Thrashers: Iceman

As they have so many times already this season, the Thrashers found themselves in a two-goal hole at home before mounting a comeback charge. This was the case in a pair of losses to Washington as well as in their home defeats to San Jose and Columbus. A couple of Sunday’s ago they were able to finally climb all the way out to beat the St. Louis Blues 3-2 in a shootout after netting a pair of third period goals.

Thursday night the same script was followed as Boston took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission thanks to a pair of close-in redirection goals that got by Ondrej Pavelec. Then and only then, just as the script is written, the Thrashers began their attempt to hunt down the Bruins.

Just before the halfway point in the second period, the Thrashers cut the deficit in half. At first, it looked like Nik Antropov had earned his seventeenth assist of the year…a secondary helper on Toby Enstrom’s blast from the left point. However, upon further review, it was determined …

Continue reading Bruins survive Russian Front assault – Beat Thrashers in shootout »

Given that the Thrashers are 10-6-1 and currently riding a four-game win streak, there have been quite a few pleasant surprises seen so far. As such, I’ve compiled a list of what I feel are the eleven most pleasant surprises to date in this still-young Thrashers season and have bundled them up to present to you now for two reasons.

1. I would like for you to vote on which one you feel is the #1 most pleasant surprise 17 games into the season, and…

2. To give people like Jack Bryan IV at Inronstone Bank something to read and think about while killing off another four days between games.

So, why “eleven” and not the customary “ten” that normally accompanies such a list? Well, as I was putting this piece together I found myself struggling to limit the list to just ten…which is odd seeing that in years past, come mid-November, I would have been hard-pressed to come up with just a half dozen or so. I guess in a way that alone is a pleasant surprise.

Anyway…so …

Continue reading Eleven most pleasant surprises so far this Thrashers season »

Sunday afternoon, Slava Kozlov packed his bags, bade farewell to Jim Slater, Marty Reasoner and Nik Antropov…then exited Schnide Island. Slava took a pass from Todd White and beat Nikolai Khabibulin at the 11:59 mark of the third period to score what turned out to be the game-winner as the Thrashers bested the visiting Edmonton Oilers 3-2…extending their win streak to a season-high four straight.

Slava Kozlov is welcomed off the island by Ilya Kovalchuk and Maxim Afinogenov (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Later, Reasoner almost left Slates and Antropov alone to battle it out for “Last Off Schnide Island” honors, but his blast rang off the post with just under two minutes remaining in the game.

Kozlov finished the day with that goal as well as a secondary assist on Zach Bogosian’s tally that opened the scoring early in the first period. He now has seven helpers on the season and his +1 for the game brings him to a -3 for the season.

Kaptain Kovy got the primary assist on …

Continue reading Kozlov gets off Schnide Island as Thrashers drill Oilers »

Friday the 13th in Thrasherville. But tonight, in this horror movie, the killer behind the goalie mask wasn’t named Jason… it was Opie. And his victim on this evening was the Los Angeles Kings.

Ondrej Pavalec makes on of his 38 saves (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Stopping all 38 shots L.A. took on him, Opie dropped his first goose egg ever as an NHL starter as the Thrashers whacked the Kings 7-0 in front of a raucous gathering in Philips Arena. The hockey team from Los Angeles may have been the ones with crowns on their jerseys, but on this night it was Ondrej Pavelec who truly was king.

In front of Pavs, Atlanta’s skaters where having their way with the visitors as what was a 0-0 game halfway through the second period quickly turned into a laugher. Evander Kane finally broke the scoreless deadlock at the 10:22 mark of that middle frame when his wrap-around got through Kings’ starting goalie Jonathan Quick.

Ya know…that Evander kid…I think he’s gonna do OK in this …

Continue reading Pavelec, Thrashers turn Friday the 13th into a nightmare for Kings »

Ok, let’s see…I got a Kane… a Peverley, aka the Pevs Dispenser… and a Kovalchuk reference all in on one title. No too bad, eh?

Anyway…a few hours ago I was curbing my excitement of Ilya Kovalchuk’s possible return to the ice after just six games missed with the hope that he wasn’t just rushing things…not giving the broken foot enough time to fully heal.

Ilya Kovalchuk celebrates his goal during the Thrashers win in New York (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Consider me completely at ease now.

In a very entertaining and fun to watch hockey game…one coach Anderson called “one of our best games of the year”…the Atlanta Thrashers made Ilya Kovalchuk’s return to the ice a successful one, beating the Rangers 5-3. The captain scored a power play goal and chipped in with an assist on Rich Peverley’s goal…also of the power play variety…as well as Maxim Afinogenov’s empty-net icer at the end.

Ilya led the Thrashers with 6 shots on goal while Maxim Afinogenov …

Continue reading Thrashers Kane-ing of Rangers Dispenses any worries of Kovy’s return »

Thrasher-Math 101 class at the University of Thrasherville…the rowdiest class on the cyber-campus assembles…Professor Rawhide takes the lectern

OK, class…settle down…quiet now, please, class… Class? …CLASS? …SHUT UP!!!

ahem…Thank you.

Ranallo, Tony C., Smoothie, World Be Free, Paminski and RiceOwls8891, if you’ll be so kind as to put away those hockey sticks and take your seats…Rstroz, please refrain from utilizing that bullhorn while inside the classroom… Sage, if you must bring sheep to the campus, please make sure they remain outside on the lawn.

Also… Spud Webb, Kracker and GaVaHokie…I will not tolerate another “Professor Chant” being started up today…do you understand, gentlemen?

Now then, before we….

ummm… Hockey Biltong, is that a Guiness you’re sipping on there in class? Uh-huh…and did you bring enough for everyone? No…no you didn’t? Well, you know the rule…if you didn’t bring enough for everyone, then you can’t drink one …

Continue reading Thrashers Math 101 – Statistics and Projections »

Fresh off an embarrassing 6-3 loss on Long Island the night before, the Thrashers once again dug themselves a two-goal hole playing at home. But this time, they finally found a way to climb all of the way out…bouncing back for a 3-2 shootout win against the St. Louis Blues.

Speaking of “bouncing”… the Thrashers were helped out this game with their own version of the thing as Ron Hainsey’s flip in towards the net from just in front of the Blues bench and it bounced in over Ty Conklin’s left shoulder. Hainsey’s thing tied the score at 2-2 with just 3:31 remaining in the third… it was his second goal of the season.

"I can't believe that went in"! Ron Hainsey celebrates his game-tying goal (AP Photo/Gregory Smith)

“You always hope that those bounces even out, and we were one shot in the Washington game,” Marty Reasoner said after the game. “So we got even today. It’s nice to catch that one break and put us in the right direction for these next home …

Continue reading Thrashers bounce back to beat Blues »

Would starting games at 7:30 rather than 7:00 mean more Thrashers fans at the games?

Continue reading Would starting weeknight Thrashers games 30 minutes later really make a difference? »

Thrashers loss to Columbus painfully similar to their three previous home games.

Continue reading Thrashers Loss To CBJs Is Like Déjà vu All Over Again »

Each year ‘round about this time we show up here and find a handful of skaters who are still residing Schnide Island…that tiny spec of land that sits smack-dab in the middle of the vast expanse of the Ocean of Zilch. A place no player wants to inhabit and longs to escape if they find themselves on it.

Rookie Evander Kane obvioulsy had heard of the place and wanted nothing of it, scoring his first NHL goal in St. Louis during his second ever game.

Nik Antropov has been helping others get off of Schide Island as he has 12 assists (AP Photo/Gregory Smith)

To have their tickets punched to leave The Schnide, all they need do is deposit the biscuit into the basket and remove the big goose egg from the goals column of their stat sheet. One by one they’ll do so, depart and the population dwindles down until there is but one remaining on the Isle of Schnide.

After last Tuesday, when Bryan Little joined Pavel Kubina on the boat ferrying them away from the island, we are now down …

Continue reading Which Thrasher will be last off of Schnide Island? »