‘ The end of an era has come. Rather than wearing the red and black No. 39 for Northeastern next year, Brad Thiessen will be wearing No. 1 in the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins organization. The number is fitting for a man who was the No. 1 goaltender and even the No. 1 player in all of Hockey East last year, winning the Player of the Year Award. Thiessen can now claim ownership to most Northeastern goaltending records. He is also one of just three remaining candidates to be named the No. 1 player in all of college hockey, as was announced last week by the Hobey Baker selection committee.
Whether he earns the honor of the Hobey Baker award or not, Thiessen will be remembered among the best players to don a Huskies jersey. He was named to Northeastern’s Hockey East 25th Anniversary team, and was the only player from the 2008-09 roster to be placed on that squad. In addition to being named the ITECH Goaltending Champion for Hockey East, the player of the year and Northeastern’s second ever Hobey Hat Trick finalist, Thiessen earned the Three Stars award for the conference, was the only unanimous selection to the first team all-conference, was given the New England MVP and was also on the New England All-Star team.
As goaltender, No. 39 set new records in every major goaltending category for Northeastern. He led the team to the most wins in program history at 25 (tied with the 1981-82 team), which was the most wins for one netminder in a season. His 2.12 goals against average, .931 save percentage, 1,195 saves, 41 games and nearly 2,500 minutes are all the best for a Husky backstop in a single season. For his career, Thiessen leads NU goalies all-time in goals against average (2.40), save percentage (.922) and shutouts (9). He ranks second in saves (3.166), third in games (111) and third in minutes at 6,661:23. All of these records are more reasons why No. 1 is the perfect number for him to wear with the Penguins.
Unfortunately, Northeastern was unable to place itself in the No. 1 position as a team this year, as they lost chances to be Beanpot Champions, Hockey East regular season champions and Hockey East tournament champions, as well as the opportunity to go to the Frozen Four and try to bring the national championship home to Matthews Arena. There’s no saying for sure if any of that would have happened next year had Thiessen stayed, but chances probably would have been higher. Maybe Chris Rawlings, another recruit from the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL), will be able to fill Thiessen’s skates and crease. At 6′ 5′, filling the crease shouldn’t be a problem, but Rawlings (or current backup Mike Binnington) may have some difficulty matching the goaltending we saw this year. Not that we should expect that as fans, as it will be a long time until Northeastern sees anybody else take control as the No. 1 player to wear red and black between the pipes at Matthews Arena.
In going to Pittsburgh, Thiessen follows senior captain Joe Vitale (who will wear No. 18, for those of you who are curious). Vitale signed an amateur tryout contract with the organization Thursday after being the Penguins’ seventh round draft choice in 2005, and dressed for his first pro game with the Pens’ AHL club, the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins. It will be nice for Thiessen to have a familiar face, though he says that was not the only reason he chose Pittsburgh instead of other NHL suitors. He said he felt like there is great opportunity for him as a goaltender there, and Pittsburgh really wanted him.
‘ Well, Brad, we want you here too. You will be missed, but you led the Huskies back onto the college hockey map and for that we are grateful. If you put on your pads and skates at the TD Banknorth Garden again, you may have a different number and new colors on your jersey, but I’ll be there in my black and red.
I think I can speak for all Northeastern fans when I say that we wish you had stayed to finish your senior year and play another year for the Huskies, but I also think I can speak for all of us when I congratulate you on your decision to play professionally and wish you nothing but the best of luck in the future. Thanks for a few great years No. 39, or should I say No. 1?

‘- Andy Towne can be reached’
at [email protected].