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Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Big homestand continues
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Thrashers are halfway through their six-game homestand, one Bob Hartley said it was a must that the team banks some points before heading on the six-game road trip in February, most of which is out west.
So what’s your assessment of the team’s performance so far during this big homestand?
The good: They seem to have the power play fixed, at least it looked like it yesterday. Kovalchuk was moving around a little bit, and Kozlov was putting shots on net. Three power play goals is pretty impressive, and after the game Kozlov said the team was comfortable again during the power play. There were some great passes, and Metropolit made a great read on Brodeur for his goal, which was a big one.
The not-so-good: A couple early leads were squandered during this homestand. The Thrashers scored first in all three games, including the first three goals against the Islanders. But no lead is safe in this NHL, and it seems, especially not for the Thrashers. But give them credit for taking the Devils out of their game — when was the last time New Jersey had 40 shots? “We got caught up in their run and gun, which is not our style,” John Madden said in this morning’s Star Ledger. Also, something that might be of a slight concern — In January, the Thrashers only had two wins in regulation.
Looking forward: If you missed the Flyers and Islanders the first time around, they are the next two opponents. But the most interesting game is the final one of this homestand, on Tuesday against Buffalo. When I was up in Buffalo, a couple of the Sabres said they could see the Thrashers becoming a good rival. The Thrashers ended the Sabres winning streak to start the season, and got Buffalo got its payback right after Christmas.
But this is the first time this year the Sabres, the top team in the East, come to Philips, so it’ll be interesting to see the results on the Thrashers home ice. Plus there’s always the chance that the Sabres and Thrashers could see each other in the playoffs. But before all that, the team needs to take care of business against the Islanders and Flyers.
