Chris Thorburn had an affinity for Atlanta long before he joined the Thrashers.
Blame the Superstation. The Thrashers forward became a Braves baseball fan growing up in the small Great Lakes hub town of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, thanks to TBS.
It’s part of the fabric of life in Atlanta that keeps Thorburn, along with his wife and newborn son, here in the offseason while most of his teammates scatter around the country and the world.
“I’m a lifer right now,” Thorburn said recently. “I love going home, don’t get me wrong. Sault Ste. Marie will always be my home. Living here is a way to concentrate on my hockey. Here, my wife and I can just relax. ... We just love it here.”
Thorburn and wife Sara purchased a home in the area last year after he signed a two-year deal with the Thrashers. In May, the couple welcomed their first child. They live close to the team’s practice facility.
With training camp still some three months off, Thorburn said he is back in full-training mode after taking a couple weeks off following the end of the season. He and Eric Boulton are working out four times a week at WPI Sports and Fitness under the direction of former NFL and Falcons player Eric Johnson .
“He’s been running us through some crazy, crazy stuff,” Thorburn said of a regime that includes cardio work, weight lifting and boxing.
Missing the playoffs is a motivation for Thorburn, who has yet to appear in a postseason game. He was on the Pittsburgh roster in 2006-07 when the Penguins lost in the first round to Ottawa, but never saw action. That was also the same season the Thrashers made their one and only playoff appearance.
“I want to get bigger, stronger, faster,” Thorburn said. “I want to work on stickhandling, especially around the net and tight in the corners. ... I want to be a key part of the team and I want our team to be competitive and get in the playoffs. It feels like a waste of time doing all this training during the summer if you come into the season and just play 82 games and you don’t get to see the playoffs or experience it. I haven’t seen it for a few years and I’m starving for it.”
A key part of the Thrashers’ penalty-kill unit last season, Thorburn believes he can be more than a fourth-line player. He says if he cashes in on the opportunities when he’s on the ice, his confidence will grow.
“I don’t think I’m far from that,” he said. “I do have some offensive ability.”
Thorburn had 13 points (four goals, nine assists) last season. In the coming weeks, he will continue to work out as well as work on his skills as a new father.
“I’ve always wanted to be a father,” Thorburn said. “It’s tough because your routine gets changed, but you have to have a good supporting cast and I do with Sara. We kind of feed off each other and help each other out. She’s very considerate of my schedule and working out. She understands that’s what I need to do. On my days off, I plug in for her but it’s not always pretty. We’re anxious to see this little guy grow.”
And there are plenty of Braves games to catch.
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