Nate Thompson

Nathan Scott Thompson (born October 5, 1984) is an American former professional ice hockey forward.

He played for the Boston Bruins, New York Islanders, Tampa Bay Lightning, Anaheim Ducks, Ottawa Senators, Los Angeles Kings, Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers and Winnipeg Jets.

Thompson played major junior ice hockey for the Western Hockey League (WHL)'s Seattle Thunderbirds beginning in the 2001–02 season.

After his second season with Seattle, in 2002–03, he was drafted by the Boston Bruins in the sixth round, 183rd overall, at the 2003 NHL Entry Draft on June 21–22, 2003.

The Bruins drafted him in the sixth round (183rd overall) at the 2003 NHL Entry Draft.

Thompson remained with the Thunderbirds for two additional seasons after his NHL selection by the Bruins, in 2003–04 and 2004–05.

However, during the latter season, he joined Boston's American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Providence Bruins on their run in the 2005 Calder Cup playoffs, making his professional debut.

Thompson signed an entry-level contract with the Bruins on July 20, 2005, and made his debut in the NHL with the team in 2006–07, playing four games; however, he spent the majority of the season with Providence in the AHL.

On October 8, 2008, just before the start of the 2008-09 NHL season, The Islanders claimed Thompson off of waivers and added him to their NHL roster; defenseman Brett Skinner was reassigned to the AHL Bridgeport Sound Tigers to make room for Thompson.

On July 27, 2009, Thompson was re-signed to a one-year contract with the Islanders.

After registering six points in 39 games with the Islanders in the 2009–10 season, Thompson was claimed off waivers by the Tampa Bay Lightning on January 21, 2010.

He would appear in 32 games for the Lightning, scoring one goal and three assists for four points; in total, he scored two goals and eight assists for both the Islanders and Lightning, then-career-highs.

He also excelled in face-offs, winning 219 of 385 taken for Tampa Bay, a 56.9 percent success rate.

In the subsequent off-season, on July 10, 2010, Tampa Bay re-signed Thompson to a one-year contract.

On January 31, 2011, Tampa Bay signed Thompson to a two-year contract extension.

At that point, he had played in 51 games with the team, recording career-highs for goals (7), assists (10) and points (17).

Thompson also continued his success in the face-off circle, winning 249 of 446 draws taken (55.8 percent).

He ranked seventh among NHL forwards with 49 blocked shots, and was also fourth on the team in takeaways, with 25.

During the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Thompson played for his hometown Alaska Aces of the ECHL, later returning to the Lightning at the end of the lockout.

He finished the shortened, 48-game 2012–13 season with seven goals and eight assists from 45 games played.

On March 3, 2013, Tampa Bay signed Thompson to a four-year contract extension.

He played in 81 games during the 2013–14 season, scoring nine goals and seven assists for 16 points.

On June 29, 2014, Thompson was traded by Tampa Bay to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for two picks in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.

In his first season with the Ducks, Thompson appeared in 80 games, scoring five goals along with 13 assists.

On December 14, the NHL department of player safety issued a three-game suspension against Thompson for his hit on Justin Faulk of the Carolina Hurricanes.

The suspension was deemed an illegal check to the head.

Thompson was given a game misconduct at the time of the incident.

As a result of the suspension, Thompson lost $25,806.45 in salary.

He scored his first NHL goal in his 16th career game, a short-handed shot past Henrik Lundqvist that opened up scoring for a 2-1 victory over the New York Rangers on November 4.

Thompson's season was hindered by injury.

First, a groin injury suffered in a game against the Atlanta Thrashers at the start of November sidelined Thompson for a number of weeks.

Two months later, Thompson missed 12 games with a fractured ankle, returning on January 14.

Less than a month later, Thompson suffered a shoulder injury with an anticipated recovery time of four to six weeks.

On the first day of the 2017 free agency period, Thompson signed a two-year, $3.3 million contract with the Ottawa Senators, a deal that reunited him with his former Lightning coach Guy Boucher.

Replacing Chris Kelly as the fourth-line center for Ottawa, it was the first time in eight NHL seasons that Thompson had played for a Canadian team.

A lower body injury suffered during a January 5 match against the San Jose Sharks continued to hinder Thompson for the remainder of his Senators tenure – he was in and out of the lineup through January and February, missing 11 out of his last 15 games.

In his time with the Senators, Thompson recorded four goals and 11 points.

The Los Angeles Kings acquired Thompson and Dion Phaneuf from the Senators on February 13, 2018, in exchange for Marián Gáborík and Nick Shore.

Thompson enjoyed the trade, which put him in the more physically aggressive Western Conference and allowed him to exercise his abilities as both a two-way player and as a penalty killer.

He was also familiar with many of his new teammates, such as Richard Park, who Thompson played with on the Islanders, and Jake Muzzin, with whom Thompson practiced during the offseason.