AJC > Sports Thrashers > Blog > Archives > 2008 > October > 02 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USPreseason Quick Shots
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
After Wednesday’s 4-1 loss to the Red Wings, the Thrashers are now one win out of four so far this preseason. Two more games this weekend and then they’ll lace ‘em up for real next Friday. Here are a few quick shots in regards to the game and the preseason thus far…
First, the bad news…in going 1-3, the team has been outscored 19-9 and outshot 146-90.
The good news…they’re already in mid-season form!
Thank youuuu….please, be kind to the waitress.
OK, that was probably unfair given that these are merely preseason stats and so much of it has to be taken for what it’s worth. But next week they begin to play for keeps, we won’t have that “but its just preseason” line to fall back on.
About the game last night…well, I didn’t think the Thrashers played too terrible bad. Actually, pretty good during some points. We got beat on two power play goals, both by Mikael Samuelsson, an empty netter and a play in which the Ice Gremlins apparently reached up and grabbed Tobias Enstrom’s skates causing him to tumble. Then, the same gremlins grabbed Kari Lehtonen’s stick while he attempted to clear the puck from the corner causing the puck to instead bounce off Henrik Zetterberg’s stick into an empty goal.
Hey…that’s how I saw it from section 110.
Honestly…one of the reason’s the Red Wings are…well, the Red Wings is because they take advantage of their opportunities. Three power play chances… two goals from them. Conversely, Atlanta had three power play opportunities that netted no goals. Oh, and it doesn’t hurt having the likes of Chris Osgood in the goal either… he of 25 saves on 26 shots.
Erik Christensen doesn’t seem to be showing any lingering effects from his injury last week. His solo-effort goal against Detroit was a beauty. If he continues to play like he did last night, he should keep the role of top-line center.
What concerns me most right now? Um…being outshot 36.5-22.5 does. So does a 72.0% effective penalty kill, (18-25). Putting those stats into perspective…last season Atlanta was outshot 33.9-25.8 on average and the worst PK in the league belonged to Los Angeles, 78.0%. I know…its just preseason.
However, I think I know why the shots for/shots against and goals deficits still resemble that of last season’s. Yup…seems I totally forgot to wash The Jersey over the summer. I hung it up after the last game and never took it out of the closet…still a lot of last year’s bad vibes and yeck all over it. This shall be rectified tonight. Cold water…gentle hand-wash cycle…alone, inside out…hung to dry with crest facing north towards the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. Gotta do these things right as to not upset the hockey gods, ya know.
A question was posed to me last night as I was leaving the arena that I’ll forward on to you…if there is only one roster spot to give to either Colin Stuart or Brett Sterling, you give it to…?
Me? I’d have to say…Stuart.
Don Waddell has indicated that Zach Bogosian will probably be suiting up in a Thrashers jersey when the season begins and not in the juniors. In this Mike Knobler piece, the general manager said, “I’d say it’s more heavily favored toward keeping him…I think we’d keep him because of Schneider”. Continuing, “As long as [Bogosian] can play in our group on a nightly basis, there’s no reason to send him down”.
Speaking of D-Dub…Forbes has ranked all of the general managers in professional sports. Look who is number 6 on the list.
Note: The Forbes ranking is from March 2007. Sorry, long night.
Ross McKeon of Yahoo! Sports has his season preview out. His final analysis for the Thrashers, “Look for the Thrashers to be better off than last year but still a step or two behind to reach the playoffs”. Uh-huh…that’s what I’ve been saying. I think it’ll translate to about 86 points.
Sara…red is NOT your color. Thrasher blue suits you so much better!
And finally…Hey Josh, Monique said to hurry home from Iowa. I, along with the rest of my gang, had the pleasure of meeting her at the game Wednesday night. She’s a great gal and I hope to see ya both next time.
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By Toby
October 2, 2008 12:51 PM | Link to this
Any chance of Slater being traded or sent down to make room for Hoffman? I’m reading good stuff on him.
The bottom 2 lines may be changing often as the season moves on…
By TableHockey
October 2, 2008 12:55 PM | Link to this
i feel stupid asking this - did Kovy play last night? I haven’t heard anything about how he looked if he did.
Oh and first…maybe…
By Sara
October 2, 2008 12:55 PM | Link to this
RH I said the same thing about Hossa and you see where that got us. :p
I wish the Wings and Thrash would play each other every preseason - I LOVE it. The game doesn’t matter so I can get up and cheer every goal, every hit, every save, every fight. Total no pressure. Alas, reality will set in soon, the games will matter, and I will be back in blue, so no worries.
BTW, that Forbes article is from 2007 - just a wee bit out-dated.
By NASCAR Dave
October 2, 2008 12:56 PM | Link to this
I was at the game last night and was very UN-impressed…
REASONER is awful… :(
SLATER/STUART/STEVENSON all need to go back to CHI…
KULDA looked OK, but I keep VALABIK and send KULDA back to CHI…
Where was the OFFENSE???
WHY did JIMMY “CAN’T FINISH” SLATER get 2nd star??? Absolutely ridiculous…
KOVY-LITTLE-WILLIAMS
KOZLOV-CHRISTENSEN-ARMSTRONG
LAVALLEE-REASONER-THORBURN
BOULTON-PERRIN-WHITE
I keep STERLING in the Pressbox for now… But he NEEDS to step it up if he’s gonna stay here.
HAVELID-ENSTROM
SCHNEIDER-BOGOSIAN
HAINSEY-VALABIK/EXELBY
LEHTONEN
PAVELEC
It’s time for HEDBERG to go… That was plainly obvious in the STL game…
By Rawhide
October 2, 2008 1:05 PM | Link to this
TableHockey - He did play…TOI=22:30 with 3 SOG. Normal Kovy-style hustle.
Sara - Jeeze…you’re right…from March ‘07 at that. A friend of mine e-mailed that to me last night and I didn’t even look at the date. I’d be curious to see if such a survey has been conducted since then.
By Toby
October 2, 2008 1:16 PM | Link to this
Any chance of Slater being traded or sent down to make room for Hoffman? I’m reading good stuff on him.
The bottom 2 lines may be changing often as the season moves on…
By Rawhide
October 2, 2008 1:24 PM | Link to this
Toby - I guess anythings possible…but I’ve not read or heard of that happening.
I do think you are correct about the bottom two lines possibly being tinkered with as the season progresses. One thing Anderson has said repeatedly is that good play will be rewarded with more ice time and the opposite is true as well.
By Russian
October 2, 2008 1:26 PM | Link to this
I do not want to keep Stuart or Sterling on roster. We need two lines to score and two lines to defence. First line is a scoring line for sure, because Kovy is here. Second Line is make me sad. Who is going to score there? Army? Slava? Little? I do not know. Third line should be defence. Reasoner and Thorburn plus Perrin will be fine for me. Fourth line is just kind of joke in Atlanta organization. Any way Slater needs to be cut. Enougth is enougth. He can notdo s**. Hogffman will be OK with White and Boulton. Actually Boulton is horrible also.
By NASCAR Dave
October 2, 2008 1:38 PM | Link to this
RUSSIAN - Were you there last night??? You seem to have a lot of the same things I saw…
If that was a tryout for SLATER, STUART, and STERLING, I would say they all failed… Maybe this HOFFMAN guy is a keeper???
And I agree on BOULTON - He was a Non-Factor all night (along with KOVY)…
By Nikita
October 2, 2008 1:41 PM | Link to this
What was Slater’s star based on? I wasn’t there, people — and I was having a very good time elsewhere, but I don’t know what happened. Somebody tell me!
NASCAR, where are those lines from? First two lines look fineish — I’d probably arrange them more like so, though:
Kovy/Crush/Williams Perrin/Little/Armstrong Koz/Slates/Thor Boulton/Reasoner/Hoffman or Stuart
And I’d flip-flop your first and second defensive lines.
By Rawhide
October 2, 2008 1:52 PM | Link to this
What was Slater’s star based on?
Uh….let’s see, Nikita….um…shuffling through notes and stat sheets…9:10 TOI, 2 SOG, a -1 rating and 5 PIM.
I guess because he wrestled Lilja to the ice?
shrugs
By Sara
October 2, 2008 2:08 PM | Link to this
Slater got the second star because he was busting his tail all night. The fight with Lilja was a microcosm of the entire thing. He got into a few shoving matches around the goal. Lots of spirit - which is a big step for him since that’s not usually his role. Considering what got the last trio sent down to Chicago, seems like somebody at least was paying attention when coach was talking.
GeeNascar I guess we should send Kovy down to Chicago too, since he was such a non-factor? (Although his check on Zetterberg was a beauty.) Course this is coming from the same man who wants to toss the back-up goaltender after one game as well. And inserts a guy into his line-up that’s already been cut. Plus has to use capslock to try and make his posts seem important (style over substance baby - it’s working for Sarah Palin).
Look if you want to watch the Thrashers, you are going to need to acquire some patience because this team isn’t just going to morph into a Cup contender overnight. I have no doubt as the season wears on, those who can’t cut the mustard will find themselves on the bus out-o-town. In the meantime, go buy a few (dozen) 6-packs and chill.
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 2, 2008 3:32 PM | Link to this
Slater also caused the play that Christensen scored on.
By Rawhide
October 2, 2008 3:32 PM | Link to this
Another afternoon with some hiccups on the blog… it’s been “burped” and ready to go.
By Alan
October 2, 2008 3:41 PM | Link to this
In the meantime, go buy a few (dozen) 6-packs and chill.
Succinctly put. I think we should all keep a few dozen six packs… or cases .. laying around, because this might be a very long season. Patience is most definitely a virtue here… especially since we’re building. Which brings me to the quote from the Kovalchuk article posted on the last blog that everyone seemed to be worrying about.
“If we’re going to play well, I want to stay here.”
I don’t know about everyone else, but I’m reading that more as “if we’re moving in the right direction, then I’m in.” He did state that he was drafted with Atlanta and wants to bring the cup here, too, so I don’t think I’m too far off the mark in my analysis of his remark. He seems genuinely happy with our off-season moves, and he also seems happy to see Schneider here as well.
Baby steps, guys. Just have to be patient. This ,as Sara said, not an overnight fix.
The only question I have right now is this: Guinness or Killians Irish Red? ;)
By Sara
October 2, 2008 3:55 PM | Link to this
The only question I have right now is this: Guinness or Killians Irish Red?
Vodka. Straight.
By Alan
October 2, 2008 4:00 PM | Link to this
That’s not a beer, Sara!
But yes. Vodka is definitely a non-beer option.
By Tony C.
October 2, 2008 4:02 PM | Link to this
Can we please keep the political B.S. OUT of this space?
Serieously folks, I realize a lot of people get off on the idealogical name-calling and “us vs. them” stuff, but let’s leave it at the boobtube.
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 2, 2008 4:03 PM | Link to this
RH — In all of the problems the blog has had the last two days, I noticed a post that went missing of mine. I hate to resurrect this because I don’t think it’s plausible, but Savard was mentioned on the last blog as being on the blocks.
First, I wouldn’t mind him back in Atlanta. His contract now pales in comparison to the direction the market turned, and is a bargain (as Bob predicted). However, it’s always been known he has some “baggage” that comes along with him, his defensive abilities definitely leave much to be desired, and his untimely penalties were about as frustrating as Holik’s the last two seasons. However, his offense and potential chemistry with Kovalchuk would be an excellent thing to reunite in Atlanta.
That being said, he’s got a NTC. Atlanta doesn’t have the pieces to make such a trade realistically work, because Boston isn’t against the salary cap like Anaheim was (thus, they can afford to jettison SOME salary by sending Savard away, but don’t need a $500k player in return to maximize the cap relief). So, Boston is in a solid position (if they are truly shopping him) to send Savard to the team who has the most to offer.
So, my response to the rumors is that there are more teams out there with needs at C that could use Savard’s services, and have more to offer than the Thrashers. The first team that came to mind for me was Vancouver, as they could use somebody down the middle and Sundin doesn’t seem to be making a decision anytime soon (and $10M for 2 years Savard is greater than $20M for Sundin for 2 years, in my opinion). So, knowing Boston is looking for a defender (based on the rumor), my assumption leads me to believe Vancouver could shop Bieksa for Savard.
So yeah, I said all of this during the Savard conversation, and it was lost due to the blog complications and I figured it wasn’t worth rehashing…until I saw this on Eklund’s page:
Savard for Bieksa (E4).
Seriously, I didn’t realize that was out there. Personally I see it as further evidence that Eklund is crap, because the “e4” strength rating for this rumor is something I, an Atlanta Thrashers fan with NHL knowledge, could’ve made up (and did without prior information).
So yeah, I always take Eklund lightly, but that made me laugh.
By GaVaHokie
October 2, 2008 4:03 PM | Link to this
I wasn’t at the game last night, but I’m willing to bet Christensen’s goal looked a little like the one he does over and over again in this highlight clip.
By NASCAR Dave
October 2, 2008 4:09 PM | Link to this
NASCAR, where are those lines from?
NIKITA - They are just my suggestions… I switched out LITTLE and CHRISTENSEN…
And I’d flip-flop your first and second defensive lines.
Yeah, there is no rhyme or reason to the order I listed them in… Those are just the pairings I suggest… The order I put them in has no significance…
What was Slater’s star based on?
I’m not sure, NIKITA… That’s why I asked… I guess they felt sorry for the guy because he is about to be cut…
SARA - Go home YANKEE!!!
NUFF SAID.
By Sara
October 2, 2008 4:10 PM | Link to this
Sorry Tony C. how ‘bout this instead … style over substance, kinda like our new in-game announcer chick (at least based on first impressions - maybe she’ll get better when they work the kinks out crossing fingers please please). There - hockey reference. :D
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 2, 2008 4:16 PM | Link to this
Sara — Did she blink?? If so, she’s already better than Kincaide.
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 2, 2008 4:24 PM | Link to this
Tony C. — Any luck with the host?
By kracker
October 2, 2008 5:10 PM | Link to this
So the tryout announcer was female and how did she do? There are two more announcer tryouts to go, on Friday and Saturday. Then one of the three is to be chosen.
Or Maybe DW could just do it. He’s got free time this season since he’s not behind the bench and he’s probably missing that extra paycheck.
(See, I can throw a bone to the DW Haterz here and there. They love to be hatin’ on DW.)
By Sara
October 2, 2008 5:24 PM | Link to this
ranallo honestly the whole main segment she did was flubbed on a technical level that she tried to roll with but I wasn’t impressed. Like I said, I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt and see how it goes. I just have this thing about cute bubbly attractive women in roles for which they are ill-qualified - as in they got the job for superficial reasons. If she can be informative and competent, I’m all for it. Otherwise, I’ll be aggravated with both her and her employers. However it never escapes my notice that the women they hire in those roles are always hot and the guys are not. On a semi-related note, wasn’t overly impressed with the dude that was announcing last night. Hopefully the next two competitors this weekend will do better.
Well Dave would that be “home” as in Georgia where I’ve lived for 25 years or Virginia, where I was born and raised prior to moving to GA? Either way I don’t see where that qualifies me as a “yankee,” but thanks for playing anyway.
By Alan
October 2, 2008 6:19 PM | Link to this
THN’s Loose Change has issued some predictions for this coming season. Including which team is the “team to beat” this year:
You won’t hear Loose Change joining all the other talking heads in parroting that the Red Wings are (oh golly) “the team to beat.” Personally I think the team to beat is the Minnesota Wild. Any team wearing a god-awful jersey like that deserves a good beating.
By Sage of Bluesland
October 2, 2008 6:36 PM | Link to this
Is this another “Five-Year Plan” we’re embarking on?
Serious question here.
How many failing seasons will convince you to stop subsidizing the incompetence?
More and more will wake up, I can assure you…and when Kovy wakes up and realizes he can play for a contender, what will you do?
(It would be humorous if it weren’t so sad)
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 2, 2008 7:13 PM | Link to this
Sara — It was kinda sad listening to it on the radio, because when announced by Kamal he sounded like his tongue was hanging out of his mouth the whole time. There was an instance where she said something about people’s faces coming in this booth to which he responded something similar to “we look forward to having your face here too”. It was just…awkward…in that teacher (Kamal) student (Natalie whatever-her-name-is) kinda way.
When trying to talk about her accolades he couldn’t think of anything to say beyond the “talents” she brings to the group.
Seriously…it was THAT bad.
By five_hole
October 2, 2008 7:37 PM | Link to this
I forgot to say I really enjoyed meeting several of you in person.
The best thing (other than you guys) about last night is that this means IT’S HOCKEY SEASON
In retrospect, I’m not sure how bad it was. Havelid had a bad night, but that’s not going to happen often during the regular season. I thought X had a ‘Wing or 2 lined up for a hit, but chose not to lose position.
There should be no way Sterling makes the team. He had some moments, but he’s: a) too small (we’re already too small). b) strictly a “scoring” LW and we already have Ilya & Slava.
The advantage to Stewart is that he can play RW. My guess is that he sticks, if either of them do. I was intrigued by Stephenson.
Didn’t really listen to the female announcer, but they had a new guy announcing the PP. “Thrashers on the … POWER PLAY!”. It had potential, didn’t wow me, but was a vast improvement over “They’re a man short, so we’re on the … . Power Play!”.
By stendec
October 2, 2008 8:13 PM | Link to this
sori letemin is in top form. what a loser. number 1. odor like number 2. feeble finn. another soft one just went in. monkey puck. oh well.
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 2, 2008 8:27 PM | Link to this
Me fail English? That’s unpossible.
By Monique
October 2, 2008 8:39 PM | Link to this
Wow!! you really did put us in your blog!!!…the hubby is reading this in IOWA as we speak!…the in-house running commentary of the game last night was great. Nice meeting you all. Hope to see you at other games….I am so glad hockey season is FINALLY HERE!!!
By Rawhide
October 2, 2008 9:06 PM | Link to this
Yes, Monique…I did. And, it got you to post a comment!!! I hope you chime in more in the future.
It was a pleasure to meet you as well.
By Tony C.
October 2, 2008 9:18 PM | Link to this
Dude.
So you’re telling me the “color guy” for Kamal is…a “hot chick”???
What a country
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 2, 2008 9:29 PM | Link to this
Tony C. — No no, this game the color analyst was Darren Elliot. Natalie whatever-her-name-is just dropped by to introduce herself to the audience, I guess. The entire time Kamal was having his regular conniption, just not audibly.
So yeah, just based on language alone I could tell she was an attractive female…why else would Kamal be at an abnormal loss of words?
By Sara
October 3, 2008 9:35 AM | Link to this
Yeah the chick - Natalie I guess - I think is taking Kincaid’s place - which means we may see her for in-game segments live at the arena as well as TV segments.
The announcer’s are a whole other thing. I’ll be curious to hear the reactions to the other two contestants for the weekend. From what I understood, one is Shaffee who’s a local DJ, there’s a canadian dude, and somebody else.
BTW, was it just me or did it seem like a lot of the pregame general announcements still sounded like Steve Craig - perhaps prerecorded??
By MashaPlayer 7
October 3, 2008 9:46 AM | Link to this
I think its seriously time NASCAR Dave was barred from the blogs. He continuously posts comments that are not within the ethics that blogs are supposed to represent. Keep it on topic, stay away from personal comments, or get off! Of course, I would miss all of the hockey expertise he has to offer…not sure where I would get all of my real knowledge now (snicker)
By Wings fan in Ga.
October 3, 2008 10:32 AM | Link to this
Sporting News Today’s prediction for a breakout season in the Eastern Conference - Jason Williams, Braydon Coburn, Steven Stamkos, Mikhail Grabovski, Marc Staal and Mike Smith.
By Alan
October 3, 2008 10:39 AM | Link to this
Looks like there’s more trouble out of Nashville…
The Nashville Predators’ ownership tangle has taken another twist with the startling admission the NHL team has defaulted on a $40-million (all currency U.S.) loan.
By stendec
October 3, 2008 11:12 AM | Link to this
Greetings everyone. First, so there are no misunderstandings, I love the Thrashers. Want them to succeed! That said. I have serious issues with untalented losers wearing Thrasher uniforms. I forgive Maryann Hossa for bolting to a winner. What I cannot forgive is his dogging it during twilight days as Thrasher. Such behavior intolerable for paid professional athlete (unless you are a Falcon). I like Ilya Kovalchuk. Kid has abundant talent. Unfortunately, he does not wish to continue to waste that talent as Thrasher. Wants to compete for winner. Do not blame him. Kovy is a superstar that other teams will continue to negate game in and game out. Frustration he displayed last season will only worsen. Absolutely NO supporting cast! Team does not need one superstar but two or three stars. If Kovy is honest he will let fans know his true intentions. If not, he can pull a Maryann. Either way, he is on lookout for whiter ice elsewhere. Cannot blame him. In fact, if he is honest with fans, I wish him all the best. The only thing I ask is that when he departs he take Kari “Sori Letemin” Lehtonen with him! Enjoy the day.
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 3, 2008 11:21 AM | Link to this
Alan — Balsillie has apparently offered to buy out DeBiaggo’s minority portion of the team.
That team has some unfortunate issues monetarily…Nashville might not be the best place for a franchise that can draw fans, win games, but can’t pay off a loan to save their life.
By glovesave29
October 3, 2008 11:27 AM | Link to this
MashaPlayer7 - If we are barring people for going off topic, I guess you are the first to have to go. Rawhide’s blog is not about NASCAR Dave…
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 3, 2008 11:53 AM | Link to this
glovesave — It’s about me, right?
By Tony C.
October 3, 2008 12:48 PM | Link to this
No it’s all about ME.
stupid
By ranallo10 (in AT)
October 3, 2008 1:21 PM | Link to this
(sigh) … one of these days it’ll be about me, just you watch!
By Rawhide
October 3, 2008 1:40 PM | Link to this
In the “For What It’s Worth Department”…Scott Wraight of SI.com has recently posted a Power Ranking. In it, he places Atlanta at #26…just above Los Angeles and just under Columbus.
Of the Thrashers, Wraight writes…”If not for the salary cap, veteran defenseman Mathieu Schneider would never have become a Thrasher. Because of his $5.625 million salary, the Ducks were forced to deal the two-time All-Star to Atlanta. One team’s cap crunch is another’s reward. But the 39-year-old backend can only do so much for a team that’s still looking to replace Marian Hossa’s offensive skills. One player who could step up is 20-year-old Bryan Little. But as is the case every year, this team’s success depends on the play of the enigmatic Kari Lehtonen in net”.
By five_hole
October 3, 2008 2:15 PM | Link to this
It’s not about ranallo10 (in AT) or Tony C., it’s all about Kari. Forget where I read Anderson wants him to play 60 games, but Mr. Inconsistent, all the talent in the world but head is in another world, stands on his head and then gives up “monkey pucks”, is the reason we sink-or-swim.
He needs to be the terminator. When the opposition rushes our net, he needs to have that terminator readout going, measuring distance and velocity, assessing threat levels, with that cross hair sighting the puck. He needs to have the single minded focus to “kill Sarah Connor”, eh, “stop the puck”. He needs to want “the plasma rifle with a 40 watt range”, em uh, “the puck”. The dmen we have are built for speed, not muscle (except for Valabik). What’s going to improve our defense is Lehtonen being the man.
By Nikita
October 3, 2008 3:17 PM | Link to this
is the reason we sink-or-swim.
Um, no. Just no.
Taking double the SOG that our opponents do is why we sink. Worst PP in the league is why we sink. Motivation solely by “pride” (read: the determination not to be too badly humiliated or unmarketable at contract time) is why we sink. Zone defense in which no offense is involved is why we sink.
Now, if Lehtonen faces a normal number of shots (like, say, under 30) and allows the same number of goals, then he might be the reason why we sink. He does have issues with mental steadiness, but his stats are good and the blame should rest any number of places before it rests on the guy whose job it is to back up the sieves of last year’s Your Atlanta Thrashers.
By Alan
October 3, 2008 3:20 PM | Link to this
If you’ve got the NHL network, then you have a reason to celebrate:
The NHL Network announced its TV schedule Friday and, for the first time, it will pick up CBC’s “Hockey Night in Canada” Saturday night double-headers. The first broadcast will be next Saturday, when Montreal visits Toronto at 7 p.m., and Calgary hosts Vancouver at 10 p.m.
HNIC is a favorite of mine, but until now, my only option for seeing is has been the internet.
Now, all I’ve got to do is actually order the NHL Network.
By Tony C.
October 3, 2008 3:44 PM | Link to this
Can’t agree with you more 5-hole.
If KL has the year everybody wants him to have, then we may actually sneak into the hunt for the last few playoff spots.
Monkey pucks, though and we’ll let him walk, San Jose will pick him up, and then all the sudden he’ll be like the 2nd coming of Esposito.
By Rawhide
October 3, 2008 4:01 PM | Link to this
From Ben Wright of the Blueline Blog…tonight’s line up:
Forwards
Kovalchuk- White- Thorburn
Kozlov- Little- Armstrong
Sterling- Perrin- Crabb
Stuart- Slater- Hoffman
Defense
Hainsey- Havelid
Exelby- Bogosian
Valabik- Enstrom
Goalies
Hedberg
Pavelec
I hope Moose has a much better showing then last week.
Interesting to see Thorburn on the top line with Kovy….and the splitting of the Swedes. I’ll be interested to see how the Havelid/Hainsey pairing works out as well.
Also, the second line is what I think we’ll see on opening night.
By Sara
October 3, 2008 4:02 PM | Link to this
HNIC huh? I thought they burned those studios down after the theme-song got changed?
More Don Cherry - lovely.
By glovesave29
October 3, 2008 4:11 PM | Link to this
It is the responsibility of the goalie to play the puck…the D to force the shots to come from difficult angles or from longer range. The D is also responsible for the rebound and to keep the area in front of the crease free of the offensive players that can either screen the goalie or knock home the rebound. Do you really feel that since our D did none of that last year, that you can really blame Kari and his .912 SP? I can’t. That SP is a good one for just facing the first shot - Kari was getting second and third rebounds. Sure, over the course of 80 games some bad ones are going to go in, but if you look at how the play developed, I bet ya can find several errors by the forwards or the defense that caused the situation…but part of being a keeper is knowing that you will still be blamed for the GA.
Ranallo - Tony C…OF COURSE it is all about you. It always was and always will be. I am sure Rawhide will back me on that!!!
It just irks me that people want to silence / ban those who disagree with them. Yeah, Dave was out of line with the “go home Yankee” comment…but if anyone here can defend themselves better that Sara, I’ve yet to see them post! Life would be no fun at all if everyone always agreed with everyone else…I mean really, we all know I am the one who is always correct :-)~
By Bob
October 3, 2008 5:12 PM | Link to this
excellent, HNIC is awesome, we got it from time to time on Center Ice, but great to know we’ll get it every Saturday. Cherry is must see TV
By Nikita
October 3, 2008 5:50 PM | Link to this
Adding to what I said above…I would like to see Kari more consistently mentally engaged, and I would like to see him manage the puck better — he has some nastyish habits of turning it loose where the opponent can stuff it in on him. But I’m very happy with him overall. Goaltending is an area where I don’t generally worry about the Thrashers.
The flipside of that is that I’d also like to see our offense engaging more effectively in screening and rebound shots. This seems in the past to have been a coaching issue, since everyone who ships in does it fairly well but most of the long-timers don’t.
By Tony C.
October 3, 2008 6:06 PM | Link to this
I don’t know what I’d do if I saw a thrashers team that back-checks consistently.
Weird on the D-pairings…Somebody get a photo of Big Vikki and Tobias together for me; “Mutt&Jeff” it’s gotta be!
By five_hole
October 3, 2008 10:27 PM | Link to this
Nikita It’s not that I disagree with your criticisms, it’s just that I think having Kari mentally steady and playing consistantly great is more important. He plays well but lets in the “soft” goal. He tries to get a call from the ref & ends up falling down and allowing the opposition to score.
I don’t get nearly as frustrated seeing Kari giving up power play goals and having 35 SOG against him as I do when I see him give up goals like he did Wednesday night.
By LAC
October 3, 2008 11:02 PM | Link to this
Great Game… If you are from Nashville…
Hedberg has to GO he is terrible, much better with Pavalic a LOT better.
What can you say, 1-4 preseason…
It’s going to be a LOOOOONG season folks !
By stendec
October 4, 2008 1:15 AM | Link to this
Another defeat! Another lackluster performance. Well, I cannot fault Kari L or even Keith B for this sorry debacle! Looks like Falcons On Ice set for return. More is the pity. Thought new coach would shake things up! Wrong again. Well, I still have the Falcons, uh, Hawks, uh, Braves, uh, boy are we in trouble. Night all.
By Sara
October 4, 2008 7:38 AM | Link to this
Ummm LAC?? Isn’t Pavs the one who let in the 4 goals in the third period? I’m pretty sure however Hedberg left him with a two-goal lead.
So can someone else actually give me an insightful recap of the game last night?
By BaldHeaded Thrasher
October 4, 2008 8:31 AM | Link to this
Sara- Hedberg allowed a soft one in about the first 30 seconds and then played well. I thougt ATL moved the puck well and was impressed with the way they played…Kozy looked good.
“They score four goals and I should stop three,” Pavelec said. “No excuse for that. That was probably the worst period of my life.”
Liitle scary with Exelby and Bogosian on the same line, but it might work and if it does good things will follow.
By Nikita
October 4, 2008 10:30 AM | Link to this
I listened on the radio and read the stats, but didn’t see the game. The stats make Eric Perrin look pretty badass — lots of time, good +/-. Everybody else looks decent except possibly X and Valabik with their usual high PIM, low +/-.
Bryan Little got the third star, right?
By Rawhide
October 4, 2008 10:44 AM | Link to this
Moose let in that early goal then stopped 14 of the next 15 over the first two periods.
Pavs allowed 4 goals on 15 shots in the third period…three of them in the first 7:24.
Perrin earned second star…2 assists and a +1.
White earned third star…a goal and an assist.
Jordin Tootoo was the first star…a goal and 2 assists.
By Thrashers27
October 4, 2008 11:32 AM | Link to this
Hoffman and Valabik fights were awesome. Those two boys can drop B-O-M-B-S. I say Hoffman sticks. Valabik let the go-ahead goal blow by him right in front of me, so he may need to spend more time in Chicago. I say give him a good stint with the big boys this year. If he doesn’t pan out then trade him off. Same goes for Sterling. He is just too small. He tries to hit, but merely bounces off of opponents and when he is hit he’s immediately taken out of the play. He is just too easily pushed off of the puck.
If nothing else, last night’s was definitely a fun game.
By JLH
October 4, 2008 12:34 PM | Link to this
Sara - I came away from last nights game feeling good about our first period scoring, …. it reminded me of the high octane, come from behind Marc Savard Thrashers who often forgot to show up for the first ten minutes. The bad taste in my mouth came from the collapse in the third period. I found myself wondering about John Anderson’s ability to get a team ready to start a game and to make adjustments between periods.
Even though Moose recovered nicely after the first 8 minutes, His overall performance did not change my concern for the upcoming season. I will be surprised if we see an improvement over last year’s .892 SV%.
I liked a lot of what I saw of individual performances:
Todd White had a lot of energy centering Kovy and Thorburn and his skating and puck handling were as good as I’ve seen from him. He didn’t look like he was ready to concede the 1st line role to Christiansen. Bryan Little continues to impress me with his positioning, forechecking, speed, and puck control. He looked ready to center the 2nd line. Kozzy looked comfortable with him and definitely showed more energy. Armstrong should be a good fit with those two.
I think the battle between the young guys took an interesting turn last night. IMO Joey Crabb looked better than, Stuart and definitely better than Sterling. JC played with Perrin and Sterling on the 3rd line. Crabb was well positioned most of the night and seemed quite poised with the puck. Stuart did nothing to impress me or depress me. His 4th line role last night, might have been an indicator of Anderson’s opinion of him. Brett Sterling, bless his heart, just can’t seem to convert his AHL superiority to NHL qualtiy. He gets pushed off the puck and continues to hit the ice way too much. He always seemed just that little bit off with his positioning with the puck that kept him from putting it in the net. I don’ think he will make the cut.
Defensively, I think we are still defining our roles and lines, so I don’t quite know how to evaluate the team. Hainsey seemed to draw my attention for several good reasons. I liked his positioning, speed and confidence with the puck. I also noticed him communicating often with a variety of teammates during stoppages in play. Too early to know, but I sensed a potential leadership role for him. Bogosian seemed tentative, and slow to make decisions, but geez, he just turned turned 18. It almost seemed like he wasn’t thinking ahead of time about what he would to do with the puck, should it come to him. That said, he didn’t seem overwhelmed and I saw a readiness to step up into the play. Boris is still learning and I’ve got to say I took more notice of good things from Kulda on Wednesday than Boris last night. If Boris wasn’t 6’7” Kulda might beat him out. Havelid looked fast and confident, but gave up the puck unnecessarily a couple of times. Toby was his usual superior self. I was glad to see Anderson at least try them on separate lines. I think it could work, but I’m waiting to see how Schneider effects the mix.
Well, I guess that is more than enough for now.
By JLH
October 4, 2008 1:59 PM | Link to this
Oh, yeah…..Hoffman can fight and might be a force in the corners, but see enough last night for him to dislodge Boulton. Slater seems to be taking more of a tough guy role. He even tried to step in to prevent Boris’ fight last night. Even though Armstrong scored shorthanded last night, he did take 2 penalties and didn’t seem as effective as usual.
By Rawhide
October 4, 2008 2:01 PM | Link to this
With thanks to Ben Wright of the Blueland Blog…here is tonight’s line-up.
Forwards:
Kovalchuk-White-Williams
Kozlov-Christensen-Little
Perrin-Reasoner-Thorburn
Boulton-Slater-Armstrong
Defense:
Hainsey-Havelid
Schneider-Bogosian
Oystrick-Enstrom
Goal:
Hedberg
Lehtonen
Curious to see Moose as the starting keeper again tonight. I wonder if he and Kari will switch afer the first period.
Regardless…we get to see Schneider in his first action as a Thrasher and it’s not surprising to see him paired up with Bogie.
Also, Todd White is again the first line center with Kovy…this time with Williams to his right.
See ya down there folks!
GO THRASHERS!!
By JLH
October 4, 2008 4:17 PM | Link to this
To continue about last night’s game…. The PK looked awful IMO. We were back to the “sagging beehive”. At times all 4 defenders could have reached out and touched each other, gathering in a box about 5 ft. in front of Hedberg. I guess it could be called the AT&T sagging beehive. It reminded me of a youth soccer game where everyone follows the ball around the field like a swarm of bees. I haven’t yet recognized Anderson’s PK system.
Of course Eric Perrin was stupendous! After the short handed goal he jumped into Armstrong’s arms, and I could have sworn they both shouted “Let’s do this all year”…..could be better than Perrin/Dupuis. Joey Crabb also looked comfortable in the role.
By glovesave29
October 4, 2008 5:22 PM | Link to this
NYR 2 TAM 1 F
By five_hole
October 4, 2008 6:06 PM | Link to this
*After the short handed goal he jumped into Armstrong’s arms, and I could have sworn they both shouted * - What; Y-M-C-A? That is just such a bad mental image of 2 hockey players. Did they look into each others eyes and melt into each others souls? Must. Drink. Scotch. to. Forget.
By R. Stroz
October 4, 2008 6:19 PM | Link to this
Waddell’s BS is coming back to bite him in the a$$
By LAC
October 4, 2008 8:58 PM | Link to this
1-5 Preseason, Boy O Boy what are we in store for ?
Outshot EVERY GAME, just like last season, NO scoring, just awful.
Stupid waddell and asg do it yet again, Little to improve this team.
What has Brian Little shown ? Not much !
By Big Bill
October 4, 2008 9:09 PM | Link to this
After seeing this game, Pav’s going home, More of Don Waddells LIES… When in the LIVING HELL is Waddell ever going to be FIRED, do the fans have to RIOT and lynch him ourselves to get rid of the cancer of this team ?
Hedberg is worthless, now THIS, just how more $HIT are we the paying fans going to take off this LIAR Don Waddell ?
What does it take people ? This team has tanked in THE PERSEASON for God’s sake, Waddell is THE BIGGEST PROBLEM this team has ?
We had our chance over the summer to finally dump this SOB,but no these owners chose to keep the BUM and we are yet again going to pay for it.
This goalie thing is the final straw with the Thrashers as far as I am concerned, I, for one, will never return to Philips until this worthless lying SOB is FIRED once and for ALL !
By JAmes_kovyboy
October 4, 2008 11:13 PM | Link to this
DAMN PAVY ISP**
By 12345
October 4, 2008 11:32 PM | Link to this
Well, Well, Well… What does Sara have to say now ? Great team Huh ?
This team is terrible, we are DOA before the first game of the season.
Top Young Goalie Qiuts after being lied to by Waddell, can you believe that !!!
What was it, Zit is a big part of our upcoming season, then bought out, what a F’ing liar Waddell is, There is no hope for this team, until two things happen, ASG sells out, and Waddell is Fired finally !