2001-02: 4th on team in points (19-34=53). . .7th on team in goals (19). . .3rd on team in assists (34). . .T-1st on team, T-4th in NHL in shorthanded points (2-3=5). . .T-2nd on team in shooting percentage (17%). . .Voted Seagate Technology Sharks Player of the Year by a panel of Bay Area media. . .Posted 3 points (1-2=3), including assist on Selanne's game-winning goal on April 4 vs. Phoenix. . .Missed 2 games with shoulder injury from March 10-13. . .Missed March 5 vs. Nashville with sore back. . .Posted 3-game point streak (1-3=4) from Jan. 21-24. . .Posted 300th career assist on Jan. 24 at Columbus. . .Posted 6-game point streak (4-3=7) from Jan. 2-12.. . .Tallied 500th career point on Thornton's first goal on Jan. 4 vs. Phoenix. . .Named Seagate Technology Sharks Player of the Month for December after posting 9 points (5-4=9) in 12 games. . .Posted 100th career assist with San Jose on Dec. 26 vs. Anaheim. . .Registered 6-game point streak (5-2=7), Dec 6-19. . .Posted 2 assists, including one on Sturm's shorthanded, game-winning goal on Dec. 19 at Atlanta. . .Scored first multi-goal game of season on Dec. 11 vs. Edmonton. . .Posted 5 points (2-3=5) in 2 games, Nov. 29-30. . .Scored his 200th career NHL goal, shorthanded, on Nov. 30 at Anaheim. . .Collected three point night (1-2=3) Nov. 29 vs. Pittsburgh. . .Scored first goal of the season on Nov. 6 at St. Louis. . .Posted first multi-assist/point game of the season (0-2=2) on Nov. 1 vs. Atlanta. . .Played in 800th career NHL game on Oct. 27 vs. Columbus. . .Playoffs: 2nd on team in points (4-6=10). . .T-1st on team in assists (6). . .3rd on team in goals (4). . .1st on team in plus minus, 1st among team forwards (+6). . .1st among team forwards in blocked shots (14). . .Moved into first place on team's all-time playoff point list with assist on May 13 vs. Colorado (G6, WCS).. . .Posted goal and assist, tying him with Igor Larionov for first place on the franchise all-time playoff point list on May 11 at Colorado (G5, WCS). . .Posted 2 assists including one on Marleau's game-winning power play goal on May 6 vs. Colorado (G3, WCS). . .Scored game' s opening goal on May 1 at COL in 6-3 win (G1, WCS). . .Tallied game-winning goal on April 24 at Phoenix (G3, WCQ). . .Posted goal and assist in 4-1 W in Game 3 on 4/22 at PHX.

Career

2000-01: Finished 4th in voting for the Frank J. Selke Trophy as "the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game". . .Posted 9 points (8-1=9) in his last 7 games (March 27-April 8). . .3rd on team in goals (23). . .5th on team in points (44). . .T-3rd on club in GWG (4). . .2nd on team in PPGs (9). . .1st on club in faceoffs taken (1,614), 3rd on club in faceoff percentage (51%). . .T-1st among team forwards in blocked shots (46). . .2nd on team in takeaways (54). . .Scored hat trick (PP, SH, EV) goal and added assist on three shots April 7 vs. Dallas. . .3rd goal came at 19:56 of the 3rd period to send the game into overtime and gain the Sharks a standings point to clinch the Western Conference's 5th seed. . .Posted 4-game goal streak (5-0=5) from March 27-April 2. . .Named Seagate Technology "Sharks Player of the Month" for March, posting 10 points (6-4=10) in 15 games. . .Played in his 300th career game with San Jose and scored Sharks lone goal on March 31 at Phoenix. . .Posted 1st multi-goal game of the season, including the GWG (4th of season) in OT, on March 27 vs. Los Angeles. . .Assisted on all 3 of San Jose's goals (Thornton's 1st career hat trick) on March 7 at Florida. . .Led all players with 6 shots and assisted on Sundstrom's game-opening goal on Feb. 23 vs. Anaheim. . .Passed Garpenlov for 5th place on the Sharks all-time scoring list (133 points) with an assist on Feb. 20 vs. Columbus. . .Tied season high with 3 points (1-2=3) on Jan. 24 vs. Edmonton. . . Posted 3-point night (1-2=3) Nov. 4 vs. Carolina in 4-1 victory. . .Scored game-winning SHG in 3-1 win at Minnesota Oct. 20. . .Scored 1st goal of season, Oct. 14 vs. Boston. . .Held out of Oct. 21 at Nashville game due to precautionary reasons (took a knee to the head on Oct. 20 at MIN), snapping a 234 consecutive games played streak and a Sharks all-time consecutive games played record at 228 (overall streak started on Nov. 8, 1997 with Colorado, six games before being acquired by San Jose). . . The streak was 2nd among current NHL iron men, behind Tony Amonte's 254 consecutive games played at the time. . .Playoffs: T-1st on team in assists, T-2nd in points (0-3=3). . .1st on team in faceoff percentage (54%). . .Posted 2 assists, including one on Nolan's GWG in Game 4 vs. St. Louis on April 17 (3-2 W).

Career

1999-00: Named as one of three finalists for the Frank J. Selke Trophy . . Finished 3rd on Sharks in GWG (5) and 1st in plus/minus (+14) and 3rd in PP goals (10). . .One of five Sharks who received the AdForce "Sharks Iron Man Award," presented to the Sharks who have played in the most games during the season. . .2nd on the team in takeaways (51) and led forwards (6th overall) in blocked shots (52). . .His goal total was his highest since 1993-94 with Quebec (30). . .Posted 9 multi-point games. . .Finished season ranked 10th among Sharks career scorers (42-64=106) and was the 10th to break the 100-point barrier among all-time Sharks. . .20th in the NHL, 2nd on club in faceoff wins (772). . . Played in 700th career NHL game March 22 vs. Vancouver. . . Scored 13 points (8-5=13) in 17 games from Dec. 6-Jan. 17. . .Posted a 5-game point streak (4-2=6) from Dec. 8-20. . .Notched a career-high 4-game goal streak (Dec. 8-19). . .Tallied 400th career point Dec. 14 vs. Chicago. . .Scored 2 goals, including GWG in overtime, Oct. 7 vs. Edmonton - the OT GWG was 1st recorded under NHL's new 4-on-4 OT rule. . .Playoffs: Finished 2nd on the Sharks in goals (5) and faceoff wins (94) and ranked 1st in PPG (3). . .Scored GWG in Game 2 of 1st round at St. Louis on April 15. . .1998-99: 1st on club in faceoffs won (727) and faceoff winning percentage (49.62%), 3rd on club in takeaways (48) and assists (26) and led Sharks forwards in blocked shots (41). . .Named co-winner (with Rathje) of Adforce "Sharks Iron Man Award" presented to Sharks player(s) whose grit, determination and perseverance allowed them to lead the club in games played during the regular season. . .Named Seagate Technology "Sharks Player of the Month" for December. . .Played in 100th game with San Jose Jan. 13 vs. Dallas. . .Registered 5-game point streak (4-2=6) from Dec. 26-Jan. 1. . .Was named alternate captain Oct. 28 vs. Phoenix. . . Playoffs: Led Sharks in faceoff wins (56) and T-1st in takeaways (5). . .Tied 4 Sharks playoff records by posting 4 points (1-3=4) on April 28 at Colorado, including records for most points in a game (4), most assists in a game (3), most points in a period (3) and most goals in a period (2). . .1997-98: 1st on club in faceoffs won (605) and T-2nd on club in PPG (5). . .Registered his 200th NHL career assist on GWG Jan. 23 vs. Edmonton. . .Played in 500th NHL career game on Dec. 29 at Tampa Bay. . .Made San Jose Arena debut on Nov. 28 vs. New Jersey. . .Posted 4 points (all assists) in 6 games with Colorado after missing the first 16 games of the season recovering from off-season shoulder surgery on June 1. . .1996-97: Served as alternate captain with Colorado-Quebec organization from 1993-97, including Colorado's Stanley Cup championship season in 1995-96. . .Posted 3 game winning goals and 5 power play goals. . .Scored 300th career NHL point vs. Los Angeles on Dec. 28. . .Playoffs: Played in all 17 postseason contests. . .Played in 50th career NHL playoff game on May 24 vs. Detroit. . .1995-96: Played in 400th career NHL game on March 5 vs. San Jose. . .Recorded a 7-game point streak (1-6=7) in final 7 games of regular season. . .Missed 15 games (Jan. 4-Feb. 11) with a back injury. . .Playoffs: NHL's 10th leading scorer with 17 points (6-11=17). . .Registered a 7-game point streak (4-5=9) from May 19-June 4. . .Won Stanley Cup. . .1994-95: Registered two 4-point games - March 26 vs. Ottawa (1-3=4) and March 1 vs. Tampa Bay (0-4=4). . .Finished 5th on club in scoring. . .1993-94: Registered career-highs in goals (30) and games played (83). . .Won gold medal with Team Canada at World Championships. . .Recorded 20+ goals for 4th consecutive season. . .Set Sharks record by opponent for goals in a game with 5, accomplished Feb. 17. . .1992-93: Recorded career highs in assists (78) and penalty minutes (123). . .On Dec. 12, scored a career-high 6 points and his first NHL hat trick against the Sharks in the Cow Palace. . .Other: Played in 1st career NHL game on Oct. 4, 1990 vs. Boston. . .Captained Canada's gold medal-winning 1990 World Junior Championship squad. . .Captain for Peterborough in juniors. . .Former 1st round draft choice (4th overall) by Philadelphia in 1990. . .Won Canadian Hockey League Player of the Year Award, Red Tilson Trophy and William Hanley Trophy in 1989-90. . .Named OHL All-Star 1st team in 1989-90 and 2nd team in 1988-89.

Personal: Nicknamed "Reech". . .During the past off-season, he participated in a practice session with the San Jose Earthquakes of Major League Soccer. He was an avid soccer player while growing up in Canada. . .Through his "Ricci's Row" program, he donates 10 tickets to every Sharks home game to underserved youth. . .An avid fisherman, he caught an assortment of bass while fishing in the Toronto area during the off-season. . .Voted "Denver's Sexiest Athlete" by the fans in 1997. . . Likes listening to George Thorogood . . . Says he cuts his hair once a year . . . Married (Beth) with a daughter (Jade Lilly)..

Mike and his wife, Beth, were married on July 4, 1998. Head Coach Darryl Sutter named Mike an alternate captain on Oct. 28, 1998. "Reech" played his 100th game with the Sharks on Jan. 13, 1999 vs. Dallas and his 600th career game on Feb. 17. 1999 at Detroit. A huge golf nut, he lists Colorado's Bear Creek as the toughest course he has ever played, but also enjoys the Bay Area courses. Mike spent two weeks in Italy this summer, attending his cousin's wedding. His favorite TV show is "Sanford and Son" while it's a toss up between "Rocky" and "Forrest Gump" for his favorite movie. Mike is a huge San Francisco 49ers fan and would like to be a professional bass fisherman if he wasn't a hockey player. When he's not playing hockey, Mike likes to relax by playing with his dog, Bandit. Ironically, Mike holds the Sharks record for most goals in a game by an opponent, scoring five for the Quebec Nordiques on Feb. 17, 1994 and his career-high six-point game also came against the Sharks (Dec. 12, 1992 at the Cow Palace). In 1997, Mike was named "Denver's Sexiest Athlete" in a vote among the city's sports fans. He served as alternate captain on the Avalanche for five seasons (1993-97), including Colorado's Stanley Cup Championship in 1996, and as captain of both his junior team (the OHL's Peterborough Petes) and Canada's gold- medal winning 1990 World Junior Championship squad. Philadelphia originally drafted Mike in the first round (fourth overall) in 1990, three spots behind friend and current teammate Owen Nolan, who was drafted first overall by Quebec. He was named the 1990 Canadian Major Junior Player of the Year. Bio courtesy of The San Jose Sharks