An embarrassing night in Thrasherville
I understand the weathermen in Atlanta are predicting some snow to come through these parts later this weekend. But even before the residents of north Georgia swarmed the local Publix and Kroger stores to strip the bread and milk shelves bare, the Toronto Maple Leafs came to town and built a snowman in Philips Arena. A snowman, that’s 8 on the scoreboard… in the first two periods alone!
That’s right, by the time the teams retired to their respective locker rooms for the second intermission, the Leafs had dropped an eight-spot on the Thrashers on their way to a 9-3 thrashing of our hometown ice birds.
After Friday night’s craptacular effort, it’s hard to remember that it was a one-goal game halfway though the second period. Yes…it was 2-1 Leafs at the midpoint of the game, but that’s when everything seemed to go to Hell in a hand basket.
In a seven minute and forty-three minute span, Toronto dropped six goals in on Thrashers netminders…two on starting goalie Ondrej Pavelec, three on backup Chris Mason, and then another on Opie who was put back in between the pipes by coach Craig Ramsay with just 46 seconds left in the period.
For a while there late in the middle period, it was almost as if Opie and Mason wee taking regular shifts with the rest of the skaters.
Now at this time, I’m going to play my “It was only one game” card. Sure it was a stink bomb and deserves its rightful place alongside of other debacles of Thrashers past, and maybe a proper amount of wailing and gnashing of teeth is appropriate by fans on the blogosphere…if nothing else to help in the healing process. But this is a different team then those of the past, and I won’t let it deter me from looking forward to what this team can accomplish this season.
Just about everyone on the team deserves some share of the blame for this odiferous effort. They’ll learn from it hopefully and apply the lessons to future endeavors. The zero collected in the standings after a 9-3 loss is just the same as dropping a 3-2 decision and the important thing here is to not allow it to spill over into tomorrow’s game in Carolina.
However…
What cannot be overlooked or swept under the rug here is the fact that five of the Leafs scores came while Atlanta was attempting to kill off the on-ice transgressions of one player…Ben Eager. I don’t know if that’s some kind of NHL record or not, but I can’t recall another time in which one player’s time in the sin-bin led to that many goals.
In the first period he had doubled his penalty pleasure by adding a cross checking penalty after a roughing minor. Then in the third after he ambushed Colby Armstrong in the corner, striking him with the stick in his hand, the Leafs were given a five-minute man advantage in which they could score at will.
After failing to do so last weekend, the Thrashers Eric Boulton and Toronto's Coulton Orr exchanged belated New Years greetings Friday night (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Turns out, they had a lot of will.
Obviously, Eager’s actions put his teammates in a rough position all night. He played right into Armstrong’s game when he sucker punched him from behind. As we observed for a couple years here, Colby has no issue with taking the occasional…shall we say… “inexpensive” shot on opposing players. Some might call him “scrappy” or an “agitator”… a player that adds a certain degree of “sandpaper” to the game. Others still may chose to use the term “cheap-shot artist”. However, he’s not really one to man up, drop the gloves and go toe to toe with an opponent he may have taken issue with during the game.
Regardless, I’m sure Mr. Eager will be sitting a few games out for his actions and surrendering a significant portion of his pay to the league office. And that’s as it should be.
Certainly coach Craig Ramsay was none-to-pleased with what went down on the play either saying, “We want our players to play hard. We want them to play physical with body checks and fight for the puck. We can’t condone that”.
A few weeks back, someone close to the organization clued me in that Ben Eager has not made a lot of friends in the Thrashers locker room. After his actions Friday night I don’t think he’s won over many more. As the good coach said, you want hard-nosed, gritty players…players that are even willing to drop the mitts in defense of a teammate who may have been treated unkindly by an opponent. But you don’t need someone who will put you in the kind of spot Eager did by losing governance of his sense and reasoning.
That’s not exactly the “smart” brand of hockey Ramsay has sought to teach this team.
Given his play this season, the amount of penalties he takes, his reported discourse in the locker room, what seems to be a near-permanent place in Craig Ramsay’s doghouse…and then last night … I wouldn’t mind if Friday night was the last time we see Ben Eager in a Thrashers jersey. When he is cleared to play again after serving whatever suspension he surely should receive, it wouldn’t bother me a bit if he becomes a fixture in the press box, the Thrashers dealt him away for a fifth or sixth round draft choice…or just waved him with intent to release from contract.
Is Ben Eager THE sole reason the Thrashers plopped a steaming, heaping pile of FAIL on the ice Friday night? Nope…plenty of blame to go around there, that’s for sure. But he’s not been a lot of help and last night his actions were an embarrassment.
And that’s worse than simply losing a hockey game…even if it was of the 9-3 variety.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
146 comments Add your comment
Rhythmpenguin
January 8th, 2011
9:14 am
First! =)
Red Light
January 8th, 2011
9:18 am
Three in a row Bill. Ugh.
The Thrashers allowed 6 Maple Leafs goals in the 2nd period last night. The last time they allowed 6 in a period was March 21, 2000 against Ottawa when Damian Rhodes faced his former team. It also was the second time the Leafs hung a 9-spot on the Thrashers at Philips Arena. They also accomplished the feat on Oct. 14, 2005. That night the Leafs scored 7 power play goals and five in the third period.
Best news is that they play at Carolina tomorrow and have had great success at RBC Center. They went 3-0 in Raleigh last year and are 9-4-1 in their last 14 on Tobacco Road.
Rhythmpenguin
January 8th, 2011
9:20 am
Re-posting from the last article:
Eager should not play for the Thrashers any more; at least until he learns to control himself. When he gets riled up he can’t control himself and self control is essential to playing in the NHL. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him playing in Europe sometime soon.
R. Stroz
January 8th, 2011
9:36 am
That steaming pile of FAIL smelled bad too.
Sara
January 8th, 2011
9:37 am
Bill that photo was the one thing that could put a smile on my face this morning! Ugh what a stinker. Eager can go flush himself down the nearest toilet. That said, it would have been nice if the refs had done their jobs last night instead of letting the Leafs get away with so much crap to the point it boiled over like that. At the very least, Buff should have been allowed to pound Beauchemin instead of the little pansy hiding behind the refs skirts. Oh well, better luck next time.
Was nice seeing you last night along with Russian and meeting WBF was a pleasure. As for you, Stroz, well, my mama always did say if you can’t say something nice you shouldn’t say anything at all.
Rawhide
January 8th, 2011
9:38 am
Red Light – Would that be considered a Ranallo Hat Trick?
Sara – Always a pleasure to see you.
Mr. Heat Miser
January 8th, 2011
9:45 am
Fans should get a refund and a public apology.
Tom
January 8th, 2011
9:46 am
Sara
We had the same impression watching the game here. I do not know if it is subconscious, or that the grading of the refs comes out of Toronto, but whenever the Thrashers play Toronto the calls always seem to go the other way unless the game is a blowout.
Eager’s first penalty was a single, not a double.
Then they hooked us, and then hooked Enstrom again. It was not even close the second one. Yet the refs had the chance to give us a 5 on 3 and ignored it.
Now Eager’s sucker punch on Coby was uncalled for and deserved the 5 minutes. But they missed the hit on Buff during the icing play just before that. The same play the Thrashers had been called on a couple of games earlier.
As a fan, the refs are always an easy target, but the history is there and any review of the tape would show these guys blew a lot of calls, all in one direction…
Tmlfan
January 8th, 2011
9:54 am
I’d like to know exactly what Armstrong did to deserve any anger from eager. His hits were clean and he didn’t look like he was challenging eager. He wasn’t looking at him or saying anything to him. Eager is a goon and that’s all there is to it. There is ZERO blame to be put on the leafs whatsoever and there were no mistakes by the refs. Just a terrible game by Atlanta. So quit making excuses.
Sara
January 8th, 2011
10:00 am
And here I always thought Vancouver was the Canadian city where they smoked the wacky weed. At least we don’t throw waffles at our team.
Tmlfan
January 8th, 2011
10:08 am
Yes because the actions of two stupid people can be held against the millions of leaf fans. Cause thats certainly representative of all of us. Do you really think a penalty or two against the leafs really would have helped any? Suck it up and place blame where it belongs.
Matt
January 8th, 2011
10:10 am
On a Friday night game like that… I think about the hundreds of folks that were attending their first Thrashers game and probably won’t come back. That’s sad.
Tom
January 8th, 2011
10:16 am
Ha, you are right Tmlfan, everything the leafs do is perfect. The team is the paragon of hockey virtue and the coaching staff is the essence of brilliance. The conspiracy is always against the Leafs and if it was not for the Refs they would have won the cup every year for the past 43 years.
Jesus, son, do you read what you write?
If your team was not in Toronto with a cadre of sycophantic fans that accept a terrible product your team would be in talks to move to Quebec. The only thing that keeps Thrasher’s fans sane is that our ownership and management is not worse than yours.
Can we say 1967? Can we say it out loud. Your team has more money than God yet they can not get out of their own way. With all the benefits that Toronto has the best you can do is the bottom of the Eastern Conference year after year? You pine for the Sundin days?
Sure the Thrasher’s organization has issues. But man, go look in the mirror Tmlfan. Your team is the essence of suckitude.
lola
January 8th, 2011
10:23 am
Thanks for the Boulton pic, Mr. BlogMaster! I will trust that Coach Ramsey will make the necessary changes so there will be no repeat of last night’s Snowman! & I will continue to cheer as hard as I can & do it in person … so they can hear me!
Tmlfan
January 8th, 2011
10:24 am
And yet Tom that is all still totally irrelevant to the fact that the blame of last nights loss lies squarely on your own team and nobody else because even if you got a goal or two off of the peanlies that “should” have been called against the leafs guess what you still would have lost. I lost count of how many times you pulled your goalie. Guess what you have to allow less than nine goals even if you score five.
Tmlfan
January 8th, 2011
10:26 am
And btw there were penalties missed against the leafs as well.
Tmlfan
January 8th, 2011
10:28 am
I mean against Atlanta.
Sara
January 8th, 2011
10:29 am
Boy are Leafs fans milking this one for all it’s worth. I suppose when there aren’t many bright spots in a season, you have to make the most of the few you do get. You know what Tmlfan … enjoy the nice victory for your team. Hope you recorded it so you have something to watch come April.
Tmlfan
January 8th, 2011
10:30 am
And about that pic. I guess it’s good for you fans that the video wasn’t posted cause that tells a different story about that fight than that picture.
EA
January 8th, 2011
10:30 am
I don’t condone what Eager did. However, I saw Colby take a cheap shot on an unsuspecting Peverly which honestly could have led to an injury. A former team mates way of saying hello? Also, he was trying to mix it up with Boulton. I have seen him do this some crap with his former friends in Pittsburgh. I watched the 2nd period again when I got home last night just to see it more clearly. The cheap hit from Eager did not get much of a rise out of the announcers. I got the impression that they thought Armstrong was causing his brand of trouble of all night.
Rawhide, I am with you. Let’s hope this is one of those games. Tampa had one the other night. What kept playing through my head was Darren Elliot saying on the previous broadcast, “I hope they don’t go home, get comfortable and lay an egg”. That could have been more true.
Hats off to Buff. He played hard all night. When bleeding from the nose, I was shocked to see you him on the ice a couple minutes later with his nose packed.
Michael "the abbreviation"
January 8th, 2011
10:35 am
you forgot to mention bogosian, and his epic pile of fail he consistently dishes out.. seems like anyone close to the team seems to forget to mention bogosian
EA
January 8th, 2011
10:37 am
TML you really sound silly getting all worked up over this game. Your team is not that good. I read your papers. Your fans are not exactly singing the praises of the Leafs. It is pretty up and down. Take your 2 points and enjoy the result of a terrible game by the Thrashers. You know how it feels to watch some lousy games by your team. As it stands now we are in 7th place. The Leafs are in 13th.
Rawhide
January 8th, 2011
10:42 am
Michael “the abbreviation” – Ahhhh…but if I did mention Bogosian, or eveything about the game fo that matter, what would there be left for you and others to bring to the table of converstation?
Serioulsy though, he was indeed terrible.
And while we’re on the subject…Mason too. He was quoted by C-Viv as saying, “I wasn’t ready to play tonight. I was terrible when I was in there.”
Really? Wasn’t ready to play? I mean, who else did he think was gonna come in off the Thrashers bench if Opie needed to come out?
What a major disappointment he’s been.
razorneck13
January 8th, 2011
10:43 am
Eager took our collective heads right outta this game, period starting with that STUPID STUPID DOUBLE MINOR in the 1st, then with that STUPID STUPID ARMSTRONG DEBACLE! He’s knows nothing about nuanced pugilism and needs to go ASAP. Eager makes me love how guys like Boults play that side of the game so much more. Anywho…
Yeah, Eager did it. I blame our confusion and panic on him, it’s a momentum influenced game after all. Case and point: How disoriented did you feel once that scoring clinic really opened up in the second? Exactly.
In summation and once again, the loss was embarrassing, but Eager’s brand of toughness…even moreso. He’s gotta go, I think him taking on COLBY ARMSTRONG LIKE THAT WAS A CHICKEN**** MOVE!!! I don’t take up for guys just because their “on our side” either. Pack him up and send him on his way.
Fan from Carolina
January 8th, 2011
10:50 am
Rawhide, Your writing is so good ‘day in and day out’ plus the pictures recently are priceless. Not kissing butt here since I don’t post that much but giving credit where credit is due after suffering from the miserable predecessors that held your position. Tough game coming up against the Canes at the RBC. They are in a big push right now, off a nice 5-3 win plus Staal and Cole are looking good. Cam Ward can blank anyone when he is on.
Rawhide
January 8th, 2011
10:53 am
Fan from Carolina – You’re too kind…thank you. And it’s a good think you’re not kissing butt, wouldn’t get ya anything around here anyway.
Glad ya like the photos…I try to bring a little humor to the blogosphere, especially after a game like last night’s.
razorneck13
January 8th, 2011
10:57 am
No offense if you like em, but I’d also like to hypothesize without anything to back me up, the fact that this loss may also be linked to wearing of our atrocious 3rd uniforms. We seriously need a do-over on that thing.
R. Stroz
January 8th, 2011
11:08 am
Armstrong is litle more than a less talented version of Sean Avery.
Flagstaff
January 8th, 2011
11:09 am
Rawhide: I don’t feel mad at Mason any more, because at least he owned up to his awful performance. Yet, still, that doesn’t excuse how his play has dropped off since Pavs became healthy again. He’s never before been a true backup goalie, and he’s not used to long stretches with no gametime action, but still, he must adapt…
I’m kind of surprised that Eager is not liked in the locker room; to hear Buff talk, it’s one big, happy family that works hard, has fun, and wins hockey games. Early on in the season, I really liked him as he seemed like a hard-working guy who would give a good effort, intimidate the other team, and occasionally chip in offensively. (That time he rushed late in a laugher to beat out the icing call comes to mind, as do the many times that he acted as Burmistrov’s bodyguard.) But, still, we haven’t really heard much from him after he had been benched for long stretches, or why he was originally benched in the first place. Perhaps a poor attitude in the locker room has to do with it.
I’m usually skeptical of this organization when it comes to making mid-season trades, but Dudley’s no dummy, and he’ll know when action must be taken, if only to shake things up. I won’t be surprised either way if a trade does or does not go down this weekend. I won’t care, as long as they come out flying against the Canes, and start a new, meaningful winning streak.
LAC
January 8th, 2011
11:17 am
Well, eager’s first cross-check was nothing more than a bump by the boards. The leaf player high sticked him and it should have been two and two. NOT 4 !
But I agree the refs were TERRIBLE ! Where do “they” get their training ? These clowns last night looked like Little League guys, seeing only one team in the wrong. I hope Mr.Bettman and his
office take a LONG hard look at the MISSED calls last night against Atlanta ! I believe a couple
refs might need more seasoning in the ECHL, because they are NOT NHL quality from what was MISSED last evening.
Now then… Rick Dudley has made changes here… He knows the game , as does Craig Ramsey.
Now tell me this… Why in the Hell do they even think zach B. is a good player. Everyone on this blog sees he stinks at playing the game. He is SOFT as a fresh loaf of bread, He is Constantly
OUT OF POSITION, and he cannot process the thinking part of the game. He is like a tree out there
and has NO idea what to do.
Rick Dudley, You HAVE to get rid of little zach B. He is KILLING the team. Why can YOU not see this ? You are the GM, yet you turn a Blind Eye to the fact the #3 pick is a complete BUST.
Maybe he does NOT want to be here, FINE, ship his butt out, but as a long time fan, this guy is
Terrible and has NOT improved at all the last two seasons, and the fact is now…. The GM & Coach are turning a BLIND EYE to the fact this kid is a LOSER and will never be anything more than AHL or ECHL call up material, it is BEST to move him ASAP, Mr.Dudley rather than continuing to watch his inability game after game, I for one am SICK of it !
Adam
January 8th, 2011
11:32 am
There’s a good replay on Puck Daddy’s blog of the Eager punch.
http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Video-Ben-Eager-s-sucker-punch-on-Armstrong-lea?urn=nhl-304927
Eager did let go of his stick before he threw the right, it just didn’t fall to the ice. The stick was caught between Eager’s arm pit and the boards so it wasn’t in his hand when his fist meet Colby’s face. Given that I don’t see the intent to injure. Roughing yes, 5min major no…
As a matter of fact if you look at the video Colbycheese takes a shot with the butt of his stick into Eager’s chin before Eager cracked him. Look at the 1:33 mark. Do to positioning the ref didn’t see that.
Jordan
January 8th, 2011
11:33 am
Hey Sara, how about you consider the fact about how many cups Toronto Maple leafs has won compared to your Atlanta Thrashers, yeah, so shut it and stop accepting the fact that Toronto Maple leafs clearly OWNED your TRASH team.
brett
January 8th, 2011
11:36 am
4 games for eager apparently. serves him right for being a jackass
brett
January 8th, 2011
11:39 am
then again how come lucic never even got a game for the freddy meyer hit?
Alan R.
January 8th, 2011
11:48 am
Bogosian had quite a few brainfarts last night, but why again are we directing our ire in that direction? He’s not the one who took 19 minutes in penalties last night, and just got suspended for four games.
Armstrong was running his mouth all night. It’s what he does, and last night is no different. His run at Peverley was questionable, to say the least, and it looked like Peverley avoided most of what could have been a very bad hit. No harm, no real foul, since Peverley is fine.
If you’ll notice, right before Eager smacked Army in the face, he tried to lay him into the boards. He missed his hit. Play was stopped because Byfuglien was going off for two minutes. Knowing Army like we all do, he probably ran his mouth at Eager regarding his attempt to lay him into the boards. Knowing Eager like we all do, he probably let his anger get the better of him, and whapped him in the face.
ukyo(THS)
January 8th, 2011
12:04 pm
Watching the replay again… yea, Eager was doing some dumb stuff, but he [b]DID NOT[/b] hit Armstrong with his stick in his hand. As noted above, he dropped the stick before hitting Armstrong after getting butt-ended to the face. Both he and Armstrong should have been the box over that one. But since Armstrong is such a wuss he decided to dive and act hurt rather than man up for his actions. He was a marginal player here with a reputation for being a chippy / cheap player. He’s the same marginal player today. Eager should not have given him the time of day. But… once Eager gets worked up there appears to be no reasoning with him.
Also, Eager may have been after Armstrong for the semi-late hit Armstrong delivered on Burmi over by the Toronto bench earlier in the game. Who knows? All I know is the officials had to make a split second decision during the scrum and they made the wrong one. They thought Eager hit him with stick in hand when obviously he didn’t. It’s was Armstrong’s Academy Award flop to avoid getting destroyed that swayed the call.
Oh, and I’m a fan of letting the Leafs have this one and celebrate. They have so little to look forward to, so they have to take it on the rare occasion they get it. Let them have this one. It’s not like it matters. They are only hurting the draft position of whom ever owns their first round pick.
Tom
January 8th, 2011
12:07 pm
Brett, Eager did deserve something, but you are dead on regarding the lack of “oversight” with Lucic. The league has a problem with giving out punishments and it seems to be getting worse.
eugene
January 8th, 2011
12:09 pm
Atlanta didn’t show up to play. They took Toronto for granted even though the Leafs have scored a ton of goals lately. Nobody was willing to pay the price and park their bodies in front of the net. The third string Toronto goalie left juicy rebounds for Atlanta and nobody was there to tap it in. It’s easy to say it’s all Ben Eager’s fault, but the truth of the matter is, every Thrasher player out there stunk. It was so bad, I left when the score was 6-1 because I couldn’t bear to watch anymore.
ukyo(THS)
January 8th, 2011
12:11 pm
I was afraid when they took the ice to Enter Sandman that they would sleep walk through the game. I hate being right all the time.
Alan R.
January 8th, 2011
12:20 pm
It’s easy to say it’s all Ben Eager’s fault, but the truth of the matter is, every Thrasher player out there stunk.
Eager being out there resulted in five power play goals against us. Five of ‘em. Subtract those, and the potential final score of the game is 4-3 Toronto.
It’s not only easy to say it’s all Eager’s fault, there’s actually a bit of truth to it.
DWTOO
January 8th, 2011
12:24 pm
Jordan/tmlfan – This a Thrasher fan blog so what do you expect – us singing the praises of the 14th ranked team in the East. Get lost! And while we don’t have your storied history I hope we a Cup within the next 40 years.
Was able to make practice today. No Ramsay. Eager was the last out of the locker room and didn’t look to happy. Now we know why. He was the only one in the dark blue jersey and stood by himself most of the time. Not too many smiles among
goose
January 8th, 2011
12:29 pm
I think the spirt of Alexei Zhitnik has come back to haunt us in the form of Ben Eager
how do we taste?
January 8th, 2011
12:44 pm
So atlanta finally puts together a season where they don’t sh*t the bed (yet) and now you’re all talk lol the LEAFS (13th) destroyed you in our own barn in front of all 5000 people that watch your team. And if I hear 1967 talk anymore I’ll lose my mind. Atlanta, how many times has your glorious franchise made it to the playoffs? Once…what happened? Swept by the rangers. So stop boosting your awful club, it’s only a matter of time before you slip down the standings…just like every year. Silence.
LittleThrash
January 8th, 2011
12:48 pm
Hey Jordan, you can rub the cups you have in our faces, but that doesn’t move you up in the standings anymore than the 6-3 loss you had IN toronto did. Congratulations on the win. We beat you at home, you beat us at home even worse. But we are still ranked higher and thats what really matters. Take your win and your waffles from Atlanta, and go back to Toronto.
@Tmlfan you’re an idiot if you don’t think Armstrong wasn’t saying anything to Eager. It’s hockey. Everyone is talking trash. Armstrong talked trash about Atlanta when he left, and I am positive he was talking trash on the ice last night. Pretending he didn’t say anything is dumb. Also, the refs did miss calls, both ways. But you are a fool if you think the refs were anywhere close to fair. The only reason the double minor on Crabb was called was because Buff doubled over and was dripping blood on the ice. Totally fair, rightt? And, no one blamed solely the refs. Read the article. It is blaming Eager. Then people blame Bogo. Yes, the refs made bad calls, but how do you know the outcome if the refs called a penalty on the maple leafs in the first period and we go up 2-1? We played terribly, which is why we lost, but the refs didn’t help at all.
Did anyone read the blog about Ramsey playing with the PK? I guess last night was his experiment, and it turned out horribly. Maybe it was a good thing we lost so bad so now he knows who he can trust on the PK. What better way to try it out when serving that many penalties?
ZAvalanche
January 8th, 2011
12:51 pm
Ouch, that was bad, ugly, mega fail, “insert any negative adjective here”. Facts: Eager needs to learn a bit of discipline or pack his bags. This is the kind of game where OP gets really ticked asks for a trade (reference Partick Roy in the Montreal game in ‘95). Ramsey should never have put OP back in (I also thought there was a rule against that but I am wrong) – the game was over by then and Coach should have managed better.
Additionally the main instigator in the game, talking to you Benny Boy, should have been benched and I think he will be for several games.
However there are some good things to come of this – if it is possible. Good teams, which Thrashy is, usually rebound hard from a drubbing and I expect them to. Eager is deep in the dog house and it may change his attitude and lack of control. Guaranteed there was a pretty heated talk in the locker room and the Captain needs to hold a players only meeting. Some control needs to be established. Simple fact; in today’s NHL if you put yourself down a man that often you are going to lose, even against teams that aren’t that great and it really pisses off your keepers. Be glad it was only a regular season loss (referencing WCF Avs-Detroit – 7-0 Detroit). The measure of a team is how well they bounce back. Thrashy, the test is now. Based on what I have seen of this team they will be fine but you cannot count on handouts, you gotta work for it. Good luck Thrashy!
Alan R.
January 8th, 2011
12:52 pm
LEAFS (13th) destroyed you in our own barn in front of all 5000 people that watch your team.
You forgot to carry a two or something, because your number is about 10k off.
And if I hear 1967 talk anymore I’ll lose my mind.
You’re spouting your garbage in enemy territory. 1967. Suck it.
Atlanta, how many times has your glorious franchise made it to the playoffs? Once
That’s more times than the Leafs have since the lockout. Suck it.
Begone, knave.
LittleThrash
January 8th, 2011
12:53 pm
If you remember, the Thrashers got beat by the Bruins and the Pens after both teams suffered bad losses. Now its our turn to do that to Carolina who is coming off a 5-3 win and have less to redeem themselves by.
ZAvalanche
January 8th, 2011
12:58 pm
@ how do we taste – why the hate? Check the standings, you are basically mathematically eliminated right now. Yeah, you had a good game, congratulations – seriously. Just be glad that hockey is starting to be good in the South and with the profit sharing rules in the league that can only help your organization. Don’t be a jerk. Win with dignity.
chris16
January 8th, 2011
1:41 pm
Well I like a refund on this game please. Ben Eager needs to be traded who signed this guy? What a big D-Bag.
Sage of Bluesland
January 8th, 2011
1:51 pm
Do you feel the tension in Thrashersland, folks? I think you do….and deep down you know the deal….
(well, at least if you’re honest with yourselves…)
Alan R.
January 8th, 2011
2:03 pm
Tension, black sheep? Nay. No tension in Thrasherville.
My shoulders, however, is another thing. Geez.
Drop the Gloves, or Drop the Soap.
January 8th, 2011
2:39 pm
Wasn’t Patrice Cormier supposed to be our concern about cheap-shot actions and the like instead of a Stanley Cup Champion like Eager?
The Maple Leafs did to us what the fellow Gwinnett County Jail inmates did to poor Thrasher when they had him shoved beak-down into his pillow.
Oy…
Marcus Valdes
January 8th, 2011
2:52 pm
No one has commented that perhaps Eager is trying to get himself kicked out of Atlanta. Wonder why he is so unhappy here? Also, any word on what kind of injury Big Buff had last night. He was playing with cotton balls stuck up his nose when he came out of the locker room….
razorneck13
January 8th, 2011
2:59 pm
Dear Trolling Leafs Fans,
Trolling reasons aside you and your beloved organization suck for the following reasons…
A.) As one person admitted, your franchise has a storied history…FROM WHEN THE LEAGUE WAS ABOUT HALF THE SIZE OR SMALLER. I don’t care about how awesome you were OVER 40 YEARS AGO!!!
B.) Your franchise is called Maple Leafs.
,
C.) You handed us our asses last night, congrats. Your franchise is still named after a wussy part of a tree that falls in our yards when it gets too cold.
D.) Tie Domi. You guys had Tie Domi…and LOVED HIM. That fact alone negates any of the Leafs badassery from back in antiquity and replaces it with everlasting douchebaggery. That just doesn’t wash off either.
Jordan
January 8th, 2011
3:18 pm
Leaf fans. Check the standings. Thats all us Thrasher fans have to say. Keep trash talking, come April when we are in the playoffs and you are yet again not, we will be the ones laughing about this 9-3 loss. Did we finish ahead of you last year?? Oh ya we did!! And this year?? Yup. Mark my word the Leafs will not finish ahead of the Thrashers for the next 5 years. Not ONCE!!
Hoof Farted
January 8th, 2011
3:24 pm
Wow. A lot of tough talk from a lot of lightweight Leafs fans. Big talk from a fanbase of a team who hasn’t won the Cup since ‘67.
Oh yeah, and how many of those Cups were won when there was only 6 teams in the league? Not really a tall order when you’ve got a 1 in 6 chance of winning it going into the season.
As for playoffs, how many times have you gone there since the lockout? I’ll help you with that one Leafs trolls, it’s 1 less time then the Thrashers have.
Yeah, your team kick our team’s butt. Enjoy it. It’ll probably be the highlight of your season.
Hoof Farted
January 8th, 2011
3:27 pm
Hey SOB, your mindless rants might hold more water if you hand the stones to come around here and chatted after Thrashers wins. That’s why you’re nowhere to be found for most of this season.
You are worthless and weak.
R. Stroz
January 8th, 2011
3:28 pm
And if I hear 1967 talk anymore I’ll lose my mind.
What do you mean lose, you already lost it…now take off your Depends and use it to wipe your nose, crybaby. Another mamby pampy jackwagon with no self confidence.
ZAvalanche
January 8th, 2011
3:31 pm
LOL, love the banter! As I said before, good game Leafs, but we will be playing in May and you will be golfing. I am noticing a trend here, Thrashy fans are respectful of the fact you stomped up and all you can do is talk sh!t. The leafs are a storied franchise, show some class and respect them.
Rawhide
January 8th, 2011
3:37 pm
As I’m sure many of you all have seen, C-Viv reports Eager has been suspended for four games and will lose just shy of $21K in salary.
I will have to agree with some of what he had to say about the inconsistencies of these suspensions and fines, but in the end it is what it is.
ZAvalanche
January 8th, 2011
3:39 pm
Eager has made his bed and he now has to lay in it. $21k is nothing to him but I think that after this last game he needs to take a serious look in the mirror and decide if he wants to stay with the Thrashers. Pun intended, he is skating on thin ice.
ZAvalanche
January 8th, 2011
3:41 pm
Also, condolences to the families in Tuscon affected by the shooting, I wish them well. My thoughts go out to you.
Rawhide
January 8th, 2011
3:48 pm
ZAvs – Amen. Simply tragic what has happened is AZ today.
Regarding whether or not Eager did or didn’t have the stick in his hand…looking at a couple of other replay angles, it does appear as though he may have dropped it…or at least lossened his grip on it prior to landing his punch. Really, I think it’s academic as he sucker punched Armstrong.
IMHO, if Eager felt Colby needed to be taken care of, he should have dropped the gloves and manned-up face to face with him. There is a code of conduct that must be respected on the ice.
Armstrong would have probably turtled, as per usual…but at least Eager would have done the right thing.
Jason
January 8th, 2011
3:51 pm
I do think it’s interesting how Armstrong dropped like a sack of potatoes when he was hit by Eager, yet he somehow managed the guts to come back out for a shift at the end of the major in the third before making his departure for the safety of the bench the rest of the night.
Hoof Farted
January 8th, 2011
4:00 pm
“how do we taste?” I’d you taste somewhat bitter and nasty. And if classlessness had a taste, that’s be you.
LAC
January 8th, 2011
4:00 pm
colby “cheese” armstrong was hurt last night by that punch as much as my fingers are typing this comment !
What a Complete little worthless WIMP. Watch Maple Loafs get hammered out west for sure…
ZAvalanche
January 8th, 2011
4:19 pm
Roger that Rawhide, regardless of political affiliation, if that was even the motivation, there are better ways to resolve issues than by using guns. I know several people on either “side of the aisle” and none of them would condone that action.
You are right on the “code of conduct” that resides in the NHL. It is one of the few sports left that has that type of ingrained mentality, if you will. If you want to roll somebody, man up, drop the gloves and dish it out. Very reminiscent of Todd Bertuzi’s actions several years ago.
BMF
January 8th, 2011
4:22 pm
YYZ – 2pts
ATL – 0 pts
This is a regulation loss, nothing more. A bad game yes, but just one loss.
Armstrong is a punk. Put him and Eager out there, and yeah, stuff will go down.
Would not be surprised of Mason is out of a job, and Eager never suits up for the Thrashers again. We’re not paying Mason a ton of money but he’s worthless as trade bait, so not sure what we can do other than just cut him or stash him in the minors but we have to have a better internal option for 2nd keeper than him. He’s been awful. Eager’s not good enough on the ice to counter his shenanigans. Wish he was because I like his attitude and intensity out there, but he has an affinity for the penalty box and this Thrash team isn’t good enough to keep bailing him out when he hits the box. Bogosian is clueless. Have you ever seen a Dman out of position basically every second he’s on the ice? Plenty of blame to go around for last night’s game but I guess I’ll just go back to my first statement: it’s just one regulation loss. On to Carolina.
Cornbread
January 8th, 2011
4:24 pm
Yep it sucked. I forced myself to sit through the whole thing. Even watched the replays of the goals. The Thrashers have had some less than stellar games this season but this was their first truly bad game. Glad it happened now and not two weeks ago when things could have gotten out of hand with their schedule. Sometimes good teams need this. It wakes them up – or destroys them. I don’t see them falling apart. Tampa and Washington have not and they have had far more truly bad games this year. After all, they are not NJ or Toronto.
The crazy thing is that the Thrashers actually looked like world beaters in the first 15 minutes – even in the first half of the second. They looked the same during the first in Toronto. They played like they were Detroit and then it all came crashing down. It was baffling. I’ll chalk that up to a young team that got caught up in a very physical game and allowed their frustration and emotion to take over – and not just Eager. A couple of proven Veteran forwards that still have something left in the tank could go a long way for this team.
Seriously, I loved what I saw from them in the first 15 minutes of the game. They played the best they have all year in the attacking zone by keeping the puck in long and in the neutral zone by backing out later, keeping the gaps tight, and causing turnovers. This is the next step Ramsay has been talking about. It looks like they’ve been working on it all week. Then came the penalties and they reverted back to bad habits or just as likely, everything Toronto shot went in. I hope the coaches focus on what they did great during this game because it was truly great hockey. Too bad it will be overshadowed by the score.
I was glad to see Eager make a beautiful cross ice feed to set-up Enstrom’s goal. (Cormier deserves props because he caused the turnover on the half wall that led to the goal as well as his own. A complete 180 from the game prior. The kid may learn quick.) I was hoping Eager and Bergfors were about to change for the better. Then he completely lost it. He has been my biggest disappointment on this team all year. The silver lining of that game was when the true character guys emerged in the third. Cormier and Ladd, along with several others, did not quit. That both of them scored when it was long over is proof of their strong leadership character that has been so highly touted.
Don’t worry Thrasher Fans. This is not the Thrashers of old that would go on a 6 game slide after such a debacle. There’s too much skill and character on this team now – on the bench and behind it – for that to occur. Expect a big game against the Canes. Put up the warning flags Carolina!
EA
January 8th, 2011
4:26 pm
SOB, perhaps you are mistaking passion for tension. You are so riduculously predictable. A tough loss or a couple game losing stretch and there you are. Wow, that is so sheepish!
Let them Eat Cake
January 8th, 2011
5:05 pm
way to go Laffs. One goal for each year in a row that you haven’t made the playoffs, eh?
Good thing there wasn’t enough time to score 44 goals…..one for each year without the Cup.
Cornbread
January 8th, 2011
5:09 pm
As for the refs, having been both an on and off ice official in the past, I don’t usually like to place any blame their way regarding a loss. But, they blew several calls last night that at the very least affected the score.
TML’s first goal could have been blown dead with an interferance call when Bogosian collided with the Leafs’ player. They were on the attack and took a defender out of the play. Coincidental? I’ve seen a lot less called. The Defender is always given the blue line and it is the responsibility of the attacking players to avoid them. On TML’s last there was too many men on the ice. The scorer jumped on early and recieved the puck while two additional players were still on the ice even while he crossed into the attacking zone. You can clearly see it on the replay. The play should have been blown dead but at that point I guess they just wanted to get the game over with.
There was plenty of other crap missed or called wrong in between. It’s the non calls by Refs and Linesman that drive players crazy and cause games to get out of hand. Was it the new European Ref working last night’s game? Now on top of all that a fine and 4 game suspension…
Nate
January 8th, 2011
5:15 pm
If someone could locate that Thrashers team that reeled off six wins in a row earlier in the year, could you tell them I’d like to see them reappear now. Thanks
Rawhide
January 8th, 2011
5:15 pm
C-Viv has been tweeting this afternoon that Tim Stapelton has been recalled from the Wolves. And since Fredrik Modin did not even make the trip to Carolina, another call up is expected.
Russian
January 8th, 2011
5:29 pm
What’s happend with Modin? I did not see any problem with him yesturday.
Atlantahockey?really?!?
January 8th, 2011
6:09 pm
I love the 6 thrasher fans on the planet trashing the leafs. You are the most embarrassing franchise ever, even Nashville makes the playlets every once in a while. For as bad ad we’ve been for 5 years, at least someone cares.
scottbravesfan
January 8th, 2011
6:15 pm
last night’s game was hard to watch. Also would anyone else like to see the Thrashers get a third jersey like the ones that the Panthers wear? Those would look great with a Thrashers logo on them
Anyway we need a W tomorrow in Raleigh.
Leafs do suck
January 8th, 2011
6:15 pm
What are the “playlets”?????
Atlantahockeyisajoke
January 8th, 2011
6:16 pm
Enjoy your team while it lasts guys. That 1 playoff series and all your Kovalchuck jerseys will do you well when your team is back where it belongs, in Canada.
Listening to you hicks describe missed calls is hysterical. Be honest now, how many of you have get played hockey before…. On ice!
scottbravesfan
January 8th, 2011
6:17 pm
atlantahockey?really??,
If you are going to rip someone at least make sure there are no spelling errors in your post. And of course people care about hockey in Toronto and Canada it’s all you have going for it. It’s why the SEC is so big in the south. Hockey is the one thing that Canada does well and is known for. Same reason that college football is so big in the south it’s the one thing that the south can puff it’s chest out and say that they are the best.
Thrashmybutt
January 8th, 2011
6:18 pm
Solid game last night. Revolving goalies is fun. Glad to see a huuuuge crowd of 743 in attendance. I guess your cousins were busy?
Leafs do suck
January 8th, 2011
6:19 pm
Yes they were busy, with yo Mama…..
scottbravesfan
January 8th, 2011
6:20 pm
I know this is hard to believe but they have this things called “skating rinks”. In these “rinks” they can make ice! I know it’s unbelievable! But they can actually make ice and then people can skate on it! Modern science at it’s best. Also what other sport does Canada even remotely play at a high level? The United States is one of the top hockey countries in the world and only a small percent of the population even plays it. Yet we are still awesome at it. What other sports does Canada play at a high level? Curling?
Braves07
January 8th, 2011
6:20 pm
As far as I care they canhave the Thrashers, they make the playoffs as often as the braves miss them! No one here cares about hockey, why is this team even here?
Atlantahockeyisajoke
January 8th, 2011
6:24 pm
Well we won the most golds at the Winter Olympics (I know, it’s cold here right?!?!?) and we beat the US in the world baseball classic in Seattle. But none of thy really matters. You are right, enjoy your dog fighting and well enjoy our hockey, I’m sure the thrashers will make like the Atlanta flames and move soon enough!
Flagstaff
January 8th, 2011
6:30 pm
I bet all the Leafs fans here really came from 4chan or some other troll breeding ground… real Toronto fans have no room to be talking, the way their team is on most nights.
Toronto-thedefinitionofmediocritysince1967
January 8th, 2011
6:32 pm
Now go watch some Grey Bowl – hoser…
Toronto-thedefinitionofmediocritysince1967
January 8th, 2011
6:34 pm
Toronto – Where average GM’s careers go to die.
Toronto-thedefinitionofmediocritysince1967
January 8th, 2011
6:34 pm
Toronto – forever wishing it was Montreal.
Leafs do suck
January 8th, 2011
6:36 pm
We’ll trade you Eager for any of those first rounders you have left this decade, unless Boston wants them.
Flagstaff
January 8th, 2011
6:39 pm
…And what happened to all that stuff about Canadians being ‘polite’?
Leafs do suck
January 8th, 2011
6:42 pm
We’ve had two different franchises here since you goofs won a cup.
Hockey Biltong
January 8th, 2011
6:45 pm
Hey Strozy, how did you like my music???
Does “Satchmo” or “Gabriel” come to mind???
Hockey Biltong
January 8th, 2011
6:47 pm
Bill,
good to see you last night! I hope WBF behaved himself????
HungryCoyote
January 8th, 2011
7:03 pm
Dear Waffle Trollz,
I welcome your misplaced anger. It perfectly reflects the reason why your team is A FREAKING JOKE! It’s actually not the team that sucks (and they do), it’s your brainwashed fanbase who thinks that just because your’re Canadian and from Toronto you somehow “own the sport of hockey” – which is highly laughable at best. Read a book, learn some history, and flunk a test.
And Canadians you have officially lost your bragging rights to “owning hockey” because YOU GOT OWNED BY RUSSIA! After a 3-0 lead! Yes, your own children who since birth you have trained to become hockey cyborgs turtled to a bunch of drunken/toothless sons of wheat farmers.
The end.
LittleThrash
January 8th, 2011
7:05 pm
I’m not sure why all of the TML fans are so hostile. We thrashers fans, however few you think we are, are commenting about our feelings of last nights game. You killed us. Congratulations. Hockey is getting better in Atlanta, and even you can’t deny that. Ignore last nights game and look at the stats. We have a hell of a goalie (on most nights) and some great talent. We have a lot going for our team now, and a loss like this isn’t going to keep our heads down. I am just as happy with our team today as I was before last nights game. You all seem to be in a permanent bad mood because you have to stoop down to Thrashers blogs to talk about how great your team is. We all know that this year is not going well, and I guess you have had a few mediocre seasons to learn how to trash talk, just like we have. Not only are your comments ignorant, but they are wrong too. There was a huge crowd in Philips last night, you just couldn’t hear it because we weren’t playing well. Hope you had a great visit in Atlanta and good luck with the rest of your season. We have two more meeting, let’s see where we stand after them.
razorneck13
January 8th, 2011
7:11 pm
I see some lost mothertruckers in here talkin’ trash about hockey in Atlanta, novel…never seen such a thing.
Looky here Troll(s) this maybe hard for you to understand this, but try and keep up. I know you are threatened by that which you do not know. I know hockey makes you get all “Hulk Smash”, cuz it’s so fast and generally bitchin’, but that’s what I’d expect from you poop flinging simians when you encounter things that are rad…so I understand and it’s gonna be ok. No one’s gonna deny you your rights to be knuckledragging mouthbreathers, I promise.
Just go back to what you normally do when you’re at a loss for words by entertaining yourselves endlessly with the aroma of your own flatulence and nose goblin analysis. Leave the big people talk to others in hockey forums and enjoy the rest of your window licking existence in a general state of tarded bliss where apparently other sports and perhaps professional wrestling reign supreme.
razorneck13
January 8th, 2011
7:28 pm
Dear Canadian Trolling Schmuck,
Stereotypes, stereotypes. So, we’re hicks and don’t know hockey…tehe. What do you think Atlanta is, Southern? At this point, not exactly. But I guess you wouldn’t know that. I know you’re up there with limited access to anything other than igloos, hockey, and maple syrup right? No? Exactly, take your stigma and shove it.
Sincerely,
An Anonymous former GAHA ICE Hockey Player
HungryCoyote
January 8th, 2011
7:36 pm
Anyone hear Kamal’s calls last night?
Matt
January 8th, 2011
8:26 pm
“Sheeple Boy” is this blogs version of Armstrong. Hides in his shell whenever someone calls him out. Loser.
Jason
January 8th, 2011
8:28 pm
Don’t worry, my Canadian friends. At least you have the Continental Cup coming up next week. I’m sure that your curling heroes will come up big for you….
Wayne stuck in AL
January 8th, 2011
8:45 pm
CAN-NECK: A term describing any Canadian internet troll who likes to bring up worn Southern stereotypes while defending a loser franchise and demands all teams from the SunBelt relocate to his godforsaken frozen wasteland.
Rawhide
January 8th, 2011
8:52 pm
Per Ben Wright tweet: “Machacek is not in the lineup for the Wolves tonight, nor is Stapleton. Good chance they’ll both be playing for the #Thrashers tomorrow.”
So, maybe we can get a look-see at Spencer Machacek at the NHL level tomorrow. Nice.
Red Light
January 8th, 2011
11:40 pm
Will be nice to see some young blood in the line-up tomorrow. Bad thing is, that since the Thrashers don’t play again until Friday, Machacek likely be sent right back to Chicago.
Red Light
January 8th, 2011
11:45 pm
Jack Johnson, who first played five games with the Kings in the 2006-07 season, signed a seven-year extension with a salary cap hit of $4.3 million. Rich Hammond of lakingsinsider.com reported Johnson, just 24, will make $3.5 million in each of the first three years of the new deal starting next season, and then $5 million per year in each of the final four seasons.
So, if I give you $30.1 million to sign Buff to a seven-year deal, would you do it?
Cornbread
January 8th, 2011
11:46 pm
The Canadian Trolls are just venting after their national team got embarrassed and disgraced their whole country by giving up 5 unanswered goals and blowing a 3 goal lead in the third Wednesday night. Pitiful.
Atlanta will be playing hockey in a sold out Phillips Arena come Spring. Toronto has no chance.
Proud to be a Thrasher
January 9th, 2011
12:20 am
I’m actually quite proud of our young team despite the debacle in Blueland last nite. Looking at the score you would think they were flat awful all game, but that was hardly the case. They played with a lot of jump and seemed to be attacking relentlessly for the majority of the first 30 mins. But when things went bad, the got out of hand quick. Pavelec never should have gone back in. And the refs set the tone for this “outburst” by Eager by not calling A LOT of chippy and dirty plays by the Loaves.
Twice Thrashers players were hit from behind right next to a ref and both times boarding was not called. Toby was hooked/tripped twice within three seconds but the 2nd minor wasn’t called. The double minor on Eager was beyond ridiculous as he never cross-checked Phaneuf and the collision of the two was an awkward one yet hardly what would constitute roughing. If anything Eager may have gotten away with a quick slash prior to the hit.
But whatever, the Thrashers didn’t cash in their numerous chances and the Leafs were better than them in pouncing on rebounds in front of Pavelec. The blueliners had a very poor nite collectively. Things would get out of hand and before you could blink, it was 5 to 1. The Eager cheap shot was dirty but a 5 min major!?? Its not like he hit him across the head with his stick! And the “justice” getting doled out by Colin Campbell’s Wheel of Justice reality show just goes to show the NHL has no control over their game and the enforcement of its rules in proper fashion.
But in spite of all that, the boys didn’t quit in the third. They didn’t just coast and go thru the motions for 20 mins. They competed hard, put 20 shots on net and even scored twice in gritty fashion. Even Big Buff came back after Crabb’s careless stick bloodied his nose without seeking excessive, over the top retribution. They maintained their composure after Eager lost his mind and refused to stoop to the Buds’ level of dirty and bush league tactics.
I’m sure they’ll get revenge the next time they play in the form of a good ol’ fashioned behind the woodshed ass whoopin to the tune of 6 to 2 or 5 to 1. Bring it classless Laffs fans, we’ll be here. Just like Big
Buff, we’re not bowing out and taking the quick shower just because one lousy game got out of hand.
Proud to be a Thrasher
January 9th, 2011
12:34 am
Trixie, please release me!
LAC
January 9th, 2011
2:23 am
These Canada fruitloops make the most STUPID comments. I feel Montreal should move to Kansas City, The HELL with all the so called mystic, the LOAS need to go to Houston, Ottawa to Seattle, Vancouver needs to hit the road to Memphis, Flames to Cleveland and Edmonton to Salt Lake City.
REAL SIMPLE. The you Canada hacks can form the Canada Hockey League and have teams in all Canada cities and never be bothered by the BIG LEAGUES ever again !
Hear a LOT of junior games are played before half empty or MORE buildings every game in Canada.
I just LAUGH seeing you Canada hacks making up all the excuses you can about Atlanta moving, Will Not Happen. 17,000 there last evening, not too bad. Lots and Lots of empty seats in Detroit and Dallas, more than Atlanta. So so snort that stuff all you Canada Idiot fans do and go blow smoke about another team moving, IT is NOT going to happen here, One bad game does not mean moving, Just proves YET AGAIN, how completely STUPID Canada hockey fans really are. Oh yes, I played at Iceland with Willi Plett and others in the 70’s, so go stick it !
Remember, Tampa beat twice 8-1, once 6-0. Washington Twice 5-0 and 7-0… Watch Loafs get hammered out west and then I think we should start talking Move to USA.
eugene
January 9th, 2011
3:13 am
Eager being out there resulted in five power play goals against us. Five of ‘em. Subtract those, and the potential final score of the game is 4-3 Toronto.
It’s not only easy to say it’s all Eager’s fault, there’s actually a bit of truth to it.
When the Thrashers were up 1-0, they had some early chances but they squandered them. Toronto then turned it up and started to dish out physical hits. Atlanta was intimidated, and you could tell Toronto was having their way with them. When Eager took that stupid double minor penalty, Atlanta was down 1 goal and they killed the second penalty. After that, they were flat for the entire game. Toronto went ahead and scored 3 more goals and with only a few minutes left in the second period, Atlanta was down 5-1. The game was pretty much over then, by the time Eager got his game misconduct, Atlanta was already out of the game. They couldn’t wait to leave the stadium. Every single Thrasher sucked that night.
Alan R.
January 9th, 2011
6:36 am
After that, they were flat for the entire game
Derp? They came out hard in the second, only to get deflated by more goals against. They came out extremely hard in the third, and laid up 20 shots on Reimer.
Sure, it didn’t matter in the third, and they could have tried harder in the second, but that’s not the point. The point is we lost, and we’ll get over it.
Spud Webb
January 9th, 2011
9:04 am
So, if I give you $30.1 million to sign Buff to a seven-year deal, would you do it?……….HELL YES.
Eager is a train wreck, but Colby is NEVER innocent. I’m ok with ben not playing with us anymore & I’m also ok with ben popping that turtle, actually I’m really ok with that part.
Phenuf, wtf was he doing out there? Noticed he was all to eager (ahhahaah, pun) to go after ben, but when buff got over there he backed up YET AGAIN? Atlanta North (toronto) won, it’s over, move on. By 3:30 today I expected us to be posting about a GIANT conference victory and two points. I also expect ben to be released when the 4 games are up.
Goalies, I think Mason was out drinking with me thursday night, which could explain something, not sure what was going on.
Spud Webb
January 9th, 2011
9:05 am
PS, went to the hawks game last night. UGH, not sure why I thought that was even close to a good idea. The girl and I left at halftime, it’s like going to a funeral. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG…almost fell asleep at one point.
Dwayne
January 9th, 2011
9:07 am
Thrashers were winning 1-0 right? Leaves suck right? Why did bolts drop the gloves? he should take eagers suspension, or at least reimburse him his lost wages. Just in case it was 1-1 at the time of the bolts fight, he should not have fought.
Kovy's Agent
January 9th, 2011
9:13 am
Rawhide, you said this version of the Thrashers is different from teams past. While I truly want to believe that, it just doesn’t hold up to close inspection. Aside from their good play in November this is a mediocre bunch that will struggle to stay in playoff contention. We’ve seen that story all too many times in these parts. With that 9-spot Friday night they now lead the league in GA (also very typical in these parts), are usually out shot, sometimes by horrific margin and still have a tough time possessing the puck or defending the blue line. Opie had a terrific month in November that led to stealing a few games, and the type of goaltending we’ve rarely seen in these parts, but he can’t hold-up under the shot barrage he faces nightly and expect to maintain that level of play. No, this is the same ole, same ole, and we’ll be scratching and clawing for the 8th spot come early April.
BlueSpark
January 9th, 2011
9:20 am
Please everyone, DON’T FEED THE TROLLS. Just ignore them. Seriously. People like that just post and keep hitting refresh to see who took the bait.
They’ve been trying to ruin the internet since back before the Web even existed.
rob
January 9th, 2011
10:25 am
Seems the team has been targeted yet again. Armstrong did nothing to help hockey while he was here, and now that he is gone he continues to harm it. Eager, if there is ever a next time, drop the gloves and show the entire league just what a puss Colby is……oh wait they already do. Eager just seems like a magnet for the box, sucks that the refs couldn’t get any of it right and let two teams settle it on the ice instead of taking it over with their ineptness. I am sure Eager has just played himself out of a Thrashers uniform. The league reviewing this and giving him 4 games is horrible…..intent to injur?!?! Let’s see how the team responds today!
LET’S GO THRASHERS!!!!
World Be Free
January 9th, 2011
10:53 am
Glad that game is done with. Maybe there will be something good come out of Friday’s mess.
The worst part about Friday was having to sit next to my buddy from Tronna and his stupid blue jersey. At leats he didn’t wear his blue Tie Domi jersey!
Pls don’t respond to the idiots from Tronna who post on this blog. The only way they can understand you is if you post in crayon. If they were such great hockey fans they would show up for more than 2 games/season. Tronna hockey dedication is way overblown; at the end of the day they are still in 13th place paying Colby Cheese $3M/season.
Spud Webb
January 9th, 2011
10:58 am
Dwayne, yes the leafs do suck, that kind of goes without saying….so what you’re telling me is that the reason our (thrashers) D sucked, goaltending sucked and played sucked is because Eric Boulton fought? Wow, I had no idea one fight could lead to 9 goals. Man you’re right, next time orr says lets go, bolts should say NO WAY MAN, I’ll be the reason we give up 9. ahhahahahhahahhahhahahahahahahah
Horad
January 9th, 2011
11:38 am
I am a Leaf fan, always was, always will be. Am I a little crazy? Maybe. Anyway it saddens me to see other supposed Leaf fans having the temerity to take shots and laugh at the Thrashers efforts in the 9-3 pounding, Please forgive them Thrasher fans. We haven’t had much to cheer about this season.
As for you Thrashers fans whining that the refs favour Toronto because they supposedly get trained in Toronto….well that is laughable. Everyone Toronto knows the refs hate Toronto. Calls almost always favour the other team. This game was an aberration. Let’s face it it. When was the last time any team anywhere in the world felt the refs were on their side. The only thing fans hate more than other teams are the refs. We never remember when the calls went our way, we only remember the ones that went against us.
As for those saying Armstrong butt-ended Eager….ttthhhppphht…..the League must have missed that after reviewing the play. If he had, even if the refs missed it, they would have called him on it.
As for those saying he dove, faked it, turtled….well explain the eye patch and the fact that he never returned to the game?
razorneck13
January 9th, 2011
11:41 am
Kovy’s Agent, I gotta kindly disagree with you. It’s not same old same old, it’s simply unfinished business, IMHO. I’ve said it many many times before, I’ll say it again…we’re missing some depth. We have one of the LOWEST payrolls in this league and we’re a bit fragile as a result, yet surprisingly look at the total results thus far. I never thought it was gonna be this good back in the preseason.
Lot’s of people take that as a jab at the team, I assure you it’s not. Imagine if we had a couple more moderately priced proven forwards. For example, imagine if we retained Max and picked up someone else with comparable output at forward. How bad would it get when Antro or Kane get banged up? How much better would we be when they’re all healthy? I’d say we’d be a Helluva lot better than we are when we have to rely on young kids that are learning and adapting or the likes of Stapleton coming up to try and fill the gaps.
I think we’re geared different this year and for the better, again just not complete. But that’s nothing 2-3 million more a season added to the overhead can’t fix and we’d still be a pretty frugal franchise with that.
Flames
January 9th, 2011
11:42 am
Congratulations to Cormier on his first NHL goal.
He is going to be a good one. We are going to be fine
I think there will be a shake up coming soon.
razorneck13
January 9th, 2011
11:51 am
Flames, thanks for reminding me. Where’s my manners?
Kudos, Cormier!
Smitty
January 9th, 2011
12:01 pm
There will always be missed calls. However one repercussion of missed calls is that the players will start policing themselves and that is when things get out of control. Colby took a couple of runs at Thrashers. That is the way he plays. I do not have a problem with that. But if you play that way expect some retaliation. Did Eager go overboard? Yes. Did Colby get what he deserved? In my opinion yes. When you play that style of game, (and I hope our north of the border friends will agree) you better be prepared to face the music.
I watched some of the Canucks game last night. Holmstrom was his usual pain in the butt self. Kevin Bieksa asked him to drop the gloves and he did not. At least Bieksa kept his composure and did not drop him. But had Bieksa dropped him, I do not believe there would have too many tears shed for him on HNIC.
Thrashers27
January 9th, 2011
12:10 pm
Rawhide,
That pic of the baby is perfect! I’ve been looking at it for two days now and every time it makes me chuckle. Couldn’t be more appropriate.
Hope the boys got a nice wakeup call this AM.
Go Thrashers!!!
GWJ
January 9th, 2011
12:16 pm
I hope I NEVER see Eager in Thrasher uniform again…..pathetic!!
Smitty
January 9th, 2011
12:18 pm
Tears shed for Holmstrom.
Cornbread
January 9th, 2011
12:42 pm
Remember folks this is the best Atlanta Thrashers team ever. They will respond and it starts in less than 1 hour! And Kovy’s Agent, you thankfully removed the reason why this Atlanta Thrashers team will not collapse like it did when your guy was here.
Smoothie
January 9th, 2011
12:44 pm
Horad – we appreciate your genuine presence here compared to some of the Tronna trolls who have graced this blog in the last couple of days. However, when it comes to officiating, you cannot tell me that a team which has only been shorthanded 123 times in 40 games isn’t getting some preferential treatment whether it is subconscious bias or not. Other than Boston — gee, who didn’t expect that?? — no team is penalized less. And to make matters worse, y’all have gotten 43 — FORTY THREE!! — more PP opportunities than the times you’ve been shorthanded. Tell me that is deserved considering some of the aggressive, chippy play your team likes to employ. I know the Leafs are a fast team and will draw a lot of calls, but only 123 penalties have been committed? The league median is about 40 more than that! Tough to preach to us about complaining about unfair treatment when your team apparently doesn’t have to worry about such.
World Be Free
January 9th, 2011
12:46 pm
Horad-I have been watching the Leafs (and Habs) for over 40 years and can tell from my experience they normally get the favor of the ref’s calls. Leafs and Habs’ fans complain that both teams don’t get ALL the ref’s calls! So let’s get too stupid here. We see the same for other teams like the Rangers and Broones, so the Buds are not alone.
I guess we can all look at the refs and say they “hate our team”, but in the end we win or lose based on talent on the ice. Tronna suffers from having too much pressure fro their fan base to win now. Why trade Rask for Roycroft? Because Roycroft was coming off a sensational rookie season and Rask needed further development. These trades are further magnified by the 43 years in waiting the Buds’ fans suffer through. Rangers’ fans can tell you all about i prior to 1994, or they would not have traded Tony Amonte, Doug Weight and later Marc Savard at the beginning of their promising careers.
Please leave the word “laughable” out of your next post so we can have some real hockey dialogue. I am sure you have something real positive to offer to a group of hockey fans (on this blog) that are just as knowledgeable as you are.
World Be Free
January 9th, 2011
1:01 pm
You have to wonder if the Thrashers are going to move both Modin and Eager by the trade deadline. They are finally going to gives some of the kids on the farm a chance to play. If these guys show any promse, it will allow the team to shop the short term (contractually) talent for some draft picks. Paying for seasons of bad drafting and ineffective player development. Look at the Red wings, they draft low but continue to stock their roster with kids that have been developed in their system.
rob
January 9th, 2011
1:04 pm
Anyone else see the wolves beat the team from Tor 9-3? Weird.
Rawhide,
Any chance we could get some Wolves links on the Thrashers page? Just a thought as it seems we will see some of them, it would be nice to see how things are going there…who is hot and who isn’t and such. I know, I know, why not go to their page but I am lazy most of the time and just go to this blog for my info.
Rawhide
January 9th, 2011
1:11 pm
Rob – Not a bad idea at all. I just added the Chicago Wolves and Gwinnett Gladiators links to the “Some Other Sites of Interest” column. Later I’ll probably create a new column for the Thrashers System and place them there.
Let me know if you think there are other such sites that need to be added.
Thrashers27 – Yeah…I just thought that picture wrapped up my mood and others around here perfectly. Glad ya liked it and it brought a smile to your face.
Matt
January 9th, 2011
1:45 pm
Terrible way to start, penalty in the FIRST minute and give up yet another PP goal. I am depressed.
Joe Friday
January 9th, 2011
1:53 pm
“There will always be missed calls. However one repercussion of missed calls is that the players will start policing themselves and that is when things get out of control.”
Bingo. This is precisely what happened Friday night. I’ve never seen that midget ref #11 and hope we to never see him again. then they give Eager 4 for that pop? Horsecrap. Campbell with his uneven justice (Lucic did the same exact thing to us and gets nothing). The NHL will always be a rinky dink league with bush league refs like #11 out there and Campbell with his ridiculous fines and suspensions all over the board, no consistency. Head shot rule has already gone to the wayside, even with their star Crosby getting suckered twice recently and no calls. A major, game and 4 game suspension for Eager? Ludicrous. Although I don’t expect to ever see Eager in a Thrashers’ sweater again.
Now we come out flying against the Canes, driving the net, their d is so flustered he trips over his own skates yet the ref calls a phantom penalty on Thorburn and bam, we’re down 1-0. Mickey Mouse league employing incompetent refs . .
Joe Friday
January 9th, 2011
1:55 pm
the blog is broken, posted yesterday from my phone, no error but it never showed up. Now from my laptop and again, nothing
Joe Friday
January 9th, 2011
3:09 pm
Officiating continues to be craptacular. Incompetent refs with a phantom call on Little giving the canes a 2nd gift goal in the game and it’s less than half over.
Now they screw up the call on the canes 4th goal and make a phantom call on Cane and we get a gift back.
Mickey mouse league employing crap refs and they wonder why the NHL gets no respect
Red Light
January 9th, 2011
4:33 pm
If there was ever a team that needed a few days off, it is this one. They are a shadow of the team from December. Injuries contributed sure, but the level of play has been sledding downhill for a few weeks now. Sleep well boys. See you Friday.
Cornbread
January 9th, 2011
4:44 pm
A good comeback game for the Thrashers after Friday’s debacle. They played a good game on the road against a good team. They did not play great like they did in the first 15 minutes of the TML game but who can fault them for that, especially after that bogus first penalty? Getting at least 1 point from this game was a must.
Getting these last two games behind the Thrashers is even more important. Now, they can get some rest, get healthy, and get some serious practice and preperation in for the big game against the Flyers on Friday.
Cornbread
January 9th, 2011
4:48 pm
Agree Joe Friday on today’s and Friday’s officiating. Very very bad and hopefully some of these refs and linesman are sent down to the A for more development. Don’t want to hear it from any Canes fans on the interference call and no goal. The calls on Thorburn and Little that led to 2 of your goals were complete crap.
Smoothie
January 9th, 2011
4:55 pm
Joe F & Cornbread — officiating was inconsistent to lousy at best, per the usual. The refs don’t enforce the obstruction and interference rules like they did coming out of the lockout and now you get called for a trip when its incidental contact near the front of the net with no advantage gained (Thorburn). Little’s “hook” was complete horse puckey as Sutter held his stick on the attempted stick-jack. The boys are getting penalized for the things that Rammer has taught them as smart, crafty, legal hockey plays. It’s certainly hurting us more than some teams due to our lack of scoring skill t/out our line-up. Sure, our scoring is balanced but our lack of scoring from wingers like Stewart, Thorburn and Antropov (not a good fit for the system or still hurt?) is really starting to make things a lot harder for this team to win. Even when the effort is there, they aren’t burying as many chances and they seem even more reliant than ever on point shots that never get deflected or redirected.
Sigh.
Cornbread
January 9th, 2011
5:26 pm
What was up with Darrin Elliot suggesting multiple times, even after Matt McConnell’s correct call, that Enstrom and Buff assisted on Little’s second goal? Come on Darrin watch the game. Even I could tell on the non-HD broadcast in my area that it was Oduya and Stewart. And what a beautiful play all around it was. There’s your skill Smoothie.
Cornbread
January 9th, 2011
5:38 pm
I thought the best line was Thorburn Little Stewart. They had jump all game. Thorburn was once again thrown into a new position on left wing. This team is really missing the Greek Gods line right now and the energy and down low cycle they bring every game. Boulton Antro Stapleton did a good job of cycling the puck for such an odd combo. Let’s hope the practice gets them all back to playing the Thrashers system.
Smoothie
January 9th, 2011
5:44 pm
Corny – I love Stewart’s effort, speed and hustle, but other than some good outlet passes and chip plays, he has hands of almost stone. You gotta admit he is hardly a top 6 forward, especially with a grinding Thorburn on the opposite wing. Can’t have two, would prefer Antro-Little-Stew/Thorbs or something like that. Little can protect Antro and perhaps Antro can get to the scoring area better with Little’s ability to handle and pass from corners / behind the net.
Rawhide
January 9th, 2011
6:31 pm
This is specifically for Red Light, but this is your official 10-minute Ranallo Warning. New blog to be posted in 10 minutes.
eugene
January 9th, 2011
11:59 pm
“Derp? They came out hard in the second, only to get deflated by more goals against. They came out extremely hard in the third, and laid up 20 shots on Reimer.
Sure, it didn’t matter in the third, and they could have tried harder in the second, but that’s not the point. The point is we lost, and we’ll get over it.”
They came out hard in the 2nd period? I didn’t get that impression at all. Toronto was the one coming out hard. I didn’t see the third period as I was already out of the building but when I left the parking structure Toronto had scored 3 goals in that timespan so I find it hard to believe the Thrashers were playing hard, but I’ll take your word for it. I think this game was good for Atlanta, they needed to be reminded that they’re not skilled enough that they can rely on talent alone in winning these games. Hopefully, the effort will be there when they play against Philly on Friday night.