Thrashers

By Germaniac

September 17, 2008 2:42 AM | Link to this

First?!

By Tomas64

September 17, 2008 5:22 AM | Link to this

Thanks for the update Mike, great job as always!

By wristshot

September 17, 2008 7:19 AM | Link to this

Do you know if the NHL channel will be showing the game tonight?

By Jim

September 17, 2008 8:48 AM | Link to this

The youngsters always seem to do pretty well at Traverse City and in Chicago when they get there. Let’s hope that Johnny A. can mold the talent that is obviously there. Go Thrash!

By d

September 17, 2008 9:52 AM | Link to this

It’s fantastic that Metro got the big contract in Philly. Although Metro obviously was not the strongest player for the Thrash, he was our favorite. He would always go out of his way to talk to the kids, sign autographs, and give away sticks after practice. Given the troubles with his family, Metro knows that playing in the NHL is a previlege, not a right. Metro go a lot of ice time in last year’s playoffs, I’m surprising Boston did not try harder to keep him.

By Mike Knobler

September 17, 2008 10:35 AM | Link to this

wristshot The game will be televised on the NHL network at 10 p.m. on Thursday. It’s being played at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

By kracker

September 17, 2008 11:12 AM | Link to this

Mike, have you located any game/tourney player stats. I’m interested in ice time, sog, pp & pk time, nothing too in-depth….if stats are even published for this tournament.

By MashaPlayer 7

September 17, 2008 11:30 AM | Link to this

What a great inspiring story about Metro. These are the kinds of stories that need to be in the media. I think many people would understand that their lives aren’t as bad as they think they are.

By Mike Knobler

September 17, 2008 11:32 AM | Link to this

kracker Nope. It’s tough to find much of anything on the tournament online beyond goals scored and assists, and even that you have to piece together from individual game stories.

One note of caution: Victory in this tournament doesn’t mean immediate success in the NHL. The Rangers won it in 2007. Columbus won it in 2006.

By Mike Knobler

September 17, 2008 11:35 AM | Link to this

Here’s a good account of Tuesday night’s game.

By Brad

September 17, 2008 11:54 AM | Link to this

http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/scoreboard.html?leagueid=505&seasonid=3327

Not ice time, but shots, goals and assists.

By Monkey Puck

September 17, 2008 12:02 PM | Link to this

Schneider is not coming here.

This team is one-dimensional.

Shut down Kovalchuk, and you shut down the Thrashers.

No offense was brought in this summer.

Key to beating the Thrashers: Double up Kovalchuk.

We won’t really know much about the Defense until the Season starts - But I am prepared to see some disorganization and chaos on D until the Pairs are technically set.

Interesting that some of you have such pie-in-the-sky positivity for the upcoming season. Lord knows you will all be in for a BIG letdown. Especially that first game when Tampa tries to take out Kovalchuk.

That’s all you gotta do to beat Le Thrash. Take out Kovalchuk, and the team will be done for the season. Plain facts.

By Jim

September 17, 2008 12:27 PM | Link to this

Monkey Puck- success starts in the net and extends outward to D. and then to forwards. We’ve got a pretty good trio in the net and the D. looks much improved. PLAIN FACT- You obviously don’t know much about the sport.

By Monkey Puck

September 17, 2008 12:39 PM | Link to this

Jim: It doesn’t matter if you have the best goalie and Defense EVER.

If you can’t score, you can’t win, PERIOD.

That is a FACT.

By ranallo10 (in AT)

September 17, 2008 1:10 PM | Link to this

I think that New Jersey fans would disagree with you Mr. Puck.

By Thrasher_Ed

September 17, 2008 1:13 PM | Link to this

Anyone want a D-Man cast off from the Ducks?

By Sara

September 17, 2008 1:17 PM | Link to this

Monkey Puck tell that to Lou Lamoriello - then watch him and his 3 Stanley Cup rings laugh in your face.

The Thrashers have more than enough players capable of finding the back of the net. Their problem is keeping the puck out of their own net - and while it may take a bit for the young guys to get seasoned and the pairings to gel, this D is far better than the one we ran with last season, hands down.

No one on these blogs is predicting a Stanley Cup this year - but those of us who can take off the bitter blinders for a few minutes realize this team is finally headed in the right direction.

By Spud Webb

September 17, 2008 2:02 PM | Link to this

Knobs whats up. Love you’re posts. Hey I just read that Mathieu Schneider was put on waivers by the Ducks. Any chance for us (Thrashers) to sign him? I know he is 39, but 12 goals and 27 assists in 65 games last year, I wouldn’t mind that at all, let Klee go? It would be nice to have a vet like him, he’s not expensive. Didn’t he win a cup with the Wings years ago? What do you think? Thanks

By Alex

September 17, 2008 2:03 PM | Link to this

Knobler

I forget whether it was you or Rawhide that was blogging about the need for a trade or a pickup to help the team get above the salary cap floor.

What would you think about the Trash picking up Mathieu Schnieder off the waiver wire since the Ducks waived him yesterday.

I think picking up a veteran defenseman who is still somewhat productive, 12g 27a +22 in 65 games, would be a great idea for this year. A competent defenseman who could provide a great mentor for Bogy and all the other young defensive talent in the system. I really love his +/-.

By Alex

September 17, 2008 2:04 PM | Link to this

Knobler

I forget whether it was you or Rawhide that was blogging about the need for a trade or a pickup to help the team get above the salary cap floor.

What would you think about the Trash picking up Mathieu Schnieder off the waiver wire since the Ducks waived him yesterday.

I think picking up a veteran defenseman who is still somewhat productive, 12g 27a +22 in 65 games, would be a great idea for this year. A competent defenseman who could provide a great mentor for Bogy and all the other young defensive talent in the system. I really love his +/-.

By Monkey Puck

September 17, 2008 3:00 PM | Link to this

Sara/ranallo10: How can you win if you score no goals? Is there some law of physics that I don’t know about? Please explain why you said that. Thanks.

By Alan

September 17, 2008 3:21 PM | Link to this

Sara/ranallo10: How can you win if you score no goals?

Better question: How can you win if you’re hemorrhaging goals? I believe we addressed that problem this off-season to a certain degree.

I’m by no means predicting a playoff berth for Atlanta, but I do think we are a much better team this year than last. Scoring won’t be a huge problem, but it is still a problem. That could be addressed during camp or after the season starts.

By ranallo10 (in AT)

September 17, 2008 3:24 PM | Link to this

MP — To my knowledge there hasn’t been one team in the history of the NHL to never score a goal for an entire season.

So clearly neither Sara nor I thought you were being literal with your “score no goals” statement.

My apologies for giving you the benefit of the doubt and imagining you employed a slight exaggeration in your previous posts.

By Monkey Puck

September 17, 2008 4:44 PM | Link to this

Better question: How can you win if you’re hemorrhaging goals? I believe we addressed that problem this off-season to a certain degree.

Really? How? Ron Hainsey is NOT some miracle cure on Defense, buddy.

but I do think we are a much better team this year than last.

Really? How? We lost Hossa, hence we lost 50% of our scoring. How, praytell, are we better than last year. And by the way, it does not take much to be “better than last year’s team”, buddy.

That could be addressed during camp or after the season starts.

So, you like the “Wait and See” approach I guess. lol. You’re right, we could wait again this year, just like last year, and wait and wait, until it’s too late. Sound like a plausible idea, buddy? Didn’t think so.

Why wait, when the evidence is ALREADY there? THIS team has NO offense (minus Kovalchuk). THIS team has NO chance.

By Sara

September 17, 2008 7:18 PM | Link to this

MP

Hossa, Recchi, Dupuis, Holik, Zhitnik, and McCarthy (the players we dropped) accounted for 160 points for us last season. By contrast, Christensen and Armstrong accounted for 59 points in their time in Pitt (which is a fair comparison for the # of pts Dupuis and Hossa produced in the same number of games here), Williams, Reasoner, and Hainsey accumulated 93 points (and Williams was 36 points in 43 games, which projects out to 67 points in a full season). Based solely on last season’s actual numbers, the new guys account for 152 points - only 8 less than the players we dispatched. That doesn’t include a full season for Williams or the contributions Bogosian or Valabik might make or increased ice time and roles for Armstrong and Christensen.

And while Hainsey will never be mistaken for a Norris Trophy finalist, his -7 is certainly far better than McCarthy’s -23. Bogosian projects to be better than Zhitnik and his -8. Those two additions also push Klee and Exelby, two other weak spots, farther down the depth chart so they aren’t out so much causing problems (assuming neither one rebounds from last season’s poor performances). It also doesn’t factor in a new system that might actually mean we spend at least half the game playing in a zone other than the one containing our goal.

If the other players on the team improve their stats (lets face it, lots of guys had stinkers last season), our scoring will go up by a good bit. The changes on D, while relatively moderate, still equate to an overall improvement which would lower goals against. And lord knows, Anderson’s system cannot possibly be worse than what we saw on the ice last year and even part of the year before.

So in other words, all signs point up.

By Brendan

September 18, 2008 2:03 AM | Link to this

http://s230.photobucket.com/albums/ee309/telenovelasfans1/Catherine%20Siachoque/?action=view&current=a74bf6f8a171.jpg