Nate Thompson, who's faced his own struggles, congratulates Bobby Ryan

A heart-warming hockey moment

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 4 years ago
Nate Thompson, who's faced his own struggles, congratulates Bobby Ryan
Russian Machine Never Breaks

If you didn't get the chance to see it, there was a beautiful moment in the NHL last night as Ottawa Senators forward Bobby Ryan, who had been out of the team’s lineup since November while he dealt with chronic alcoholism, received a standing ovation from the crowd and went on to score a hattrick. Ryan was reduced to tears by the crowd's reaction to his return. He's now receiving some warm words from another NHLer who knows exactly what he went through. 

Nate Thompson, now a member of the Philadelphia Flyers after being traded there from the Montreal Canadiens at the deadline, has been open about his addictions. Thompson, who's been sober more than three years now, opened up recently on Hockey Night In Canada, stating he had his first drink at 11 or 12-years-old and was drinking regularly by the time he was 16 or 17. Thompson added he started smoking marijuana in high school and by his mid-20s was using different drugs, including cocaine, Molly and mushrooms. Thompson said he never played an NHL game drunk or high, but often practiced in that state. 

Following Ryan's fantastic moment last night, Thompson issued a tweet to Bobby saying "He deserves every second of this. What a performance brother. You are a incredible human and this is what it’s all about." What a great moment between two players who can relate to each other's struggles. This is what makes hockey the greatest sport on earth!

Ryan's hattrick came in his second game back in the Sens' lineup, but his first playing at home. 

"I knew Ottawa being the community that it is that the reception would be good," Ryan said following the game. "It just got harder to keep the emotions down throughout the game. It was incredible. They supported me and I got to contribute. You can't write that, the way that went. It was just an incredible evening, so thank you to all of them."

Congrats to both Ryan and Thompson!


Source: Twitter