LAS VEGAS — It was June 29 when Logan Thompson situated himself inside the Sphere, site of the NHL Draft, to fulfill an obligation with Upper Deck by signing autographs for roughly an hour.
Shortly before that, Thompson was awoken by a phone call that informed him he had been traded from the Vegas Golden Knights to the Washington Capitals but still hustled to his scheduled appearance, donning a Golden Knights cap worn backward.
“Actually, it was a good alarm clock,” Thompson said after his signing session. “I woke up to that and then obviously get ready and come down, and I knew it was going to be an interesting day.”
Thompson also said he had a lot more to prove himself in the NHL.
A little more than a month into the season, he has.
Through eight starts for the Capitals, Thompson has proven to be a wise investment, turning in a 7-0-1 mark behind a 2.71 goals-against average and .906 save percentage.
Thompson stopped 24 of 26 shots in Washington’s 4-2 win over Vegas on Oct. 15.
The 27-year-old stepped on the ice inside T-Mobile Arena for the first time as a Capital feeling the love from Vegas fans.
“I’m excited to go back,” Thompson told The Hockey News’ Sammi Silber before the team left for Vegas. “I’ve already played them once this year, so I think it’s just another game.”
The crowd was even louder when a video tribute was played early in the first period, a montage of clips that brought Thompson to tears.
“I’m sure the fans and everybody (in Vegas) knows (that) with Logan, and I think he’s just been a good fit in our locker room,” Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said before the game. “His personality and interacting with the guys right from day one.
“When he gets on the ice, you can see the competitiveness of him wanting to win. Whether it’s in practice, whether it’s a small area game, or whether it’s a game. And that’s what I think, probably, the biggest compliment I could give him thus far in the season.”
Carbery said Thompson’s success has come naturally, as there were no expectations placed on him when the camp opened two months ago.
“We talked a little bit about how the rotation would go,” Carbery said. “But after that, it’s about him doing his job and playing to the highest level he possibly can and up to his standard.”
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