AJC > Sports > Thrashers > Blog > Archives > 2008 > November > 17
Monday, November 17, 2008
Speed bump or brick wall?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sunday’s third period ranked with the third period at Buffalo and the second period at Carolina as one of the best 20 minutes of hockey I’ve seen the Thrashers play. Sunday’s first period was one of the worst.
When I see that sharp a contrast in a single game, I wonder why. If the Thrashers were simply bad, untalented, incapable, it would be easier to understand. If they were a team that knew it was going to make the playoffs and could look at the calendar and say, “It’s only November,” that might make sense, too.
But this team isn’t in either of those situations. There’s some talent. Bryan Little has been a revelation. Slava Kozlov is on a pace to score more than 40 goals. Ilya Kovalchuk can do things very few other humans ever have. Ron Hainsey has been an excellent addition to the defense, and, despite what happened on the game-winning goal Sunday night, Niclas Havelid has been having a wonderful run lately as the steady, calming defenseman every team needs.
So, how can they look as lifeless, out of sync and sometimes flat-out careless as they did in the first period Sunday night? They weren’t tired or rusty, and they shouldn’t have been overconfident.
By the way, I spoke with general manager Don Waddell before Sunday’s game. He had just been in East Lansing watching first-round draft pick Daulton Leveille, the CCHA rookie of the month for October. Leveille doesn’t physically look like an NHL player yet but will when weight training fills him out. He’s only a freshman. Also, defenseman Mathieu Schneider (hip flexor) is very close to returning to the Thrashers lineup.
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