Joe Thornton Has Signed with…HC Davos

“It’s like my home away from home.”

Joe Thornton wasn’t talking about San Jose, where he’s played for the last 15 seasons.

He wasn’t talking about hometown Toronto, rumored to be making yet another run at the UFA.

No, Thornton was talking about HC Davos in Switzerland, where he’s just signed up to play until the beginning of the next NHL season. He met his wife Tabea in Switzerland and the Thorntons usually spend summers there.

This will be the San Jose Sharks legend’s third stint with Davos. In 2004-05, he played 40 games, and in 2012-13, 33 games.

The 41-year-old may suit up as soon as this Saturday for the National League side.

“What I saw from him in training, he is absolutely capable of helping our team in competition. His first step with the puck, his puck control, and his passing ability are still at an extremely high level,” HC Davos general manager Raeto Raffainer said in a team press release. “It will be a great pleasure for all hockey fans to see him play on Swiss ice again.”

Thornton will wear No. 97, which he wore in 2004-05 for Davos and also in international play for Team Canada. Marc Aeschlimann currently wears No. 19 for HCD.

“I just love playing hockey,” Thornton told MySports in Switzerland. “I was born to play hockey. I’ll play as long as I can, as long as I’m healthy.”

"Jumbo Joe" Thornton est à Davos jusqu'à la reprise de la NHL !

À 41 ans, le 🇨🇦🇨🇭 a encore une grosse envie de glace ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/WAjxkeu4Ut

— MySports_CH_fr (@MySports_CH_fr) October 15, 2020

Special thanks to davos1921 for his help translating the HC Davos press release. Follow Renato for all your Joe Thornton in Switzerland updates!

View this post on Instagram

Joe Thornton mit Matchdress #97 im Eisstadion Davos, vermutlich das Highlight im Jahr 2020.😁 – 📷: @blickeishockey – #Davos #HCD #BigJoe #JumboJoe #JoeThornton #SJSharks #MapleLeafs #Hockeysince1921 #Swissicehockey #NationalLeague #NLA #Switzerland #Graubünden #DavosKlosters #Südostschweiz #EisstadionDavos #Davos1921 #Since1921 #ImmernurDavos #VivaHCD #HockeyClubDavos #Traditionsverein #Rekordmeister #HCDavos

A post shared by HC Davos Fanpage🇨🇭 (@davos1921) on Oct 15, 2020 at 10:47am PDT