Tom Walsh and Tom Cavanaugh

These Two Worcester Sharks are Ready to Rumble
By Kimberly Dunbar

The Sharks are a new team with new players in a new city. But amongst all the brand new, there are two players who are very familiar with their surroundings ~ and each other.

Second year center Tom Cavanagh and rookie defenseman Tom Walsh were teammates for three years while playing hockey at Harvard University. Reunited and raring to go, these two have assured us that there are good times ~ and great hockey! ~ ahead.

TOM WALSH

Walsh, an Arlington native, is excited to be spending the season in Worcester. A rookie fresh out of Harvard, Walsh made the team out of training camp and plans on being here for a while. In fact, staying with the Sharks is one of his goals for the season. “I enjoy being in Massachusetts and I don’t want to leave,” he said.

Worcester is familiar ground for Walsh; during college, Walsh used to visit friends who attended school in the area. Some of those friends are still around and will be able to catch some games. “It will be nice, my parents will be able to come to some games as well as my friends,” he said.

He grew up idolizing Bruins legend Ray Bourque and started playing hockey when he was four or five years old. “Everyone in Arlington plays little league and hockey. I just started playing and never stopped,” he said. Walsh would love to be compared to idol Nicklas Lidstrom, defender for the Detroit Red Wings.

His greatest hockey memory is when his Arlington Bantam AA team (comprised of 13 and 14 year-olds) won the state championship and headed to the nationals in California. “We won in double overtime, it was really thrilling,” said Walsh. “But the best part was I got to miss a week of school.”

Walsh said he hopes some of that double OT excitement will find its way into the Sharks’ inaugural season. So far, so good; the Sharks opened their season in Portland, beating the Pirates 4-3 in a shootout. But it was what happened after the game that Walsh loved most: “There was a group of fans who waited outside after the game for us, we signed some autographs. It was awesome,” he beamed.

Update:  As we were going to press, Worcester Sharks General Manager Wayne Thomas announced that the club has signed Tom Walsh to an American Hockey League contract.  Per club policy, terms of the deal were undisclosed.

TOM CAVANAGH

Tom Cavanagh learned about the passion and intensity of Worcester Shark fans this summer when he attended a blood drive the Sharks organization held in Worcester. “It was a good time,” he said. “Everyone I met was excited about the season. We already have a great following.”

Cavanagh, a senior captain at Harvard in 2005, spent last season in Cleveland with the Barons. “Last year was a good experience, but this year is another chance to become a better player and win games,” he said. And Cavanagh couldn’t think of a better place to do it than in Worcester. “Worcester is a great city. It worked out very well that the team moved here,” he said.

A native of nearby Warwick, RI, Cavanaugh is back on his home turf around his family and friends, which will make it easier for them to catch some games. But that isn’t the only reason Cavanagh thinks Worcester is a good spot for the team. “It is more exciting here because all the teams are close together and there are some great rivalries that have developed,” he added.

Like Walsh, Cavanagh also idolized guys like Bourque and Cam Neely and started playing hockey at a very young age. He started playing when he was 4, mimicking the actions of his father and brothers, all of whom played the sport. But the boy who followed is now the first Cavanagh to play the sport professionally.

Some of Cavanagh’s greatest memories come from his college years, from playing in the Beanpot to winning the ECAC championship both his freshman and junior years with the Crimson. But pro hockey has also offered him some excitement. “It’s a different kind of experience. It involves more travel, and there are more games, but it is a lot of fun,” said Cavanagh.

Both Walsh and Cavanagh are looking forward to the season ahead of them. “Tom is a great guy and a great player,” said Walsh. “I’m excited to be playing with him again.”

The duo and their team performed in front of a sold-out crowd for their home opener at the DCU Center on October 14th ~ A great way to start the new year with a new team in a new city.