cutting and I felt it pop and I was like, 'Oh jeeze this isn't good,'" he said. "I knew right away something was wrong."
The doctors soon informed Thompson that he had completely torn his ACL. Looking back on it, he says it was a stupid decision to try and come back after just three months of rehab and play three games during his senior season. A two-sport athlete, Thompson had already committed to play hockey for UNH, and he said he was scared of how the school was going to react.
"I think I waited a month before I called them and told them I was injured," he said with a smile. "But obviously, they probably found out anyways."
UNH worked with Thompson to recover some strength and endurance, and sent him to play for the Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League. Soon enough though, Thompson would find himself back in the same position he was in before he left New Hampshire.
Thirty games into his season with the Steel, Thompson tore his right ACL again and had to make the long arduous journey back to full health. Although the physical part of rehab is taxing, when asked what the hardest part of being injured was, he didn't hesitate.
"Not being able to play," he said. "Not being able to be with my teammates on the ice, whether it was at UNH, in Chicago or during my senior year of high school.
"Obviously it's frustrating because it's such a slow recovery with an ACL surgery. You have some days where it feels good and them the next day it might feel like you're not progressing that much."
Praised by his teammates for his work ethic, Thompson did all he could while off the ice to get back on it.
"Even when he had a sore knee, he was always working hard on his upper body or something [in the weight room]," said UNH junior forward Peter LeBlanc.
Now finally completely injury-free, Thompson is back to doing what he loves: playing hockey with his teammates both in games and in practice.
"In practice, he pulls some amazing angles out of nowhere," said sophomore James van Riemsdyk, while talking about Thompson's shooting at practice. "He's got a great shot, good hands. He's a great talent. You're seeing it now."
Listed on the fourth line of the UNH depth chart - though, fair warning, don't call them the fourth line to their faces - he said he is finally playing the brand of hockey he expected to be playing when he first committed to the school. Only a few inches shorter than the hulking 6-foot-3-inch van Riemsdyk, Thompson described himself as a physical forward equipped with stick handling and speed, as he showed on Feb. 13-14 when he tallied a goal and two assists in a weekend series against Providence.
Thompson said although the team can use all the scoring they can get, his role is a bit different than that of van Riemsdyk. "[On the fourth line] you're not expected to score, but your main job is to keep their best players off the score sheet so you want to play really well defensively," he said.
Finally playing to his ability again, people have taken notice. "My friends are giving me like 'What's going on up there? You suddenly play or what?'" he joked. "I tell them I haven't basically played this year. The first half, I was kind of getting a feel for this level of play, and now I feel like I'm more comfortable with it and actually start contributing, which is good."
Not surprisingly, having a career weekend in two crucial wins for the Wildcats against Providence isn't good enough for Thompson.
"Two weekends doesn't mean you're contributing," he said. "I've contributed two weekends but I've got to keep it going. "I'm satisfied with this last weekend, but I'm not too satisfied," he added.
It's not just Thompson's love for hockey that kept him rehabilitating, as he drew inspiration from people like former Boston University player Travis Roy, who suffered a broken neck just 11 seconds into his first college shift.
"When you look at situations like that, a knee injury pales in comparison for what they go through," he said.
Much like many seniors walking around campus, Thompson, a kinesiology major, has no idea what the future holds for him. At the end of the year he will have to make a major decision based just as much on his knee's feelings as his head's. Because he was red-shirted last year and didn't play, he has one year left of eligibility if he wants to return to the Wildcats for one last run.
"The way my knee feels at the end of the year too is going to play a factor because I want to have an active lifestyle for another 20 years or so," he said. "Like I said, right now I feel great so there's been no problem with my knee or anything but who knows, that could all change.
"You never know when it's going to go," he added.
As spring approaches, seniors like Thompson will have choices. He could return to the Wildcats as a graduate student and fulfill his eligibility, or he could trek to Europe and play professional hockey over seas.
"He's worked real hard to get back and have a healthy year and play well," Umile said. "He's having fun. He's enjoying it."
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