Kari Lehtonen is a Thrasher for 1 more year?

To my loyal readers.....all 3 of you! ;) Sorry for my absence, had some stuff going on, but now today I have a chance to sit down and blog a bit.

First off, Congrats to Kari Lehtonen on his 1 year deal. I personally was a little shocked that Kari was only given the 1 year. With the recent contracts of Fleury and Miller, one would have thought that Lehtonen would have been locked in for a good 3 to 4 years. Hmmm makes one think doesn't it? Does this mean that Kari Lehtonen is not the future goal tending god that we all thought Don wanted him to be? Perhaps the team is leading toward making Pavelec the next Zeus. I think we honestly see that Pavelec will be a member of the Chicago Wolves this season, unless Kari's iron groin acts up again. Kari has to fight this season if he wants to remain an Atlanta Thrasher. If he has a bad season, or an injury filled season, I would make a prediction of Kari being a trade deadline pawn. Of course if he is killer and stays healthy, perhaps Pavs would be the trade bait.

Kari has to learn to keep his head in the game. I tend to be a fan of the goalie, so I watch the goalies very closely during the game. Next time you watch Kari play and the Moose play take note of this. In between plays Moose does his skating around, he will got to the left side of the net, circle back and then go to the right side of the net and circle back. Moose hardly ever looks at the score board, Moose never looks at the fans. He talks to himself, stays in a zone, does not get distracted. Kari, skates around, looks at the fans, looks at the scoreboard. He gets distracted. I am not saying anything against Kari, he just needs to become mentally tougher. Tune out what is going on around him. Focus on the game. That right there is the difference in a veteran and a kid. Moose will help Kari and will help Pavelec. Honestly this is just another chapter in the Lehtonen/Pavelec debate.

If you read my blog, feel free to drop me an email at anonthrashersblogger@gmail.com and always feel free to leave comments. I blog to start a conversation, to debate, and to learn.

Take care and see you next time.

(Special Thanks to one of my readers for the cool picture for this blog).

Lehtonen Re-Signed

The Thrashers and Lehtonen reached a deal on Wed rumored to be 1 year at around 3 million dollars. I say good move on both sides. I will have a new blog this weekend about recent signings and more.

Are we Finnish-ed or just Pav-eling a long?

So what is the hold up with Kari Lehtonen signing with the Thrashers? Is he holding out for more money and more years? One would wonder why the two have not reached an agreement. Don Waddell has been quoted several times saying that Kari would be back, he would match the offers from any other clubs, and that his salary is being added into the cap totals. Kari has been quoted as to saying he wants to stay in Atlanta and doesn't want to go anywhere else. Heck he has a nice pad to live in, so why would he?

So I guess my question is, why hasn't he signed?

It seems that a guy who has the Calder Cup Championship goalie breathing down his neck, would want to go ahead and get this taken care of.

I know that it is a great debate on who should be the Thrashers "franchise" goalie or "future" of the team. It causes quite an uproar on message boards and possibly a few fists fights in person. You can't argue that Pavelec was pretty good in the AHL, but his numbers with the big club were not wonderful, but by far they didn't suck. He was right around .500 winning percentage just like Hedberg, and the team was for most of the year (until the fall into the pit started in Feb).

But the real question is, Is Pavelec ready for a full time gig with the big boys? Even if he is, would another tour of duty in the AHL really hurt? Nah, won't hurt at all. The pressure could be good for both the guys. Kari knows if he slips he has Pavs on his heals and Pavs knows that he has to continue to train hard and work on his game. So a win/win situation. Then we have Moose playing mentor role to which ever kid is on the roster with him. Good plan.

But another question is, do we trade an asset in order to get what the team needs? It is no question that the team needs defense and a good center and I say even another winger. Do we trade Pavs? Do we sign Kari and trade him? Or do we trade someone else, like say oh a Brett Sterling. Sterling didn't really wow anyone on the NHL level this season, so he could be bait or in a package. The problem is the Thrashers have a boat load of youthful talent, but for some unknown reason when they make the journey from Chicago to Atlanta they leave that talent on the plane. It is like NHL ice is kryptonite to them. Krog, Haydar, Sterling, just to name a few, never really made their splash when called up. Send them back down and they turn into awesome hockey playing machines. So, instead of letting them play out their contracts with the Wolves and then sign with other teams when they become free agents ( Krog and Haydar), trade the assets we have now for something we need now.

Oh the decisions Don has to make. Kari only has until July 15th, so hopefully we will hear something positive on that soon. I do believe a big trade with happen, one that will make or break our season.

Thanks for reading. Go Thrashers.

It isn't over, it is just the beginning.......

I will tell you what, the line at the video store was long. Everyone was trying to rent the same movie, but I got it. Now it is time to sit back, relax, enjoy a little popcorn and pop this DVD in. I think I have seen it before, or something similar, but what the heck I can watch it again.

It is the common movie about a down and out pro sports team. Picked to fail and to have the worst players and coaches in the league. Then the plot twists when the team gets the new coach, who is ready to take over the wheel and right the sinking ship, with his new styles and methods. Then you have your star player who just wants to win, the older veteran who wants another shot at going all the way, the kids who just want to prove themselves, and the rest of the cast of character who are average players who will become awesome by the end of the movie. So lets start this thing.

I am a big fan of the sports movie. Major League, Slap Shot, Unnecessary Roughness, the Comebacks (ha ha I like parody movies too). To me, this Thrashers season has the makings of a great sports movie. Now, just hear me out for a minute.

Everything is set up. The Thrashers are coming off a horrible season, they have lost some of their big name players (not that we actually mind losing some), and they are being ridiculed in the world of blogs, rumours, and well sports in general. It seems everyone is picking the Thrashers to fail, and not only just fail, fail miserably. Perfect setting isn't it?

The new coach comes in and changes everything, starts getting things in order, running the team effectively. He works with the players' individual strengths in order to make the team more rounded. The team starts playing better, even with the average talent of the players and boom we have out story.

I think it could happen. I really think that everyone is counting the Thrashers out way to early in the season. Well heck, the season hasn't even started. The roster isn't set. The scheduled hasn't been released. The tickets haven't been printed, but the popcorn has been popped and stored in trash bags for the preseason.

Anything can happen, Don could land a good free agent (if there are any left). He certainly could trade to fill the gaps. Pure talent is not always the answer. Working together as a team can also increase our chances. Last season I felt that the guys didn't get along so well and that spilled onto the ice. I have played sports and I have coached sports and one thing I know is that you have to all be friendly and work together to get the job done. If a team is full of attitude and "clicks', then it will not function as a well oiled machine. Instead the wheels will fall off and the machine will burst into flames when it hits the wall.

I think Anderson is going to turn this around. He will be able to take the players that we do have and create a team. I, for one am a Thrashers fan. You have to experience and live through the bad in order to enjoy and appreciate the good. Take a page from the Atlanta Braves. I suffered through the bad seasons. I went to games where there were 12 people it seemed there total. I also was able to enjoy it when things improved. I was loyal to my team. I am loyal to the Thrashers now. That doesn't mean that I don't get frustrated with the players, coaches and Don because I do. I like to vent too. But I will always support them. Why? I am loyal to MY team and I enjoy the sport of hockey.

So for now I am going to pause this movie. I hope I am right about the ending. I still believe that heads will turn and opinions will change. It is too early to tell right now, it is only July and this isn't do back until oh.......... June ;)

More to come soon. Thank you for stopping by.

So Atlanta is the arm pit of the NHL? I Think NOT!

I don't know about you, but I just absolutely hate it when someone bad mouths a friend of mine. It makes me angry and my first instinct is to kick in the teeth of the guy who insults my pal. My pal in this case is the Atlanta Thrashers. Yeah I know, they had a horrible year last year, but they are far from being so freaking awful that no one wants to play with them. So Boyle and Campbell, this blog is for you.

During the 2006- 2007 NHL Season, the Philadelphia Flyers played 82 games. They only won 22 of them. They lost 48 of them and lost in overtime 12 times. That season they only brought in 56 points total. They were 15th in the Eastern Conference, dead last. They were 30th in the NHL, dead last.

So after this horrible season, did they call it quits, give up, start training for the ice capades?? NO. At the trade deadline in 2007, the Flyers acquired Scottie Upshall, Ryan Parent, Braydon Coburn, and Marty Biron. Then in the off season they added Kimmo Timonen, Scott Hartnell, Joffrey Lupul, Jason Smith, and Danny Briere.

In the 2007-2008 Season, the Flyers finished 6th in the Eastern Conference with 42 wins, 29 losses, 11 over time losses with 95 points. They were 11th overall in the NHL. Not only did they come that far, they took out Washington in Round 1 and Montreal in Round 2 to get to the Eastern Conference finals only to be knocked out by Pittsburgh.

That is a mighty good turn around. So why is it automatically assumed that the Thrashers aren't going to be able to do it?

After going 0-6 to start the season last year the Thrashers battled back and hung at or around .500 for the majority of the season, until the trade deadline. I do believe that everything with Hossa really screwed the team. The media frenzy, him dogging it all season. Hossa never wanted to be a Thrasher, it was something he was forced in to, tricked if you will. He never made the best of it, if he would have played like he was capable of, who knows how the season may have turned out. He was a negativity in the locker room, even if he wasn't meaning to be. The players knew, the fans knew, it was just a matter of time before he was gone. Though honestly he was gone a lot sooner than February. I can't say I blame the guy for wanting a Cup. That is the goal, but you still need to give it your all night ater night for the team you are with, honestly he checked out during the 2007 playoffs.

Yes I know Don Waddell didn't sign anyone on the first day of free agency, big whoop. He tried. He can't help that these players are so blinded by money and wanting to be in a traditional market that they do not want to give Atlanta a chance. I mean, did we really want Campbell? Yes he is a great defensemen, but he seemed to choke with San Jose during the playoffs. $8 million is a lot of money to take a gamble on him and for an extended length of time. I honestly think Campbell helped us out by turning us down.

I don't understand why everyone is counting them out when the team isn't set and the ice isn't even in place at Phillips Arena. It is only July. There are a lot of moves to be made. Do you honestly think that Tampa Bay, making all these moves, is going to be extremely better. In all honesty you can have all the talent in the world, but you don't know that the team will mesh. Players have egos and attitudes. Too many of those in the locker room can cause problems. So lets just wait and see what happens in Tampa.

Speaking on locker room attitudes. I think one of the downfalls of the 2007-2008 Season for the Thrashers was naming Bobby Holik as captain. A natural leader he isn't. Holik reminds me of a little boy and if he doesn't get his way he takes his ball and goes home. Did you ever notice when there was a questionable call or a penalty and the captain on the other team would go out to center ice to talk to the official, was Holik there for our team? Nope, it would be Recchi or Kovy. Did you ever notice when someone took a shot at our best player and the captain was on the ice, he just skated around like practicing for Disney on Ice and didn't try to help out his team mate? The only good thing about Holik was his face off percentage. His attitude was probably bad in the locker room and now he is New Jersey's problem.

I was a fan of Mark Recchi and I was glad he came to Atlanta after the way the Pens did him. After reading his remarks I lost a little respect from him. These remarks are because he didn't get an offer. So he is trying to play it cool, cause he wasn't going to sign with Atlanta anyway. Nice move Mark. Real classy. He got dumped and can't handle the rejection.

Then there is Zhitnik. I am honestly not sure what went down with him last season, but I think it was along the lines of Hossa-itis. Zhitnik didn't want to be in Atlanta either, so well, he played half assed. He must have said or did something to really tick of Don and the ownership. No love lost I am sure. I do not understand Don's denial of buying him out earlier in June, but I think this was a solid move to allow us to make a move for a more positive influence and someone that wants to play in Atlanta. Good Riddance. But do you think anyone is going to pick Zhitnik up and pay him the millions he THINKS he deserves? NOPE, I see him going to play in Russia.

I must say I am excited about this season, so far we are having a great team shaping up. The D is coming together. Hainsey is an awesome addition, new blood, scoring on the Power Play. And he actually wants to be a Thrasher. He is excited about playing for Anderson. I really feel this is a good move and we have him for awhile. He could be our franchise D-man.

For a while I thought Exelby was, but after last season I am not sure. He seems to be gun shy now and he really needs a freakin hair cut. Let's hope Mama Exelby got out the scissors when he went home.

We have a great new coach with a proven winning approach, we have signed a new D-Man and taken out some of the garbage. If we can get Ilya Nikulin to come here and leave Russia our defense will have made a complete 180. We have young talents thanks to Hossa, Christensen and Armstrong. I really excited to see these guys play a full season and get their confidence in their new team. We just need to get Kovy a play making center, get Slava out of his funk and have two scoring lines instead of one. Not sure what is going to happen between Kari and Pavs, but either one will be solid and then we have Moose as the back up and mentor.

I see us making a play for the playoffs this year. I don't count us out. Things are shaping nicely.

As for Boyle and his comments about being picked up by Atlanta on waivers:

Boyle said he was pushed into waiving his no-trade clause after a member of Bolts management told him if he didn't agree to a trade, he'd be put on waivers and would likely have been claimed by the Thrashers.


"I've been a top guy in ice time the last few years. They call my work ethic into question? I work out to be in the best shape possible and things about me were questioned. It got to the point where my ass was threatened to be put on waivers and I was going to be picked up by a last-place team that wouldn't win for the next six years. You tell me, is that any way to do (bleeping) business?

Well, what goes around comes around buddy. How was it in the bottom of the South East, East and NHL last season? Did you enjoy only the 37 games you played last year and that -29 you had? Hmmm you must have been on the ice for a lot of goals huh? I wonder how many games you will actually be able to play in this year? May you have a wonderful season in San Jose. I can honestly say, Blueland is too good for you.


Atlanta can and will be a hockey town, and I will touch base on that in my next blog before now this is my closing. The Atlanta Thrashers are by no means the worse team in the NHL, they have potential and can have a turn around season just like Philly did last year. Before you pass judgement, wait until November, then lets talk.

Thanks for reading. Feel free to comment and look for my next blog.

Welcome to this Blog

Hello and thank you for stopping by my new Atlanta Thrashers Blog. There are many blogs out there associated with the Thrashers and hockey in general, so hey here is one more.

I am creating this blog as a way to vent and keep people up to date on what is happening with the Atlanta Thrashers and hockey.

So please feel free to check back and if you want to be notified when this blog is updated please just email me at anonthrashersblogger@gmail.com and I will add you to this list.

Go Thrashers.

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