Boston Bruins: Having Both Tim Thomas and Tuukka Rask Will Help the Champs

The Boston Bruins have the best goaltending duo in the NHL with Tim Thomas and Tuukka Rask.

Thomas won the Vezina Trophy as the league's most outstanding goaltender in 2009 and 2011, and also took home the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP last season.

Rask played for most of the 2010 season and all of the playoffs while Thomas dealt with a bad hip injury, and the young Finnish goalie played very well.

Rask is the future of the Bruins, and there are many reasons having both is great for the team, despite Rask likely to receive a good-sized contract next summer.

Let's look at five reasons having both goalies and paying them good money is worth it for Boston.

For updates on all NHL news throughout the season, follow Nick Goss on Twitter. Follow @NicholasGoss35

Nicholas Goss is a Boston Bruins featured columnist for Bleacher Report and was the organization's on-site reporter for the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals in Boston.

Playoff Excellence

Tim Thomas was the MVP of the 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs—and for good reason.

He played great in nearly every game and won three Game 7s, including two shutouts, one of which was Game 7 of the Cup Final on the road in Vancouver.

Thomas had numerous game- and series-saving saves in the Montreal Canadiens series in the first round as well. As a whole, he was the most important player to the Bruins in the playoffs.

In 2010, Rask played very well in the playoffs as well, and he took a worse team than last season to the brink of the Eastern Conference Finals.

He played very well in his first postseason in his first year as a full-time starter.

Rask Is the Future

Tuukka Rask proved in the 2010 NHL season that he is capable of being a star No. 1 goaltender for the Bruins, and he is set to become a restricted free agent next season.

He currently makes $1.25 million and will be in for a raise.

Signing Rask long-term is crucial for the Bruins, because at 24 years old, he has many great years ahead of him and hasn't even begun his prime.

Rask is fundamentally sound in every aspect of his game—he will be a star in this league.

Thomas Needs Rests at 37 Years Old

Tim Thomas played a ton of games last season, including 25 playoff games, with a shortened summer to rest because of the Stanley Cup championship.

At 37 years old, Thomas needs to get more rests this season so he can be fresh for another deep playoff run.

Rask also needs to play more to continue to improve, so having Tuukka pay many more games this season than last year is a good idea for the Bruins.

Interestingly enough, the Bruins have played Thomas in six of Boston's first eight games this season.

In Case of Injury, Boston Has a Great Goalie to Come in

In the 2010 season, when Tim Thomas was hurt and Tuukka Rask had to step up in his place, the Bruins found that they had a great goaltending duo.

If Thomas were to get hurt again this season, the Bruins would have a young star to fall back on.

Very few teams have this ability, and if the Bruins did not re-sign Rask next summer or traded him this season, this option would not be there for them.

Depth at goaltender is very important, and having two great goalies is a problem every team would love to have.

They Support Each Other

Tuukka Rask and Tim Thomas support one each other on the ice and are among the first to congratulate each other after games.

On the bench, Rask is one of team's biggest supporters, shouting praise from the bench. He is always into the game, even if he's not in net.

Thomas was one of Rask's biggest supporters when Tuukka was taking the Bruins to the Eastern Conference Semifinals in 2010, too.

The Bruins have two great goalies who are talented, supportive of one another and love to play the game. This is a great situation for the team.