When François Thuot was young, he always screamed for his parents to flip back to hockey if they dared to channel surf. He forced his parents to stop the car whenever they drove by an ice rink just so he could watch the game.

From the moment he could walk and hold a stick, Thuot was hooked on hockey.

Thuot loves hockey. He loves stepping onto a clean sheet of ice after the zamboni has washed away the grooves and chips from the last period’s battle. He loves the blue paint of the crease; it means that it’s his crease and Thuot owns that space.
From post to post, goal line to crossbar, Thuot, the man behind the mask, is all that stands between victory and a flashing red light.

“It was a passion right from the start for me,” said Thuot.

“For me, my plan is so set to go and just keep playing hockey and that’s what it’s been all about my whole life and that’s still what I want to do.”

Thuot joined his first league team at age five. He played Major Junior hockey in the Ontario Hockey League for the Barrie Colts and Saginaw Spirit.

Now, Thuot mans the crease for the UBC Thunderbirds and is looking to capture a championship for the home team.

The Thunderbirds have started the season with Thuot in net, and has already shone, with a 2.61 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage. The team is depending on him to be a large part of their push for the playoffs and hopefully a CIS title.

“I know we can do it,” said Thuot. “If the team is healthy and we believe in ourselves, we can do it. I think we can do it, because that is what I want to happen and we need these four points this weekend big time, if we want to make the playoffs.”

Making the playoffs is essential for the Thunderbirds this season and top priority for Thuot. He is hungry for the win, and won’t be counting just on luck to get the team there; although a little doesn’t hurt.

“I had lucky socks for the playoffs, like my grandpa used to wear,” said Thuot about his past lucky charms. “I had a lucky tie for a long time. “Most likely, if I am wearing a shirt and we are losing two games in a row, I am never wearing that shirt again and if I am wearing a shirt and we keep winning I am probably going to wear it day after day to the game.”

One thing Thuot always wears is his mask. Painted in Cujo-style with the head of a wolf, jaws open bearing fangs, the UBC puck-stopper wants to send a message to his opponents: the puck stops here.

The mask is the same he wore in the OHL, and has a quirky history. When Thuot played for the Barrie Colts, it was the first time he was able to get a painted mask.

“I’ve always loved it,”  said Thuot when asked of the design. “All my career, the paint was too expensive. Then the mask was stolen when I was playing a game in Sudbury and I had to get the mask made the same again.”

Thuot will do everything this season to help his team win. He may even score a goal.

“I’m still working on that. My shot is not good enough to get the puck all the way down there. Maybe the NHL guys can do it, but I am still working on it.”