The Trois-Rivieres Lions have re-signed defenseman Cory Thomas for the 2024-25 season, which will be his fourth season in the ECHL after spending four seasons at the University of Vermont and his final year at Canisius College, where he put up four goals and five assists for nine points in 134 games at the NCAA level. Thomas would join the Idaho Steelheads at the end of the 2021-22 season and would play eight games with the team, including picking up his first career assist against the Utah Grizzlies, the team that he would end up spending the next year and a half with before being traded to the Lions in January in a trade which completed a trade that sent Cole Gallant to Utah. The Saskatoon native would tally his first pro goal as a member of the Lions on March 15th vs Idaho. In 102 regular season games, Thomas has put up one goal and 19 assists for 20 points along with two assists in nine Kelly Cup Playoff Games.
There’s no question that this is a solid move for the Lions, as they now have two veteran defenders signed after recently signing Brycen Martin for next season as well. Thomas isn’t going to be a guy who’s going to light up the scoresheet, but he’s going to play a solid two-way game. He was a +3 with Trois-Rivieres last season, which was the first time in his career he ended the season as a plus. The Lions now have seven players signed, as qualifying offers are due to players tomorrow by 11:59 pm tomorrow.
