Enstrom proves his worth

Tobias Enstrom used to provide ammunition for Thrashers second-guessers.

Was general manager Don Waddell too eager to open the checkbook when he signed Enstrom to a four-year, $15 million contract extension before the season?

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Jessica McGowan/jmcgowan@ajc.com

Thrashers defenseman Tobias Enstrom has 17 points in his past 16 games.

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Did coach John Anderson say or scheme something that turned an all-rookie defenseman into a hesitant, uncomfortable-looking sophomore?

How much use was an undersized defenseman if he wasn’t going to score?

Consider those debates ended. There’s nothing to second-guess now. Enstrom has been one of the NHL’s hottest defensemen the past five weeks.

Enstrom has 17 points in his past 16 games. That’s more than five times his per-game scoring rate from the team’s first 60 games.

The hot streak started the day Anderson put him back on the first power play unit. However being a part of the power play accounts for just some of what’s going right in Enstrom’s game. More than half his points since Feb. 24 have come at even strength or shorthanded, and his plus-minus rating, a statistic unaffected by power play points, is plus-nine during that stretch.

“He’s kind of like a new guy,” Anderson said. “I love what he’s doing. It’s what I’ve wanted him to do all year. I’ve had meetings with him. I told him I wanted him to go up ice, I wanted him to skate, I wanted him to use his assets.

“He was playing more of a defensive role, which is not horrible, but what he brings to the table is his skating ability, the ability to carry the puck and move it out of our zone on his own. When he’s not doing that, he’s not being total.”

Anderson has rewarded Enstrom with playing time. Enstrom has been on the ice 25:43 per game since his hot streak began. He plays more than any other skater on the team.

Much of Enstrom’s streak has coincided with his change of defensive partners. Zach Bogosian has played alongside Enstrom since the Thrashers traded Niclas Havelid to New Jersey on March 2. Bogosian, 18, and Enstrom, 24, could be the team’s top defensive pairing for years to come. Both are strong puck movers.

“It’s pretty cool to see my D partner’s back every once in awhile. It’s better than them looking at me all the time,” said Bogosian, who is used to being paired with defensive-minded players. “Obviously, when I’m up he’s back and when he’s up I’m back. We complement each other really well.”

Enstrom agrees.

“I love playing with a skilled player who reads the game really good,” he said.

Enstrom says he doesn’t know why he suddenly started scoring at more than a point-per-game pace after having one goal and 12 points in the season’s first 60 games.

“It’s all about working hard and keeping going,” he said. “From my point of view I didn’t play bad [before]. I didn’t score enough points. That’s when you have to try to battle hard. It was tough, too. The team wasn’t playing good.”

Enstrom has matched his rookie total of five goals and is nine assists shy of the franchise record 33 he had last season. He has accomplished this year’s totals with half the power-play time he had as a rookie.

The Thrashers are 11-5 since Enstrom got hot. He says that’s what’s important to him.

“If we played like we’re doing now at the start of the season,” he said, “we’d probably be fighting for a playoff spot.”