AJC > Sports Thrashers > Blog > Archives > 2008 > December > 23
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Stop! Don’t Shoot!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
After missing 21 games to a back injury, Lehtonen has been welcomed back to the Thrashers lineup having to face 76 shots in two games. In total, the Bolts and Leafs took 77, the empty netter at the end of the 6-2 loss to Toronto making up the difference.
In three consecutive periods…the third last Saturday in which 24 shots were taken by the Lightning and the first two periods Monday night…Kari faced 54 shots on goal. My friends…fifty-four shots taken on your goalie in 60 minutes of play is exceptionally un-good.
To his credit, Kari turned away fifty of those fifty-four… which is a .926 SV%. However, in his two games back, Lehtonen has an overall .895 SV%.
Slow Starting Kari
Much like in Saturday’s 4-3 win against the Bolt’s, Kari Lehtonen allowed a couple of quick goals to start things off against Toronto on Monday night. Last time, Kari was able to stop 36 of the rest of the 37 shots he faced and his teammates were able to take advantage of it to work out a 4-3 win.
This time, however, the Maple Leafs held Atlanta’s O-fence to a pair of goals and finished off the Thrashers.
Thrashers Get SPA Treatment
The Stajan, Ponikarovsky, Antropov line had things going last night as the trio combined for three goals. Stajan accounted for a pair of goals and an assist, Ponikarovsky with a goal and pair of helpers and Antropov assisted on all three of the line’s goals. All three finish a +2 for the night.
How You Gonna Keep Em Down On The Farm?
Also worth noting are a couple of young-uns for the Leafs. Justin Pogge made his first career start in the NHL and earned his first win. The 21-year old Pogge stopped 19 of the 21 shots faced. Then there is Jeremy Williams, who will be 25 next month. He finished Monday’s game with a goal, an assist and a +1 rating and now has five goals and seven points in the six games he’s played since being called up from the Marlies earlier this month and is a +6.
Pogge has only one start under his belt, albeit a pretty good one. So I’m sure further evaluation is in order…but Williams is playing like someone who just doesn’t wanna go back down to the farm.
Skating In Circles
The Thrashers spent much of this game chasing Leafs around the rink…getting beat to pucks…being out-skated and simply looking lost. To point out but a pair of instances, on Toronto’s third goal, a 3 on 2 break in which Ilya Kovalchuk was the third skater back…Kovy pulled up at the blueline and coasted into the defensive zone. Then, in the third, Mathieu Schneider made a very nifty no-look pass out of the defensive zone…straight to a Toronto player who then took the gift pass back across the blueline and set up a Maple Leaf goal.
Win Streak Ends At One…Again
Since the five-game win streak that ended in mid-November…Atlanta has yet to put back-to-back wins together. Since that time they are 4-11-2.
Atlanta will get another chance to get another “streak” started as they wing there way to Lon-Gisland for a game tonight.
Feeling The Heat
Since Monday’s game was not aired locally on TV, I watched the Toronto feed via Center Ice. During the broadcast, a graphic was displayed showing the record of Don Waddell’s 8-plus seasons as general manager of the Thrashers. The header of the graphic read something like “Feeling The Heat”.
The Thrashers have played 689 total games since their inception…winning but 249. They do however have four whole playoff games under their belt, which came after their seventh season. No playoff wins…just games.
So, given Waddell’s track record…Atlanta should ice a playoff team again in the 2013-14 season.
If by “feeling the heat” they meant Thrashers fans feeling the heat stemming from their anger and frustration that Waddell is still the person in charge of this team’s make up…then I agree.
