Thrasherville Welcomes Its Newest Citizen, Kane

As so many of you already know, Don Waddell and the Atlanta Thrashers did indeed select Evander Kane…the 6′-1″ 176 pound native of Vancouver who plays for the Giants of the WHL with the 4th overall pick in the 2009 NHL entry draft. As I am sure was the case all over Thrasherville…when Don Waddell made it official, the assembled masses at TJ’s erupted with loud approval.

Naturally, this is the big news outa the weekend, but there were other players that became the property of the Thrashers organization as well.

Here’s the run-down on how rounds two through seven went…

Second Round
4th pick/34th overall – Carl Klingberg: 6′-3″, 205 lb. left winger from Sweden.
15th pick/45th overall – Jeremy Morin: 6′-1″, 198 lb. left winger U.S. U-18 team

Fourth Round
26th pick/117th overall – Edward Pasquele: 6′-2″, 218 lb. goalie of Saginaw, (OHL).
29th pick/120th overall – Ben Chirot: 6′-2:, 211 lb. defender of Guelph, (OHL).

Fifth Round
4th pick/125th overall – Cody Sol: 6′-4″, 215 lb. defender of Saginaw, (OHL).

Sixth Round
4th pick/155th overall – Jimmy Bubnick: 6′-2″, 194 lb. center for Kaloops, (WHL).

Seventh Round
4th pick/185th overall – Levko Koper: 6′-0″ 180 lb. left winger for Spokane, (OHL).
22nd pick/203rd overall – Jordan Samuels-Thomas: 6′-3″, 198 lb. left winger of Waterloo, (USHL).

So…four left wingers, a pair of centers and defenders as well as one goalkeeper. And not one of them under six-feet in height. The Thrashers system just got bigger, wouldn’t you say?

Now, About Friday Night…

What an amazing turnout Friday night for what was dubbed ”Rawhide’s Draftapalooza 2009 Party at TJ’s”…it was truley a wonderful time. I move we make it the site of the Draftapalooza Party next summer too…wadda-ya think? However, if we keep growing in numbers the way we have since starting these events at TJ’s last winter, Tim might just have to build out an extra wing for us all.

It was an absolute pleasure seeing so many of the regulars again and the many new faces that showed up as well. Hopefully you’ll all return again for the fun during the season. AJC Thrashers beat writer Chris Vivalmore’s attendance there also helped add to the fun…thanks for dropping in Viv! Oh, and I know everyone enjoyed meeting Atlanta Flames goalie Dan Bouchard and former Toronto Maple leaf Kurt Walker as much as I did.

I would also like to thank Katie, Ashley, Caroline and Rachel…the wonderful young ladies who took care of us all while we enjoyed the draft broadcast. Tim and Mark, those are four great gals who really represented your establishment well.

Also, a big shout out has to go to my friend Karin Beckman of the Atlanta Spirit. She provided the Zach Bogosian and Garnet Exelby sticks as well as the Thrashers tickets for next season that were raffled off. Karin…you’re the best-est-est!

The prize of 4 premium tickets along with a Zamboni ride which was provided by TJ’s was won by 9-year old Carmen…who’s blog has been added to my “Blog Role”. I think she’s going to take her mom and dad to that game…maybe.

Tim, Mark, Karin and I are coming up with some big plans for some viewing parties and outings this winter. Some of these events will also be coordinated in conjunction with the Thrashers Fan Club as well…so be looking for more information once the schedule comes out in just a few weeks.

But for the time being, now that Draftapalooza 2009 is over and done with, it’s time to look forward to “Unrestricted-Free-Agent-Signing-Season-Apalooza”…(I’m seriously gonna have to find a way to trim down that title). Anyway, that fun is set to begin Wednesday morning and we’ll gear it up for this big event as well.