Anderson willing to give Thrashers a shot

Thrashers coach John Anderson provided new evidence in Monday night’s loss to the Leafs he’s neither a quitter nor a pessimist.

With his team trailing by three goals in one of its worst performances of the season, and 1:49 left on the clock, Anderson pulled goalie Kari Lehtonen for an extra skater.

“The faceoff was in their end,” Anderson said. “We pulled him, and we hit the goalpost twice. [If one went in,] it’s 1:30 and now we’re down two and it’s game on again. That’s why I took the chance.”

Toronto got an empty-net goal with 1:15 left, and Lehtonen returned to the ice. But the long-shot move of pulling him was an indication that even the slightest chance at winning means more to Anderson than the much more likely humiliation of watching yet another puck go into the Thrashers’ net.

“We’re desperate for points. We’re trying to pull out all plugs at that point,” he said.

Family reunion

One civilized thing about hockey is the Christmas break.

The NHL doesn’t allow practices or games on Dec. 24 or 25, and lower-level leagues take the holiday off, too. Anderson’s sons Jacob, who plays for Bloomington, Ill., of the minor-league IHL, and Spencer, who plays for Belleville of the junior-level Ontario Hockey League, are in town to visit.

But as long as there’s video in the house, John Anderson isn’t likely to abandon his work entirely, even for two days with family.

“There’s probably a good chance that we’ll watch a few,” he said.

Hot streak

Center Todd White’s goal on Monday night against Toronto tied him with linemate Bryan Little for the longest scoring streak by a Thrashers player this season, at six games.

White had four goals and four assists during the streak entering Tuesday’s game against the Islanders. Boston’s Phil Kessel carried the NHL’s longest scoring streak this season (18 games) into Tuesday’s game at New Jersey.

Army Maneuvers

How hot is Colby Armstrong?

He entered Tuesday night having scored four goals in as many games after scoring four in his first 29 games this season. He’s almost on pace for his first 20-goal season.