| Tom Cavanagh | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | March 24, 1982, Warwick, RI, USA |
| Died | January 6, 2011 (aged 28), Providence, RI, USA |
| Height Weight |
5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg; 12 st 12 lb) |
| Position | Center |
| Shoots | Left |
| Pro clubs | Manchester Monarchs Cleveland Barons Worcester Sharks Springfield Falcons San Jose Sharks |
| NHL Draft | 182nd overall, 2001 San Jose Sharks |
| Playing career | 2005–2011 |
Thomas Garrett Cavanagh (March 24, 1982 – January 6, 2011) was an American professional ice hockey center who most last played with the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League. He was drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the sixth round, 182nd overall, of the 2001 NHL Entry Draft. After playing four seasons at Harvard University, he was signed to a professional contract by the Sharks organization.
Cavanagh made his National Hockey League debut with San Jose near the end of the 2007–08 season and recorded an assist on his first shift. His shift to open the game was alongside Jeremy Roenick and Joe Thornton. The following season, he scored his lone NHL goal March 28, 2009, a backhand shot past Phoenix Coyotes goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov.
Playing career[]
Cavanagh was the first player to play every single one of the Harvard’s games during his collegiate career. Cavanagh made his 138th consecutive appearance in a Crimson jersey in Harvard's final game of the 2005 NCAA Tournament.[1]
Cavanagh is the Worcester Sharks' all-time scoring leader with 138 points in 202 games.[2] Cavanagh holds the San Jose Sharks franchise record for quickest point by a rookie for an assist on a goal by Joe Thornton that came 36 seconds into Cavanagh's first game in the NHL.[3]
Reputation as a player[]
Cavanagh was a highly regarded player by coaches and teammates throughout his hockey career.[4] Harvard Hockey coach Ted Donato described Cavanagh with the following statement: “He was one of my favorite players I have ever been around in any facet of hockey, whether playing or coaching. He was just a very unselfish, hard-working team guy who played his best in big games.”[5]
Death[]
Cavanagh was found dead in the Providence Place Mall parking garage on January 6, 2011. The cause of death was identified as multiple traumatic injuries due to blunt force impact.[6] Police have stated that they believe the death to be a suicide. Cavanagh had been diagnosed with schizophrenia, and was institutionalized several times in the last months of his life.[7][8] Cavanagh had been released from his contract with the Falcons on November 9, 2010.[9]
Career statistics[]
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2001–02 | Harvard University | NCAA | 34 | 8 | 17 | 25 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Harvard University | NCAA | 34 | 14 | 13 | 27 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Harvard University | NCAA | 36 | 16 | 20 | 36 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | Harvard University | NCAA | 34 | 10 | 19 | 29 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 62 | 10 | 11 | 21 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Worcester Sharks | AHL | 74 | 12 | 32 | 44 | 56 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 2007–08 | Worcester Sharks | AHL | 77 | 19 | 36 | 55 | 55 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Worcester Sharks | AHL | 51 | 15 | 24 | 39 | 37 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 8 | ||
| 2008–09 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 17 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Manchester Monarchs | AHL | 17 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Springfield Falcons | AHL | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 18 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
References[]
- ↑ Sharks teammates remember Cavanagh
- ↑ Sharks update: Former teammates share memories of Cavanagh
- ↑ Sharks update: Former teammates share memories of Cavanagh
- ↑ Hockey star Tom Cavanagh remembered as ‘coach’s dream’
- ↑ Hockey star Tom Cavanagh remembered as ‘coach’s dream’
- ↑ R.I. hockey athlete Cavanagh found dead at Providence mall
- ↑ "Former RI hockey star found dead in mall garage", Boston Globe, January 8, 2011.
- ↑ Tom Cavanaugh: A tortured life
- ↑ Springfield Falcons Weekly Notes - Week 7
External links[]
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jon Smyth |
ECAC Hockey Best Defensive Forward 2004–05 |
Succeeded by Mike Ouellette |
| This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Tom Cavanagh. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Ice Hockey Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License 3.0 (Unported) (CC-BY-SA). |