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Former Sharks Teammate Shares Heartwarming Joe Thornton Story

A former San Jose Sharks teammate shared a heartwarming Joe Thornton story.

Jacob Punturi

Nov 23, 2024; San Jose, California, USA; Joe Thornton talks during the Joe Thornton retirement ceremony at SAP Center in San Jose. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-Imagn Images
Nov 23, 2024; San Jose, California, USA; Joe Thornton talks during the Joe Thornton retirement ceremony at SAP Center in San Jose. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-Imagn Images / John Hefti-Imagn Images
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The San Jose Sharks put together an incredible jersey retirement ceremony for franchise legend Joe Thornton. The evening saw tons of Thornton's teammates, coaches, family, and friends to celebrate the future Hall of Famer.

One of the people on hand to honor Thornton was his former teammate with the Sharks, Douglas Murray. Murray and Thornton played together for eight seasons in San Jose. The two were polar opposites in their roles on the ice. Jumbo Joe led the offense, while Murray (nicknamed "Crankshaft" by his NHL teammates) was known as a hard-nosed and brutal defender.

But the two players were close on and off the ice, and Murray shared a heartwarming story that displayed how generous of a person Thornton and his family is.

A few years into Murray's career, Thornton called the young player to help him with moving. When Murray showed up, he expected to be helping a new teammate or staff member of the Sharks, but was surprised to find out that wasn't the case at all.

"I drive to the address and they were moving into a two-bedroom apartment in San Jose," he said. "And Im like, 'Who's living here? Did we trade for a player or something?"

"No," Thornton replied. "It's a mom with two kids and she's homeless and she needed a place to live. But you can't tell anybody about this. Now it's been such a long time ago so now I can break the trust to tell everyone about this... That's who they (the Thornton's) are."

It was a touching tribute to Thornton and his family. Amidst a night of celebrating his on-ice achievements and skills, this moment stood out. Yes, his hockey contributions are incredible and worth celebrating, but Murray's story and many other stories shared during the event made it clear that Thornton's personal contributions to the world around him are just as incredible and worth celebrating.

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Jacob Punturi
JACOB PUNTURI

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