Ice Man

By Bob

April 5, 2007 9:22 PM | Link to this

Ilya always responds well after he gets benched, he plays better p** off. And, it was a deserved benching. Remember, he was a complete floater until Hartley showed up and showed him how to be responsible at both ends. You can also read it between the lines with a couple of Tkachuk’s quotes we’ve heard.

It was a good move to bench him and Kovy will respond well.

By russian

April 5, 2007 10:12 PM | Link to this

I could not say what happend in future, but I guest if our team will be kill in first round by 0:4, that’s means we will say: “SO LONG Mr. Hartly!”. Everything will make change on PO. We will see it very soon at 4/11/2007

By Nicholas Irwin

April 6, 2007 12:12 AM | Link to this

Either Bob Hartley is a complete bonehead or a complete genius. Sitting your second-best player for the entire final period (essentially) in a game where you know you probably can’t win without him is gutsy. It’s even gutsier given the fact that he made it look like he’s unduly holding a grudge on Ilya, given the fact that everybody and their mother was giving pucks away in that second period and saying he was benched because he was outplayed by Ovechkin is kind of a strange reason for a benching.

On the other hand, it was a game that we could afford to lose (we still control our own destiny and he knew that we would no matter what happened last night) and if it lights a fire under Ilya’s a*, then it looks pretty good.

Also, for what it’s worth, I like starting Hedberg tomorrow. a)You don’t really want Lehtonen starting games on consecutive days just before the playoffs, b)Kari has had serious problems in Raleigh and the last time we started Moose there, it worked out pretty well, c)It’s fairly likely tomorrow’s game is going to wind up not mattering anyway (and if we don’t win the division, I think I’d rather drop to seven and face the Devils than face the Lightning) and d)It keeps Moose alert and whatnot. Seems like a win-win to me.

By Brendan

April 6, 2007 1:20 AM | Link to this

Ilya Kovlachuk is a ‘world class player.’ He’s not going to ‘turtle up.’ He’ll play well in future outings whether he got benched or not. He’s an elite player.

This is a Hartley decision. He probably could have made his point by sitting him 1-2 shifts. But Hartley knows best what buttons to push. He’s got his finger on the pulse of the team. He’s the coach.

Though, I would always argue that ANYONE, irrespective of their UTTER ABSENCE or INEXPERIENCE from the world of professional coaching, has the right to express their opinions, up to and including, criticism of their favorite team. Or ‘second-guessing’ its coach. It’s kinda, sorta, a big part of why American soldiers died on the field of battle thoroughout our nation’s history. When I hear people say things like, “no one has the right to criticize Hartley or Waddell. They know far better than anyone posting on a message board.” I cringe and wonder why anyone would think that others would so readily and easily SURRENDER their 1st Ammendment rights?

But hey, it’s your call, folks. I don’t think anyone’s above criticism, even if the critic has no similar background or experience from which to criticize.

By Wreckin' & Thrashin'

April 6, 2007 1:35 AM | Link to this

We’ve all seen Ilya hot dog it before, and that didn’t even come close to being one of his worst offenses. That play was a break down by the entire team. Hartley overreacted and I hope it doesn’t come back to bite him and the team.

By stendec

April 6, 2007 1:35 AM | Link to this

NO player is above the TEAM in a team sport! Not drug-smuggling loser Mike Vick of the Falcons, not Brave John Smoltz (though I do love you John), not (whoever the hell the best Hawk player is right now) and certainly not Ilya K. His ill-timed comments come at a time when Thrasher fans are still seething over an unacceptable defeat. AT HOME TO BOOT! The coach may not be the best or brightest in hockey but IK has not set the NHL on fire in recent weeks. His output against the Caps was marginal at best! Display some fire Thrashers! Do not let the only flames be the ones originating from those ultra dumb bird heads!

By Jenn

April 6, 2007 7:50 AM | Link to this

This ain’t Days of our Lives, Iceman. Why create MORE drama? Why even point it out? To create a divide? This isn’t Montreal or Toronto - we don’t need what little press the team actually gets creating drama like this.

Shame on you.

By JayBird

April 6, 2007 8:19 AM | Link to this

How is Iceman creating drama? Did he bench Ilya? NO! He is simply reporting what happened and what Ilya said. That is called journalism. If he was reporting something that happened behind the scenes or was innuendo, that would be creating drama. We all saw Ilya get benched on Wednesday,so why not talk about it?

By wristshot

April 6, 2007 9:49 AM | Link to this

I think Kovy is going to have one his best games of the season tonight. Great move by Hartley. He definitely woke his team up! Coaches don’t win Stanley Cups by sitting back and admiring their team head into the playoffs. I’m sure he doesn’t care if he wins any popularity contests.

By Sara

April 6, 2007 10:40 AM | Link to this

The first thing I thought when I saw Ilya’s quote was “this year??” The second thing I thought was that Ilya’s acting like a child. Whether he agrees with what BH did or not, two games before the playoffs is not the time to be taking jabs at the coach in the press (or anywhere). It creates a diversion the team doesn’t need right now. And to be honest, I think the double-standard at this point IS fair - now is definitely the time for the coaches to be calling out players when they do in fact need to step it up.

This wasn’t a one-time aberration. This team has a bad habit of getting lazy in games. Ilya’s not the only one guilty of it, but you can’t bench half the team in a game. You can afford to bench one. So you pick the one that a) made the biggest bone-head play (which Ilya did) and b) a high-profile player that is going to make the rest of the team notice. There’s a big difference in terms of message between benching a Kovy or a Hossa versus benching a Vigier or a Sutton. (That doesn’t mean I’m saying those specific players are all playing poorly, just using them as examples of eliteness.) Look at it this way - if BH is mad enough to bench Kovy in a game when the team is down two goals in a game they need to win, then BH is REALLY mad. The goal isn’t just to GET to the playoffs, the goal is to be COMPETITIVE in the playoffs. The way they’ve been playing isn’t going to be good enough against other teams who know they have to take it to another level once the second season starts.

By Tony C.

April 6, 2007 12:44 PM | Link to this

I agree with the Sara

By Tony C.

April 6, 2007 12:47 PM | Link to this

Also, in the vein of extra drama Claude Julien speaks

I have to work Fri and Sat nights….anybody got a TiVo I can d/l the games from??

LET’S GO BLUE !!!

By CM

April 6, 2007 1:44 PM | Link to this

I just hope the entire team shows up to play hard tonight, for the entire game. Now that would be sweet. I feel like there’s probably more than just a little pride involved in both BH and IK’s comments since the benching. Let’s hope they can put it past them, for the sake of the team.

On a lighter note, I’ll leave you today with a link to a hilarious crossover-sport video. If you haven’t already, I hope you enjoy watching it (and I hope this link works, too).

http://attaboy.ca/archives/2007/02/000986.php

Now, UNLEASH THE FURY!!

By Ryan

April 6, 2007 2:19 PM | Link to this

CM, that was awesome, thanks for sharing the link. Go Blue!

By Brendan

April 6, 2007 3:49 PM | Link to this

Good links, Tony C. and CM. I feel bad for Claude Julien. I wonder if he gets his name on the Cup if the Devils win it all this year? With players, if they’ve played 40 games or appeared in ONE (1) game in the Finals, they get their name on the Cup. If the 40 game rule applies, I would think Julien has earned the right to have his name engraved on the Cup.

Of course, if the Devils draw the Thrashers in the 1st round …, the topic will be moot. :)

By volstar

April 6, 2007 4:59 PM | Link to this

I was blown away to hear Kov say the “this year” remark. I almost could not believe my ears. If that attitude is reflective of team chemistry the AT will not be going far in the playoffs.

By thrashersfan

April 6, 2007 5:22 PM | Link to this

I’m sorry, you do not bench your #1 goal scorer when you’re losing, in the 3rd pd, in the 79th game of the season, and particularly, when every pt can be the difference in winning the division. There are numerous ways Hartley can punish Kovy without taking away from the “team.” Sure, the argument is, look what occurred when Kovy “was” in the game, he negatively impacted the “team”. However, the one thing the “team” needed, at that time of the game, at that time of the season, was their goal scorer. I’m going to assume his teammates would have rather had him “in” the game rather than “out.”

This season, Kovy has played more responsibly than ever before, and I believe he will continue to do so.

I like Hartley. He has brought good success to this franchise, and actually, the net result is all we should care about. But, honestly, it’s difficult to not think about his handling of the goalies, not sitting some players who were at times clearly hurting the team in Jan/Feb (DeVries, Sutton, and even Nic), and allowing the PP & PK slump to go on forever.

Again, maybe none of this matters as long as we like the result. Maybe we should look past all of the “chatter” and focus on results. Results that hopefully mean getting past the 1st round. Winning the division would be nice too, and for that matter, why not the Cup!

Go Thrashers!! Beat the Canes, beat Tampa!

By Brendan

April 6, 2007 9:21 PM | Link to this

It’s 5-0 Florida over Tampa Bay in the 2nd period. Meanwhile, on the home front, the Icebirds lead 4-1 on the ‘Canes, with 4:01 left in the 3rd period.

I won’t say it. I won’t. I can wait.

By Brendan

April 6, 2007 9:24 PM | Link to this

6-0 Florida, over Tampa Bay.