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Sunday, December 18, 2005
Spirit LLC no longer hangs by a thread
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jeff Schultz
What’s this we see? Blue skies?
“Yes, I do see the clouds lifting,” Michael Gearon said Saturday night. A basketball team that starts 2-16, then wins three of four? A hockey team that roller-coasters through the first third of the season, then goes 4-0-1?
What happened to Atlanta Spirit LLC (Losingest Losers Consolidated)?
“We’ve taken some lumps,” Gearon said.
He was standing in the Bank of America club at Philips Arena. At the time, the Thrashers trailed Florida 1-0 after two periods. But there was hope because Gearon apparently was dressed for success. He wore blue jeans, with a gray sweater and a blue Navy-style jacket. The ensemble is on a winning streak.
“See this outfit?” he said, when asked if he was superstitious. “I wore this for the Red Wings game [a 7-6 Thrashers win this past Tuesday]. Then I wore it [Friday] night for the Hawks game, and we beat the Knicks. I’m really not that superstitious, but I thought, ‘You know what? I’m wearing it tonight.’ I bought this coat in Europe when I was in college 20 years ago. It’s been in my closet. I hadn’t worn it for 10 years.”
Now he may not take it off. The Thrashers rallied behind rookie goalie Michael Garnett, goals by Jim Slater and Ilya Kovalchuk and Gearon’s threads Saturday night to defeat Florida 2-1.
Nobody wants to jump up and scream, “Ain’t no stopping us now!” Like superstitions, the Thrashers have learned trends are not bulletproof. But the team certainly is playing with a level of confidence and consistency now that hadn’t been evident. They have nine out of a possible 10 points in the past five games, and the only defeat in that streak came in a shootout. They are suddenly only three points behind Toronto for the last playoff spot.
“Are you coming to the Hawks game tomorrow?” Gearon said afterward. “I’ll be wearing this.”
The Hawks play Denver Sunday. There is reason to believe Carmelo Anthony may come down with a sudden virus.
Imagine the positive karma that will be generated when the paperwork is complete on the Steve Belkin exorcism.
The Thrashers have held things together in the least-expected way imaginable: with a goalie few humans outside of the team’s personnel department had ever heard of or, at the least, expected to see for a few years.
Michael Garnett has now started 12 consecutive games. That’s four short of the franchise record. He has played in 15 of the past 16. People, Michael Garnett wasn’t even expected to play in 15 out of 16 with the Chicago Wolves, let alone the Thrashers.
Yet, he now has a 7-7-2 record and has wins to his credit over two of the NHL’s best goalies, New Jersey’s Martin Brodeur (Thursday) and Florida’s Roberto Luongo (Saturday). He has allowed only three goals on 54 shots in the past two games (six periods and one overtime).
“It’s awesome. It’s crazy. It’s really fun,” Garnett said.
And that quote pretty much sums up this kid’s attitude. He has been this way since he was forced into action after the blur of injuries to Thrashers goalies. The only thing that has changed is his confidence level. The game has slowed down. He no longer stands in the crease like he has lit matches stuck between his toes.
“I’ve adjusted to this level, just like I made five other jumps in the last seven years,” Garnett said. “I’m right where I want to be right now. I’m trying to stay here as long as I can and earn a permanent spot on the team. That’s my goal.”
His teammates can read Garnett’s confidence. Team captain Scott Mellanby said, “He’s in a good mood every day. He’s handled the ups and downs of the situation well. There were nights when people have talked about our goaltending [being a problem], but we just didn’t show up. It wasn’t his fault.”
Still, Mellanby wouldn’t be baited into believing it will be all glory for the Thrashers now. “I choose not to get into that,” he said. “We just need to go out and play.”
But results suggest gloom is in the past. And if you happen to see Gearon at Philips Arena Sunday, compliment him on the outfit.
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