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Thursday, June 19, 2008
Anderson hiring: Is it just a question of when?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sometime over the next few days, we might learn if the difference between TSN’s report the Thrashers have hired John Anderson and Don Waddell’s denial of that TSN report comes down to semantics or something more.
In other words, is this the equivalent of “Nobody’s hired until the general manager says he is,” or is this a situation that could still lead to someone other than Anderson behind the Thrashers’ bench in the 2008-09 season?
Waddell has used the phrase “due diligence” in speaking with reporters about what he has been doing lately in the coaching search, and one meaning of that phrase is looking into everything before going ahead with a planned deal. It’s dotting each i and crossing each t. You would think the Thrashers have all the background information they need on the man who coaches their top minor-league affiliate, but maybe there’s something unusual about the contract or something else that is taking more time than you’d expect.
If something like that is the case, the Thrashers may have decided they want to hire Anderson but, technically at least, haven’t yet done so. If Bill Clinton can parse the meaning of “is,” there’s certainly room to argue about the meaning of “hired.”
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Here’s the draft day plan
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Thrashers general manager Don Waddell sounded like a happy man today, and he appears to have good reason. After all, he’s about to add a big-time defenseman to his team.
Draft days always bring surprises, but it’s hard to imagine a scenario in which Friday will end without Zach Bogosian or Drew Doughty as a Thrashers draft pick. There’s a good chance whichever Atlanta gets will play at Philips Arena this fall.
(Yes, I hear some of you already saying you shouldn’t be happy when you’re picking this high, and you don’t have a coach, and so on. Consider putting that aside for a day or two. The draft is a time of hope, right?)
“There’s four real top-notch defensemen we’re looking at,” Waddell said early in his teleconference with reporters, but when one of them asked directly he confirmed that Bogosian and Doughty, not necessarily in that order, are top of the list. He also confirmed that the Thrashers are looking at defense; the gamble of drafting Russian left wing Nikita Filatov, in this era of no transfer agreement, will fall to some other NHL team.
Waddell is known for draft-day trades, one of which, he pointed out, brought Slava Kozlov. The No. 29 pick in the first round could be trade bait this year.
“We’ve had a lot of talk with teams,” Waddell said, but he added that a trade isn’t likely until deep enough into the first round that teams know who will be available for that pick. The way he breaks down the draft, there’s a strong top seven and a middle tier of four or five more players. “From 12 to 13 to the end of the first round, there’s a solid group of players there,” he said, suggesting that the No. 13-rated player on some team’s draft board could still be available at No. 29.
The Thrashers’ preparation for draft day got serious with a mid-winter meeting in January where the scouts and personnel people met with Waddell and generated a list of the top 60 players. A lot more work took place during seven days of meetings in May, where each player’s pluses and minuses were discussed.
The amateur player scouts aren’t the only ones who have to prepare for the draft. The pro scouts have to be ready with evaluations on almost any player in the league, or in the minors.
“All the homework is done,” Waddell said. “You never know who’s going to get thrown at you at the last minute. We’ve never been thrown any surprises. I’m prepared if a name comes up at the table.”
Don’t read too much into what positions the Thrashers’ Day Two draft picks play. Waddell said those guys are so far from playing in the NHL that “position-wise isn’t as important as trying to get the best player.”
When will he hire a coach? Soon, but almost certainly not by the opening night of the draft. He laughed at the notion and started to dismiss it before deciding to leave himself an out.
“Never’s a bad word to say in this business,” Waddell said. “You never know how things are going to work out.”
