Thomas quick as lightning

There was this shootout at the University of Vermont a decade ago, a season-ending charity exhibition, and two recent UVM alums, Martin St. Louis and Tim Thomas, were involved.

That's fact.

The details? The results?

You decide.

"St. Louis and teammate Eric Perrin shot eight times each; I stopped them every time," said Thomas.

"I beat him two out of five," said St. Louis.

"I finally threw my stick away," said Thomas, "so they'd have a chance."

"Trust me," said St. Louis with a wink. "Two out of five."

Who knows? The outcome, the machinations, are lost in the haze of time and the gloss of egos.

There was this other shootout at TD Banknorth Garden last night, a regular-season game, and two NHL regulars, Martin St. Louis of the Lightning and Tim Thomas of the Bruins, were involved.

That's fact.

So are the details, the results, because neither St. Louis nor Thomas could do any revisionist tinkering with the immediacy of the moment.

St. Louis beat Thomas once -- at 4:44 of the second period with an assist from a Tampa Bay center by the name of Eric Perrin, who had beaten Thomas in the first period.

"They both got me," sighed Thomas.

But in the shootout -- the one that counted -- he got them. St. Louis and Perrin were two of the seven shooters Thomas foiled, allowing the Bruins to hang around long enough for Phil Kessel to score and outlast the Lightning 4-3, the eighth victory in 10 games for Boston and its goaltender.

"I think they're going to be mad at me," said Thomas with a laugh that indicated he couldn't care less.

St. Louis had every right to be infuriated. Not only did Thomas deprive him in the shootout with a pad save -- just before he stymied Perrin with his glove -- but he positively vandalized the NHL's hottest scorer and onetime scoring champion early in the third period. That save preserved a 2-2 tie and spawned a mystery: How did Thomas do it?

With 16:55 left in regulation, Brad Richards skimmed a pass from the right side to St. Louis near the left of the crease. Thomas had been facing Richards, so St. Louis was left alone to rap in the easy goal. That's what he figured.

"I thought it was in," said St. Louis. "I had my glove up."

No need to celebrate, as it turned out. Thomas somehow adjusted his positioning and pounced on the puck like a seal flopping on a fish. Just before it crossed the goal line, as he lay prone on the ice, Thomas slid the puck to safety with his stick before it disappeared on him.

"It hit my paddle," said Thomas. "I could feel it real well. I knew for sure it didn't go in because my paddle was outside the post. But I wasn't sure if my body pushed it across. When I lost sight of the puck, I just lay still, because the No. 1 rule for a goalie is, 'If you don't know where the puck is, freeze.' I was afraid it might be up around my chest, and I thought for a half-second, 'I just wasted a good save.' "

No, he didn't. The play was such a blur that officials reviewed it, but video clearly showed the puck never crossed the line, that it trickled under Thomas's body and squirted free, away from danger.

It seemed a miraculous stop, but Thomas didn't spend any time admiring it.

"Everything was happening so fast," he said. "I had more saves to come."

But Thomas's old buddy knew right away he'd been hoodwinked.

"He made a good play," said St. Louis. "He's that type of goalie. He doesn't give up. Praise to him."

That, too, was fact.