AJC > Sports > Thrashers > Blog > Archives > 2007 > July > 23
Monday, July 23, 2007
Playing with the lines
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
So I’m enjoying a night out in Las Vegas last Monday when I get a text message from a friend of mine (and Exelby’s) that simply says “Yay for Garnet.” It’s at that point I realize two things - 1. Exelby signed an extension. 2. I can’t escape the Thrashers - even in Sin City.
But thanks to a good editor who covered for me the next day by handling the Exelby story, I was able to enjoy the rest of my vacation - despite losing more money than I should. I guess the casinos will stay in business for now. Turns out the blackjack dealers in Vegas aren’t as kind as Bob Hartley dealing at a Thrashers charity casino night. Bob often says something to those at his table like - “I’ve got Steve Rucchin, you might want to hit.” That’s a helpful tip if you know your Thrashers numbers. In Vegas, I was more likely to get dealt a Bobby Holik. But I’m back, refreshed, and ready to talk Thrashers hockey. Too bad there’s not much to talk about.
By now, the schedule released is pretty old news. And even Exelby’s signing has been broken down quite well on the comments from the last blog. My thoughts? That’s a pretty reasonable deal for the Thrashers, plus Exelby gets a little security in a city in which he enjoys playing. Good deal for both sides.
The only other developments going on now is Jim Slater’s pending arbitration (Aug. 2nd) and a potential Marian Hossa contract extension. Thanks to the beauty of the internet, there was a Q and A with Marian in a Slovakian newspaper. Now, I don’t speak Slovakian, and I read one too many Ilya Nikulin-is-coming stories that were translated from Russian, to take everything at face value, but this looks legit.
There’s some interesting stuff if the translation done on the Atlanta Thrashers message board is accurate. What I found most compelling is that Marian says he’s most interested in winning and it sounds like he’s not 100 percent convinced that can happen consistently in Atlanta. He also confirmed that the Thrashers will negotiate during the season if needed, which we have already talked about here.
The two comparable contracts I keep hearing thrown around is the Joe Thornton deal and the Jarome Iginla deal. As you know, Thornton signed a three-year extension worth about $7 million per. Iginla’s deal averages about $7 million, over 5 years. Waddell would need ownership approval to go beyond 4 years, but I’m sure he wouldn’t have trouble getting approval for something like a 6-year, $42 million contract. But then again, from the sounds of Marian’s Q and A, he might prefer something in the four-year range. Hossa will make $7 million this year in the final year of his last contract. Now that I’m back, I’ll keep you posted on the latest developments in the negotiations.
In the meantime, with the signing of guys like Exelby, Thorburn, and Boulton (and pending signing of Slater), the final roster is taking shape.
So now is the fun part — telling Bob Hartley how to do his job, which I know he enjoys. Bob is always looking for unsolicited advice on how to run his team (I need a sarcasm font for this blog). So here are my lines, with comments. These are more my opinion, rather than projected lines, because without having spoken to the man in charge in awhile, I don’t have a feel for how Hartley’s lines will shape up. But it’s fun to speculate, and I encourage you to do the same in the comments section.
Line 1:
Ilya Kovalchuk - Todd White - Brett Sterling
Comment: Kovalchuk gets a playmaking center, something he hasn’t had in awhile. White is also responsible on defense. Sterling can crash the net and knock home some Ilya rebounds. My biggest issue with this group is that a big, physical opposing line might be able to shut it down.
Line 2:
Slava Kozlov - Bobby Holik - Marian Hossa
Comment: Team is looking for more offense from Holik, and this line would give him a fair opportunity. It’s a contract year for the veteran, so I’m sure he’d like to capitalize on a chance like playing with Hossa and Kozlov. Those two play well together, so I don’t see a need to split them up.
Line 3:
Brad Larsen - Steve Rucchin/Eric Perrin - Pascal Dupuis
Comment: Is it cheating to include Rucchin? I’m still not convinced he’ll be playing any time soon, but until I get a definitive word from the team that says he’s out, I’m putting him in there. I actually like this group if healthy. I can see it being pretty effective against opposing top lines, although Dupuis would have to carry the bulk of the scoring load. If Sterling doesn’t pan out, I’d look at Dupuis on the top line. If Rucchin isn’t healthy, I’d send out Eric Perrin in his place.
Line 4:
Eric Boulton - Jim Slater - Chris Thorburn
Comment: The team is expecting a rebound season from Slater, so there might be more scoring potential from this trio than you think. Or not.
So how do these lines compare to this point last summer? I wasn’t covering the team, but as a refresher (and you can correct me if I’m wrong), last year at this time probably looked something like this:
Kovalchuk - Rucchin - Bourret
Kozlov - Kapanen - Hossa
Larsen - Holik - Vigier
Sim - Slater - Metropolit
