FEATURE: Thompson Takes Next Step Toward NHL Debut

NEWARK, NJ -For the past week, Tyce Thompson has made a daily trip to the Prudential Center. During that time, he hit the weight room, hit the ice with Devils skills development coach Ryan Murphy and hit the video room to learn New Jersey's defensive system.
But when he arrived at the arena for his eighth trip on Thursday morning, he was greeted by a room full of his new teammates.
"Everyone introduced themselves to me which was nice. It's definitely a welcoming team," Thompson said following his first team practice. "I thought the first day of practice went well."

Thompson, who signed with New Jersey last week following his junior season at Providence, has completed his one-week mandatory quarantine period, and Thursday marked the official start of his pro-career. He is one step closer to the NHL.
"It's definitely surreal. It's every kids' dream to make it here and knowing I'm pretty close now," Thompson said. "Just seeing the guys like (Jack) Hughes, P.K. (Subban), (Kyle) Palmieri and all these guys that you look up to, watching them play every night. It's definitely surreal."
Though Thompson, 21, is a step closer to making his NHL debut, head coach Lindy Ruff is still being cautious with his progress and trying not to overwhelm him.
"We'll get him a couple days, we'll get him a couple practices, we'll get him real familiar with what we're trying to do and then we'll go from there," Ruff said.
Thompson, an Oyster Bay, NY native, is a diverse forward that can play in all situations, whether it be center, wing, first line, fourth line, power play or penalty kill.
"I feel like whatever role they put me in here I can play," he said. "I think a lot of that is attributed to my play at Providence. Over the three years that I was there I played up and down the lineup, PK, power play and in a lot of different situations. I have that familiarity with all of those instances. Whatever the coaches and team needs from me to win I'll be able to do."
Also while in Providence, Thompson packed on muscle to his 6-foot-1, 180-pound frame while improving his skillset on the ice.
"The (Providence) coaching staff does a great job of developing the players," he said, "making sure they're playing the right way, playing the pro-style game so that when you do get to the next level it's not a crazy wake-up call. You're expecting the things that you've learned in college. I feel ready and I feel that has a lot to do with the coaching staff in Providence."

Thompson, whose brother Tage plays for the Buffalo Sabres, has come a long way since going undrafted in his first year of eligibility. The Devils corrected that slight by selecting him in the fourth round (96th overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft following his freshman season. The pick proved highly intuitive as Thompson enjoyed a breakout year during his sophomore season.
Thompson finished the 2019-20 year second in Hockey East and third in the NCAA in scoring with 44 points on 19 goals and 25 assists in 34 games before COVID-19 shutdown the season. He was also second in Hockey East in goals (19) and power-play points (21).
Even though he appeared ready to make the leap to the NHL for the start of the current season, the Devils opted for patience. Thompson returned to Providence for his junior year, a season that saw him wear a "C" on his jersey in a three-way shared captaincy.
"It's a huge honor whenever you're named captain of a team," he said. "It's a huge responsibility, too. Going to the rink and leading with your actions is a big thing. I try to go there and lead by example. I'm myself and don't try to change too much. You got that honor for a reason so you continue to do what you're doing."
The Friars' forward notched 11 goals and 25 points in 25 games in his last collegiate season, closing out his career with 38 goals, 56 assists, 94 points and a plus-18 in 101 career games.
"Obviously, I needed some more time to go back to school, put on weight, get bigger, stronger, to play at this level," Thompson said. "I knew I was going to go back after being drafted for a year or two. Fortunately, after this year I was able to sign with them."
Thompson signed a two-year contract with New Jersey on March 24 while the team was on its six-game, 10-day road trip. Thompson served his mandatory seven-day quarantine, filling the time by FaceTiming with friends, playing Fortnite on Xbox and re-watching the show 'White Collar.'
Now the he's officially cleared and joined his new team for practice, the next step will be making his NHL debut - whenever that may be.
"I'm waiting to get into the lineup. That decision is up to management and the coaches," he said. "I'm just waiting and staying ready."