Thomas Larkin (ice hockey)
Thomas Larkin (born 31 December 1990) is a British-born Italian ice hockey defenceman. He is currently playing with Adler Mannheim of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). Larkin was selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 5th round (137th overall) of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, the first Italian-trained player ever selected in the NHL Entry Draft. Larkin attended Phillips Exeter Academy and then spent four years at Colgate University, where he played for the Raiders ice hockey team, and served as the team's co-captain during his senior season. Internationally, Larkin has represented Italy at the world championships.
| Thomas Larkin | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Born |
31 December 1990 London, England, UK | ||
| Height | 6 ft 5 in (196 cm) | ||
| Weight | 220 lb (100 kg; 15 st 10 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shoots | Right | ||
| DEL team Former teams |
Adler Mannheim Springfield Falcons Medveščak Zagreb | ||
| National team |
 Italy | ||
| NHL Draft |
137th overall, 2009 Columbus Blue Jackets | ||
| Playing career | 2011–present | ||
Playing career
In Larkin's final season at Phillips Exeter Academy he set a school record for most goals and assists by a defenceman in one season (14 and 38, respectively). He also had the school record for most career points by a defenceman (82).[1] Prior to the 2009 NHL Entry Draft Larkin was ranked 87th overall amongst North American skaters by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau. This was an improvement of 59 spots from his place three months prior.[2] He was selected in the fifth round, 137th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets, becoming the first Italian-trained player ever chosen in the NHL Entry Draft.[2]
Larkin had an impressive freshman season at Colgate University, playing in 33 games and registering 19 points with 32 minutes in penalties, but his production fell to just 11 points in 41 games played during his sophomore 2010–11 season.[3] Upon completion of his collegiate career, on 5 July 2013, Larkin was signed to a two-year entry level contract by the Columbus Blue Jackets.[4]
At the conclusion of his entry-level contract with the Blue Jackets, Larkin was not tendered a new offer and was released to free agency. On 22 August 2015, Larkin signed his first professional European contract, agreeing to a one-year contract with Croatian KHL participants Medveščak Zagreb.[5] He eventually played for the Zagreb team until February 16, 2017 and then was picked up by Adler Mannheim of the German DEL.[6]
On November 7, 2017, Larkin hit Daniel Paille during a match between Swedish club Brynas and Adler Mannheim, resulting in Paille leaving with a severe concussion.[7] Two days after the incident, Larkin apologized on Twitter, writing:
"It wasn’t my intention to cause an injury. I wanted to put pressure on the puck carrier behind the net. I would like to apologize to Daniel Paille and I hope he is back playing soon."[8]
A year later on November 29, 2018, Swedish prosecutor Joakim Johansson indicated that Larkin would be charged with assault for blindsiding Paille.[9]
In the 2018-19 campaign, Larkin captured the German championship with Mannheim, scoring the game winner in overtime of game five in the finals against Munich.[10]
International play
Larkin competed at the 2011 IIHF World Championship Division I, 2012 IIHF World Championship and 2014 IIHF World Championship as a member of the Italy national ice hockey team.
Personal life
Larkin was born in London but grew up in Cocquio-Trevisago, Italy.[11] His father is from Boston, Massachusetts while his mother is from Milan, Italy.[2] When Larkin was four his family moved to Italy; it was there, at age 7, that he first began to play hockey, joining his older brother at the HC Varese's rink.[2] Larkin speaks five languages (English, Italian, French, Spanish and German).[1]
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2006–07 | Phillips Exeter Academy | HS-Prep | 28 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | HC Varese | ITA U19 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Phillips Exeter Academy | HS-Prep | 29 | 6 | 15 | 21 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | HC Varese | ITA U19 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2008–09 | Phillips Exeter Academy | HS-Prep | 35 | 14 | 38 | 52 | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Boston Little Bruins | 18U AAA | 18 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Colgate University | ECAC | 33 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Colgate University | ECAC | 41 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 41 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Colgate University | ECAC | 37 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 48 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Colgate University | ECAC | 36 | 9 | 20 | 29 | 55 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Springfield Falcons | AHL | 7 | 1 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 2013–14 | Evansville IceMen | ECHL | 33 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 60 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 20 | — | ||
| 2013–14 | Springfield Falcons | AHL | 19 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 48 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2014–15 | Springfield Falcons | AHL | 62 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 89 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 11 | — | ||
| 2015–16 | KHL Medveščak Zagreb | KHL | 34 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 56 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | KHL Medveščak Zagreb | KHL | 58 | 0 | 39 | 39 | 78 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Adler Mannheim | DEL | 49 | 18 | 30 | 48 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | ||
| 2017–18 | Adler Mannheim | DEL | 57 | 20 | 64 | 84 | 28 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 2018–19 | Adler Mannheim | DEL | 33 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 30 | 14 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 22 | ||
| 2019–20 | Adler Mannheim | DEL | 29 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| AHL totals | 88 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 139 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| KHL totals | 92 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 134 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
| DEL totals | 118 | 12 | 33 | 45 | 98 | 31 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 42 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Italy | WJC18 D1 | 17th | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | |
| 2008 | Italy | WJC18 D1 | 16th | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 20 | |
| 2011 | Italy | WC D1 | 18th | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2012 | Italy | WC | 15th | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2014 | Italy | WC | 15th | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| 2016 | Italy | OGQ | DNQ | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2016 | Italy | WC D1A | 17th | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | |
| 2017 | Italy | WC | 16th | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
| 2018 | Italy | WC D1A | 18th | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | |
| Junior totals | 9 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 26 | ||||
| Senior totals | 41 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 24 | ||||
Awards and honors
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| College | ||
| All-ECAC Third Team | 2011–12 | |
| DEL | ||
| Champion (Adler Mannheim) | 2019 | [12] |
References
- NHL.com (2009). "Thomas Larkin Prospect Card". NHL.com. Retrieved 4 October 2013.
- Merk, Martin (29 June 2009). "Against the current". IIHF.com. Archived from the original on 4 October 2013. Retrieved 4 October 2013.
- "Columbus Blue Jackets Depth Analysis, Fall 2011". Hockey's Future. 6 July 2011. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
- "Blue Jackets sign defenseman Thomas Larkin". Columbus Blue Jackets. 5 July 2013. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
- "A great victory for the pre-season" (in Croatian). KHL Medveščak Zagreb. 22 August 2015. Retrieved 22 August 2015.
- "ADLER Mannheim". adler-mannheim.de (in German). Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
- "Sweden charges British-born Italian player for hit on ice". thenewstribune. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- "Thomas Larkin on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- "Sweden charges British-born Italian player for hit on ice". AP NEWS. 29 November 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
- "München wehrt sich nach Kräften, aber Larkin schießt Mannheim in der Overtime erstmals seit 2015 wieder zum Titel". www.eishockeynews.de (in German). Retrieved 27 April 2019.
- Springfield Falcons (14 March 2013). "Falsons sign Larkin to ATO". FalconsAHL.com. Retrieved 28 March 2013.
- "Adler Mannheim wins DEL". IIHF. 27 April 2019. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database