Boulton does the Thrashers’ dirty work

The bridge of Eric Boulton’s nose has a scab on it. That’s one way to tell it’s hockey season.

Whenever Boulton steps onto the ice he puts his nose into the action, and whether it’s an opponent’s stick, his own helmet or a right cross in a fight, something inevitably draws Boulton’s blood. Call it the red badge of encourage, the price he pays to inspire his Thrashers teammates to play with energy and grit.

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The referees looks on as the Thrashers’ Eric Boulton, left, and the Rangers’ Colton Orr fight.

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No Atlanta player averages less time on the ice than Boulton, but few have as much power to fire up the fans and other players. Only Ilya Kovalchuk, Kari Lehtonen and Colby Armstrong appear in more YouTube videos.

Another fight flick could get posted Wednesday, when Boulton and the Thrashers take on Colton Orr and the New York Rangers. The last time they met, Oct. 30 at Madison Square Garden, Boulton fought Orr for a full two minutes, an eternity for an NHL fight. Ten seconds in, Boulton’s knees went to the ice, but he got up before the linesmen could step in to break things up. Fifty seconds in, Boulton hit Orr so hard he knocked Orr’s helmet off.

“I was just trying to get the guys pumped up,” said Boulton, whose teammates cheered him on by pounding their sticks against the boards. “Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn’t. It’s definitely memorable when they go that long.”

Boulton doesn’t always have to fight to get his job done. Nineteen seconds into Saturday’s game against the New York Islanders, he delivered a hit on Tim Jackman. Boulton got penalized for interference, but his coach was pleased.

“I know he took the penalty,” John Anderson said, “but he set the tone of the game.”

The Thrashers won 5-1 and climbed out of last place in the NHL. Boulton scored the third Atlanta goal but it was the first-shift hit that drew Anderson’s praise.

Boulton understands. He hasn’t stayed around for eight NHL seasons because of his offense.

“I have a job to do on this team,” he said. “If I can score [too], it’s great.

“We’ve got to play desperate hockey, and I wanted to send a message to the Islanders right away that it wasn’t going to be an easy game against us. We’ve got to try to do that every night. Everyone has to step up and play physical and try to make it miserable for other teams to play against us. Working hard and playing physical is the first step to turning this ship around.”

Being willing to do those things has a value, and in Boulton’s case it’s $600,000. That’s what he gets this season under a two-year contract he signed last summer. He earned that contract not because he tied his career high with four goals in 2007-08 but because he did the tough stuff, with a team-high 127 penalty minutes. He’s on pace to spend even more time in the box this season.

He has taken more penalties, 15, than shots on net, 12. He averages only 6 minutes, 52 seconds on the ice per game, less than a third the playing time of Ron Hainsey, Tobias Enstrom or Kovalchuk. But when Anderson needs someone to set a tone for the team, more likely than not Boulton is the one who sets it.

“No question,” Anderson said. “That’s why he’s here.”

If either team starts to lag tonight, keep your eyes on Atlanta’s No. 36 and New York’s No. 28. There’s no guarantee they’ll have a rematch of one of this season’s best fights, but both players’ history suggests you shouldn’t bet against it.

“He’s a really tough guy,” Boulton said of Orr. “He throws really hard. He doesn’t turn down anybody, so I have a lot of respect for him. If you challenge him, he’s usually pretty willing.”

So, of course, is Boulton.