Unmasked: Thompson pays unexpected dividends for Golden Knights

Logan Thompson is an advocate and mentor for the next generation of goalies hoping to follow his path from overlooked to invaluable.

The Vegas Golden Knights goalie is a great example of the impact undrafted goalies can have on the NHL.
"I know what it's like to get passed over and told you're not good enough, so I just want to be there when anyone needs anything and just kind of be that voice and hopefully that role model for people going through the same thing," the 25-year-old said. "I've kind of been through the wringer, played in almost every league, and I get it. It's a grind. It's not easy."
Thompson has played a key role in keeping hope alive for the Stanley Cup Playoffs while the Golden Knights are dealing with injuries to goalies Robin Lehner and Laurent Brossoit.
In 12 games with the Golden Knights this season, Thompson is 7-4-0 with a 2.56 goals-against average, .921 save percentage and one shutout. He started eight straight games from March 17-April 1, going 6-2-0 with a 2.13 GAA and .934 save percentage when there were fears Vegas could fall out of the race.
Lehner returned April 3 and has started the past two games.
The Golden Knights (39-29-4) trail the Dallas Stars by two points for the second wild card from the Western Conference.
"I was lucky enough to get a couple of games in a row there and hopefully I started to win some people over," Thompson said. "Even now I still get told, 'You're not good enough.' But that just fuels me and gives me a little bit of fire to keep proving people wrong."
Thompson played four seasons with Brandon of the Western Hockey League and never was drafted by an NHL team. He played one season of college hockey with Brock University in St. Catharines, Ontario, before turning pro late in the 2018-19 season and signing professional tryout contracts with Adirondack of the ECHL (eight games) and Binghamton of the American Hockey League (one game).
He signed a two-year, entry-level contract with Vegas on July 13, 2020, and won the Aldege "Baz" Bastien Award as the best goalie in the AHL in 2020-21.
Thompson's path to the NHL is a reminder of the potential value and quick impact of signing older goalies as undrafted free agents.
His success for the Golden Knights in emergency duty serves as a best-case scenario for other goalies signing free agent contracts and for the teams taking the chance.
A record 115 goalies have played at least one game in the NHL this season, so depth never has been more important. With these free agent signings typically being older and more experienced than drafted players, the opportunity to mature faster is obvious.
That played a role in the Washington Capitals signing
Clay Stevenson
to a two-year, entry-level contract that begins next season, on March 28. The 23-year-old played three seasons in the British Columbia Hockey League before playing the past two seasons at Dartmouth College. Ge had a .922 save percentage in 23 games as a sophomore this season.
"Some of the goalies that aren't drafted, whether they went through the draft and just weren't picked, or they've been late to develop, there's an intrigue because they're older, they've gotten more experience," Capitals goalie coach Scott Murray said. "The more information you can get and the more time they've had to learn about themselves and grow into the game, you're at least bridging some of that gap from when they're 18, 19 or 20, and now you have more information and a closer evaluation of what they're going to be like when they step into pro vs. from junior."
Stevenson is one of five undrafted goalies to sign recently after their NCAA season ended.
The Edmonton Oilers signed
Ryan Fanti
to a two-year contract beginning next season on March 28. The 22-year-old went 20-12-4 with a 1.83 GAA, .929 save percentage and seven shutouts in 37 games during his second season at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
Brandon Bussi
signed a one-year, entry-level contract beginning next season with the Boston Bruins on March 30. The 23-year-old was 26-12-1 with a 2.55 GAA, .912 save percentage and four shutouts in 39 games as a junior at Western Michigan University.
David Hrenak
signed a one-year, entry-level contract beginning next season with the Los Angeles Kings on March 28. The 23-year-old was 16-11-4 with a 2.26 GAA, .914 save percentage and one shutout in 31 games as a senior at St. Cloud State University.
Jaxson Stauber
agreed to terms with the Chicago Blackhawks on a two-year, entry-level contract beginning next season March 23. The 22-year-old was 21-14-2 with a 2.10 GAA, .921 save percentage and four shutouts in 37 games as a junior Providence College.
There's one more college goalie signing to come.
Dryden McKay, 24, will finish his fourth season at Minnesota State University in the national championship game against the University of Denver on Saturday. McKay holds the NCAA record with 34 shutouts and on Friday won the Hobey Baker Award, given to the top men's player in NCAA ice hockey. He is 37-4-0 with a 1.28 GAA, .943 save percentage and 10 shutouts in 41 games this season.
Each of these goalies may not have the same impact as quickly as Thompson did, at least not in the NHL. Perhaps none will be as successful as Cam Talbot of the Minnesota Wild, who went from an undrafted free agent signing from University of Alabama-Huntsville in 2010 to playing for the New York Rangers in 2013-14. Talbot entered Friday having played 390 games in nine NHL seasons.
Each of the new signings can provide immediate value to their respective team while working their way up the depth chart.
"I think they're more ready to step in and pursue a pro job," Oilers goaltending coach Dustin Schwartz said. "A lot of them have established a good foundation because of the amount of practice time they get in college, so that allows them to transition a little bit quicker, where a lot of those junior goalies need a lot of time to be able to play pro hockey at any level. The other part too that gets lost a little bit is they went to college, so most of them are good students, and being a good student allows you to take the coaching and apply the coaching. And then hopefully for most of those kids, it's just tweaks to get them to play in the American league and then you're going to get the odd guy here and there that's able to play in the NHL."
Even if they don't make it all the way to the NHL, these college free agents can help fill important spots in an organization's depth chart sooner.
"Obviously if you look at -- and we've done this exercise -- the history of guys that have been successful coming into pro as undrafted free agents, there's not a high percentage," Murray said. "But it adds important depth as an organization. And being able to develop those guys and get them into your system, it's just nice to have goalies to fill those holes at every level."
In Thompson's case, the hole was in the NHL this season. He succeeded in part, he says, because of the mental toughness he developed waiting for the chance.
"It is such a mental game for goalies," Thompson said. "That experience helps."