With all due respect to Pat Verbeek, who had an outstanding NHL career, he never was called “The Little Ball of Hate” by the President of the United States of America.

The Boston Bruins visited the White House on Monday, part of the spoils of their Stanley Cup championship in June. When President Barack Obama spoke with the team standing behind him in the East Room, he mentioned Brad Marchand as one of the key players during the team’s Cup run.

“Brad Marchand went into the season playing on the fourth line, but ‘The Little Ball of Hate’ — What’s up with that nickname? — scored 5 goals in the last five games of the series,” Obama said to the laughter of some of the politicians and dignitaries in attendance.

Marchand was a huge part of the Bruins’ title run, and often found himself in the middle of something important or controversial. Monday’s moment, however, was on an even grander stage.

“I wasn’t really sure what was going to go on there. It caught me off guard a little bit,” Marchand said of President Obama’s shout-out. “It was a pretty special time. … It was fun when it happened. (Zdeno Chara) game me a little shot from behind when it happened. It was all in good fun.”

The Bruins were given a private tour of the White House before the ceremony, and were able to meet the President. Massachusetts senator John Kerry also was in attendance, and reportedly the pair of black eyes he had was from a broken nose that happened while playing hockey recently.

Boston will play the Washington Capitals on Tuesday at Verizon Center, so Monday was the perfect day to schedule the ceremony.

“I feel like it brings a sense of closure to this Stanley Cup run when this happens and, what it also does is motivates you to want to come back,” coach Claude Julien said. “To me, it served great purposes today.”

Added Patrice Bergeron: “I didn’t know what to expect. It was fun to be here and walk around, take some pictures, but also try to soak everything in and enjoy it. Meeting the President was obviously a highlight and getting to shake his hand was great.”

A few of the players not on the team anymore — Mark Recchi, Tomas Kaberle and Shane Hnidy — joined their ex-teammates for the ceremony, but Dallas’ Michael Ryder could not make it because of scheduling conflicts.

Goaltender Tim Thomas, one of two U.S.-born players on the team and the Conn Smythe Trophy winner in the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs, chose not to attend the ceremony.

“He chose not to come,” Boston General Manager Peter Chiarelli said, adding that Thomas would explain his decision on his Facebook page later Monday. “I had some discussions with him over the last couple months. I will let him communicate (his position).

“We’re like a family. We have our issues and you deal with them and move on and try to support everyone. It may or may not (overshadow things). I hope it does not, because the guys seemed to really enjoy the day. I really enjoyed the day.”

Added Boston president Cam Neely: “Everybody has their own opinions and political beliefs. He chose not to join us. We certainly would have liked to have him come and join us. But it’s his choice. It’s obviously not a choice most of the guys … well, all of the guys came except for Tim. But it’s his decision and his choice.”

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly commented on Thomas’ decision to not attend the White House visit.

“While we do not agree with Tim Thomas‘ position, the National Hockey League respects and supports his right to have a political view, and his right to express that view in the manner in which he chose,” Daly said.

Obama also praised the team’s ability to overcome injuries amid a long playoff run. He discussed some of the places different members of the Bruins took the Cup this summer and some of the activities they did with it.

For the Bruins, it was a reward for a championship season and a chance to see a big part of American history.

“I never thought I’d have a chance to come to the White House and meet the President. It is pretty big,” Bergeron said. “It was a very special moment and a special day for us and I’m very happy to be a part of it. (President Obama) was really down to earth. He seemed like a really nice guy. It was great being able to be here for the ceremony. That was something that I’ll never forget.”

Added Julien: “The most exciting thing is once you actually get inside (the White House), it is the whole history of it. I’m a Canadian, but it doesn’t matter. The history of the United States, the Presidents and what they mean to the world is obviously huge and I was able to walk around and see the different portraits. To top it off, you get to see the President of the United States walk into the room and the presence he has. It is just amazing. Shaking his hand is without a doubt the highlight of my day today.”

Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas released the following statement Monday evening regarding his absence from the Bruins’ visit to the White House this afternoon:

“I believe the Federal government has grown out of control, threatening the Rights, Liberties, and Property of the People.

This is being done at the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial level. This is in direct opposition to the Constitution and the Founding Fathers vision for the Federal government.

Because I believe this, today I exercised my right as a Free Citizen, and did not visit the White House. This was not about politics or party, as in my opinion both parties are responsible for the situation we are in as a country. This was about a choice I had to make as an INDIVIDUAL.

This is the only public statement I will be making on this topic. TT”

Tim Thomas keeps Prospal from adding to his goal total, blocking a seemingly gifted backhander.

Per NHL.com:

In the 2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs, nobody was in Tim Thomas’ league.

“It has got to be up there with the best (performances),” Bruins President Cam Neely said of his goalie just minutes after Thomas led the Bruins to their first Cup in 39 years with a 4-0 victory against Vancouver in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Arena.

“He’s elevated his game, especially in the postseason. He had a great year to begin with, but he’s been spectacular (in the playoffs). The saves he was making, how calm he was — he brought it to another level. It was really fun to watch him play.”

Thomas made 37 saves Wednesday night to cap a goaltending performance for the ages.

Consider the numbers:

* Thomas, at 37 the oldest player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, set NHL records for most saves in one playoff year (798), most shots faced in one playoff year (849) and most saves in a Stanley Cup Final (238). He also became the first goalie to post a shutout on the road in Game 7 of the Final.

Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas has won the Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded to “the most valuable player to his team in the playoffs.”

Thomas was the Bruins’ only goaltender during their Stanley Cup-winning run, finishing the playoffs with a 16-9 record, 1.98 goals-against average, .940 save percentage and four shutouts.

“I think you’ve got to give credit where credit is due,” Vancouver coach Alain Vigneault said. “Their goaltender was real tough to beat.  The way they played in front of him was real tough to beat. We had some grade A chances and we weren’t able to score.”

* In the Final, Thomas posted a 1.15 goals-against average and a .967 save percentage, the lowest total in each category in the modern era among goaltenders with at least five appearances.

“Tim Thomas in these playoffs just totally dominated,” Boston coach Claude Julien said. “That’s the sign of a great goaltender. He was on top of his game from start to finish, and especially in this final round.  He was outstanding every game.

“I know everybody expected him to have an average game at some point.  Never came.  He was in the zone, focused, never let anything rattle him and never questioned his style of play.  What’s happened to him right now is so deserving and so proud of him.”

Even Thomas expected to turn in a clunker at some point. In fact, he thought it was coming when he struggled to track the puck in the opening moments of Game 6, a game the Bruins eventually won 5-2 to force Wednesday’s Game 7.

For a few fleeting moments, he was scared — scared that his fairytale would come to a crashing. He was afraid that his journey, so long and winding, would end tantalizingly short of his final goal. He was concerned that his dream of being a Stanley Cup champion would prove even more elusive than even his quest to become a full-time NHL goalie, which did not happen until after he turned 30.

But he used his unquestioned mental toughness to get through that crisis of confidence.

“I was on my heels there for a second (in Game 6), and that was the first time that I’d gotten nervous during the Final,” Thomas said. “So, yeah, I was scared.  I won’t lie.  I had nerves yesterday and today.  I faked it as well as I could, and I faked my way all the way to the Stanley Cup.”

It appears he was as good a faker as a shot-blocker. Nobody knew that Thomas ever had a doubt.

“I can’t imagine how anyone could play as well he did in this seven-game series,” Neely said. “He was amazing, and he was so calm and cool and collected. It was just an amazing series.”

Thomas allowed just 8 goals in the seven games and had the Canucks questioning themselves throughout the later part of the series. He allowed 3 goals in the final four games.

Additionally, he won three Game 7s in the 2011 playoffs. He posted shutouts in the final two, beating Vancouver 4-0 and Tampa Bay 1-0. In the first, he beat Montreal 4-3 in overtime as Boston rallied from an 0-2 deficit in that series — the first time the Bruins had ever done so.

“His whole year has been like that,” GM Peter Chiarelli said. “He’s focused and the most square to the puck I’ve seen him in my time in Boston. It was an unbelievable performance he had in these playoffs, but his regular season was the same thing. He deserves the Conn Smythe. He had a super series.”

The story Thomas authored this postseason is even better because he wasn’t the starting goalie for Boston when the season opened. After Thomas struggled with inconsistency and a hip injury last season, youngster Tuukka Rask emerged as a legitimate No. 1. There were attempts by the Bruins to move Thomas in the summer, but they couldn’t find any takers for a 36-year-old with three years left on his contract. The season started with Rask and Thomas basically engaged in an open competition, one Thomas eventually won by planting the seeds of what would become a historic regular season.

He won his first eight decisions, breaking a club record set by Tiny Thompson that had stood since 1938. He won his first nine road games; becoming the first NHL goaltender to do so since Chicago’s Glenn Hall in 1965-66. He finished the season with a 35-11-9 record and .938 save percentage, eclipsing Dominik Hasek’s .937 with Buffalo in 1998-99 as the best since the statistic was introduced in 1982-83. Thomas also led all goaltenders in goals-against average (2.00) and ranked second with nine shutouts.

But those accomplishments paled to what he did in the Stanley Cup Playoffs — especially the Final.

His reward for that brilliance was the Conn Smythe Trophy, which he admired repeatedly as he sat at the podium basking in the proudest moment of his hockey career.

“It’s quite an honor,” Thomas said, still in his skates and leg pads. “The Stanley Cup is the biggest one. That’s the one that you’re shooting for. The Conn Smythe is completely an honor.

“I just sat down here and started to read some of the names on it and it’s an honor to be mentioned in the same maple leaf.  Patrick (Roy), Ron Hextall, Ken Dryden — those are the three goalies that I can see on this side facing me, it’s amazing.”

Almost as amazing as the performance Thomas turned in this postseason.

This is Thomas’s 3rd or 4th amazing save so far this year. Too bad the Bruins offense isn’t helping him get any of the wins he deserves…