Hotlanta Hockey: Atlanta Thrashers Midterm Report

Returning players included the excellent Ilya Kovalchuk, who led the team in scoring last season and emerged as one of the premiere left-wingers in the game.

Also, the Thrashers came in with a new coach in John Anderson, who coached their AHL affiliate Chicago Wolves to multiple titles—bringing a winning attitude with him.

They came out of the gate strong against the Capitals, but then proceeded to lose nine of their next 10 games, effectively killing their season before it had a chance to start. They also lost seven of eight after winning five in a row in November.

This has been a season of streaky play, lackluster offense, and stalwart contributors from last year’s squad not living up to expectations this year—such as all-rookie defenseman Tobias Enstrom.

This is a team struggling to find its identity under a new coach—a superstar possibly being traded and an unclear picture as to what the next step really is.

However, not all is doom and gloom for the Thrashers. Kovalchuk is having a pretty good year overall, Todd White has been a pleasant surprise, and although the playoffs are not a realistic goal, the team will be able to get a great idea of what the future holds for it in the next couple of months.

Of course, no mid-season recap would be complete without a recap of the events that have transpired—leading us to where we are at this point. From the highs of the year (there aren’t many) to the lows of the season, the Thrashers’ season can be adequately summed up by this rundown of these relevant stories.

First Half Highlight:

For an honorable mention, we can look to opening night when Bryan Little scored two goals and added an assist in the team’s 7-4 thrashing of the Washington Capitals at Phillips Arena.

The highlight of the season up to this point, however, has to be the events of two games ago, when Kari Lehtonen held New Jersey to no goals, and the Thrashers beat the Devils 4-0 on the road. This victory marked a total team effort with Kovalchuk, Jim Slater, Colby Armstrong, and Marty Reasoner all scoring goals and Lehtonen making 29 saves for the improbable shutout.

Kovalchuk also called the game “a total team effort,” and praised his teammates for finishing checks. He also said he hopes “in the second half of the season, we will get way more points than we did in the first half.”

It was this kind of statement that made the Thrashers decide to elect him captain of the team.

First Half Low-light:

While starting the year at 2-9 may seem like an obvious choice, the team’s effort (or lack thereof) against the Lightning on Jan. 4 may have been the low-point of the season.

John Anderson lit into the team after the 4-1 loss, saying that "the give-a-crap-o-meter is at like zero."

While this may seem a trifle strong, he continued on airing his angry emotions saying “I’ve got to question whether anybody cares in that locker room right now. It’s a joke.”

This is a man accustomed to winning (see the championship banners hanging from the Allstate Arena rafters where the Wolves play), and when things don’t go his way, he won’t take excuses from anybody. This was just one shining example of the accountability that Anderson demands from his players.

Recognition Comes in Small Doses for These Thrashers:

The Thrashers certainly have not given the national press, the league, or even their own city a whole lot to pay attention to this season, but there have been a few stories that can be marked on the ledger of “recognition-worthy” for this Atlanta team.

The first story is the season that Kovalchuk is having. He has had an up-and-down season, eerily similar to the fate of the team he plays for. He has scored goals in bunches this season and then will go without any for a slew of games. All of this has happened in a year where trade rumors are running rampant about him, and he hasn't let it affect him one bit.

Also, Kovalchuk has had a good year off the ice—named to the All-Star team and named team captain last week.

Another player who received recognition for his contributions is Little who was selected by the NHL to play in the Young Stars Rookie-Sophomore Game before the big All-Star Game in Montreal at the end of the month. He will be joined by players such as Nicklas Backstrom, Devin Setoguchi, Kris Versteeg, and No. 1 pick Steven Stamkos on Jan. 24.

A Sign That All Is Not Lost for The Thrashers:

When Ruslan Fedotenko and Armstrong dropped their gloves in the team’s Jan. 6 tilt against the Penguins, it seemed as though the fight was one-sided in favor of Fedotenko who dropped Armstrong in one punch.

However, in a possible sign of a karma-reversing course for the Thrashers, Fedotenko broke his hand on that punch and will be out for 4-to-6 weeks. While it caused pain to Ruslan and the Penguins, it may be easier to see that Armstrong was willing to stand up and fight—showing that the team still has some fight left in it.

While this year certainly won’t be a playoff campaign, we can only hope that the Thrashers continue to show the grit that they did against the Devils, and perhaps they will pick up some spoiler “reps” (thank you Bill Simmons) that they can use to their advantage next season.