Thrashers

By Ron Mexico

January 26, 2009 8:34 PM | Link to this

Anybody caught the new power rankings off the sportsnet.ca website? Check this out. This really p** me off!!

Last week: 28 — Now that Ilya Kovalchuk has been named captain, will it make him want to stay in Atlanta or would he rather play somewhere where people like hockey?

Who do these Canadian homers think they are? They act like this game belongs to them only! Our fan base may not be as sizeable as the traditional markets, but we can be just as passionate. It’s not our fault that we’ve had to suffer through bad luck and bad ownership and bad decision making from an incompetent GM. I would love nothing more than to see our boys finish strong and to shut up people like the tool who wrote that comment. Go Thrashers and FIRE WADDELL!!

By stendec

January 26, 2009 9:23 PM | Link to this

ORIGINAL:

Now that Ilya Kovalchuk has been named captain, will it make him want to stay in Atlanta or would he rather play somewhere where people like hockey?

WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE HONEST HAD IT READ:

Now that Ilya Kovalchuk has been named captain (by default), will it make him (feel guilty enough to) want to stay in (a dying) Atlanta (NHL market) or would he rather play somewhere (instead of Georgia) where people (demand winning and actually) like (balls to the ice no surrender) hockey?

Just a thought.

By Brendan

January 26, 2009 10:56 PM | Link to this

I would hope that the Thrashers would be prudent enough not to risk losing Oystrick to a waiver claim. We’re not close enough to the trade deadline to move Schneider and Havelid. Unless some contending team suffers a rash of injuries on their blueline and are in need of immediate help.

By Brendan

January 26, 2009 11:08 PM | Link to this

Mike Knobler, what’s your take on Waddell’s stance on the pending RFA, Jim Slater? Do you get any sort of feel for the situation? Would Waddell try to include Slater as “sweetener” on a deal that allows the Thrashers to pick up some supplemental draft picks or possibly even a prospect, when packaged with either Schneider or Havelid? Or, do you suspect Waddell will simply tender a qualifying offer and/or outright re-sign him in the offseason? Waddell does tend to lean towards players with a Michigan-based history. There’s no rush on a Slater contract, obviously. He’s not going to be able to command big dollars. Waddell could even fail to tender a qualifying offer and still pick him up rather cheaply out on the open market. Slater’s play has picked up a bit lately. Whether that’s enough to make another team ask for him as an “add on” player … is another matter. My feeling is that Jim Slater would like to remain on with the Thrashers next season.

By Rockem Sockem Thrasher

January 26, 2009 11:10 PM | Link to this

I think that Coach Anderson doing his best to make a case to Kovy to stay. He seems to have a good understanding of the young talent that’s out there. Maybe he can start to turn the team around. An improved team is the best argument that can be made by the Thrash.

By ranallo10 (in AT)

January 27, 2009 8:14 AM | Link to this

“Waddell does tend to lean towards players with a Michigan-based history”

Leveille, Slater, and who else (I haven’t looked it up)? I can understand people’s claim that he tends towards US-born players (which is still a funny statement), but what other players have a Michigan connection via collegiate athletics or birth, beyond those two?

By Standac

January 27, 2009 8:16 AM | Link to this

I’d be surprised to see Slater moved. I think he’s speed and hustle will keep him here. We don’t have a lot of players that play hard every night. I don’t think we’ll be in a rush to move one who does.

By Glovesave29

January 27, 2009 8:52 AM | Link to this

I wouldn’t worry too much about Mike Brophy’s comments. His world revolves around Toronto and all he does is pander to his Ontario audience. Facts have never really been a concern for him. We know there are good fans here, so who really cares what some boob from 1500 miles away thinks.

By GaVaHokie

January 27, 2009 11:36 AM | Link to this

I think Slater will stay and finally put an end to the revolving door of Checking line Centers… I think Slater will take the torch next season, or maybe even March if Reasoner gets dealt.

… this is a good thing IMO.

By Andy S

January 27, 2009 1:22 PM | Link to this

Now I have the theme song for “Welcome Back Kotter” stuck in my head.

…and now hopefully some of you do too.

As for Slater, I hope he gets healthy soon. I think he’ll stick with the Thrashers, he’s shown a lot more potential this year. Just forget the fact that he was a first-rounder and remember that he’s still cheap and effective. I just wish he could stay on his skates. The neighbors to my seats last year pointed it out, and frankly it would be a part of a Thrashers drinking game: take a drink if Jim Slater falls down (un-checked).

What else would be good ideas for a Thrashers drinking game? Goal by Kovy? Moose-calls?

By GaVaHokie

January 27, 2009 1:38 PM | Link to this

Gee… they polled the Montreal fans during the All Star weekend if they thought fighting should stay in the league… I wonder what they said.

By Alan

January 27, 2009 2:30 PM | Link to this

Andy - Whenever our defense is caught flat-footed in our own zone.

Whenever we allow the opposition an odd-man rush.

Whenever we get caught in a bad line change.

If a goal is scored on us in any of the above scenarios, consume twice the otherwise required alcohol.

By Andy S

January 27, 2009 3:03 PM | Link to this

Alan - I was looking more for a pleasant buzz and a happy feeling, not a fall-down, black-out drunk.

By Alan

January 27, 2009 3:38 PM | Link to this

But that’s the best kind of drunk, Andy! There were some games we played this season where I would have rather been blacked out drunk!

By Brendan

January 27, 2009 4:44 PM | Link to this

Ranallo, I believe Nathan Oystrick came from Northern Michigan, per Waddell’s 2nd period intermission comments from the Nashville game, last November. In particular, this comment stood out, “Guys, I’m not surprised by the play of Nathan Oystrick. I saw him play at Northern Michigan.” Darren Eliot, at that moment, interjected, “Don’s Alma Mater.” Waddell continued, “And I knew that Nathan would play real well for us, if given the opportunity.”

By Brendan

January 27, 2009 4:55 PM | Link to this

It will be interesting to see how much opportunity 7th round defenseman, Zach Redmond, gets from Waddell. Redmond plays in Big Rapids, MI, at Ferris State University, CCHA.

By ranallo10 (in AT)

January 27, 2009 7:45 PM | Link to this

Brendan — Okay, so a few have connections to Michigan. I notice several of the players were born in Minnesota too…do you think that’s a trend too?

I’m just teasing though…I’m guessing that it’s easier for people to scout where they’re comfortable, and Waddell is likely comfortable (or his US scout is) in Michigan.

But four players isn’t a trend to me, when there are over 41 players in the system, not including the 22/23 on the NHL roster currently.

By Brendan

January 27, 2009 8:41 PM | Link to this

Well, I used the word “tend” not “trend” for a reason. It isn’t a trend. If we scoured the Waddell Administration’s picks, there are only 5 or 6 of them with Michigan connections. Give or take. One of those Dwyer boys played hockey at Western Michigan. But I don’t think he ever played a game for Atlanta, that counted in the standings. I couldn’t get away with saying Waddell gave Dwyer some preferential treatment. :)

The point I was making is this … would Jim Slater crack the starting line up of 25 other NHL teams? I think he could make it on a few other clubs. Whenever I run into a “3 decades-plus” type hockey fan, I sometimes encounter the following. “Yeah, but I liked it better when there were fewer teams. They shouldn’t have gone past 24 clubs.”

Stop. Most of the time, when I hear that sort of thing, I know what’s coming next. “And the league over-expanded, including in the Atlanta market.” I usually smile politely, as I’m a fairly tolerant person. If the conversation doesn’t go that direction, it goes this direction: “Look how ‘watered down’ the league is now?” And then, the 30-year long NHL fan points to Jim Slater and says, “There ya go. Right there. Exhibit “A” … of an upper echelon AHL player who has enjoyed numerous seasons in the NHL, at substantively higher salary, due to expansion.”

I let it slide. There’s some merit to that argument. Which brings me back to … maybe Waddell has a “twinge” of loyalty/preference towards a player, here and there, because they played at a Michigan-based school. In other words, if all things were equal, and you could have a very low paid, functional center, with Michigan ties … would you opt to keep him versus ditching him for exact same player, without the Michigan-based affiliation? Perhaps Waddell shrugged and said, “Shoot me. I kept the Michigan guy.” Of course, Sage of Bluesland would immediately interject that Waddell needs Slater for “bluster purposes.” After all, Waddell got Slater via “inducement” to pass on Bouwmeester from Florida, in the 2002 Draft. If Waddell can point to Slater and say, “Hey, I drafted him and he’s still here,” it makes him look like a better GM in some people’s eyes. If Slater were gone, it adds to the ammunition that the “inducement” Atlanta received wasn’t worth it … and couldn’t CUT IT in the NHL, and therefore, was “useless” to us. So, when people say Waddell can’t draft … or can’t draft in the 1st round beyond the Top 10, Waddell can cite Bryan Little and Jim Slater as a counter-argument.

See? See how it works?

Okay. Let me add this. Suppose the NHL expanded to two more markets, for 32 teams, just like the NFL. Still with me? Okay, let’s say Sage of Bluesland was named the GM of the … (making this up now, obviously) the Wichita Dust Bowlers. But the league said that there wouldn’t be ANY waiver draft for the expansion teams. And the two expansion clubs got to draft a year BEFORE they entered the league. In other words, they got to draft TWICE before ever playing a single game. All right. Unable to really lure any quality free agents to Wichita, Kansas, Sage of Bluesland’s draft picks essentially had to fill out the roster. Well … guess what? Isn’t Sage of Bluesland INSTANTLY the most successful drafting GM in the NHL? After all, like it or not, 70-80% of his roster is going to be composed of his draft picks, irrespective of the QUALITY of those draft picks.

And Sage of Bluesland’s Witchita Dust Bowlers managed to shatter the NHL record book for fewest wins and fewest points in an NHL season. But yet … he landed ALL THOSE DRAFT PICKS into his starting lineups!! Including a plethora of 7th rounders! Would it mean that Sage of Bluesland is an upper echelon GM who is a DRAFT DAY GURU?

Really think about it. The answer is Jim Slater.

By ranallo10 (in AT)

January 27, 2009 9:07 PM | Link to this

“I think he could make it on a few other clubs.”

Then I think you answered your own question…only a few other teams would be interested in Slater as “sweetener” to a trade, and I assume those teams are the lower tier teams like Atlanta that has no use for a trade in which Slater is involved.