Atlanta Thrashers Schedule
Tuesday
9/21/2010
7:00 PM
Atlanta Thrashers vs Columbus Blue Jackets PRE
Saturday
9/25/2010
7:00 PM
Atlanta Thrashers vs Carolina Hurricanes PRE
Monday
9/27/2010
7:00 PM
Nashville Predators vs Atlanta Thrashers PRE
NEWS
By Bud L. Ellis
For the sixth consecutive season, the Atlanta Thrashers will skate on Sports Radio 680 The Fan.
Cumulus Media and Dickey Broadcasting Company announced Monday the Thrashers will once again call 680 AM its flagship station, anchoring an 18-station radio network throughout Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama. (Read More…)
Tuesday, July 20, 2010 at 4:20 am by bud
Tags: Atlanta Braves, Atlanta Hawks, Atlanta Thrashers, Craig Ramsay, Cumulus Media, Dan Kamal, Dickey Broadcasting Company, National Hockey League, Sports Radio 680 The Fan
By Bud L. Ellis
He’s one of those guys every successful hockey team needs. He’s not flashy – except when he flashes his fists to stick up for his teammates.
Eric Boulton plays the game hard, grinding in the corners and taking out opponents trying to break free up the ice. His physical play has made him a fan favorite of the Atlanta Thrashers, and the organization rewarded the 33-year-old by resigning him last week. (Read More…)
Tuesday, July 13, 2010 at 6:48 pm by bud
Tags: Atlanta Thrashers news, Atlanta Thrashers schedule, Atlanta Thrashers tickets, Eric Boulton, National Hockey League
By Bud L. Ellis
The offseason makeover of the Atlanta Thrashers continued Monday, with the hiring of Mike Stothers to finish out the coaching staff.
Stothers comes to Atlanta after a career spent coaching mostly in the minor leagues. He did spent 2000-02 behind the bench with the Philadelphia Flyers, serving as an assistant along with newly named Thrashers’ head coach Craig Ramsay. (Read More…)
Monday, July 12, 2010 at 8:25 pm by bud
Tags: American Hockey League, Atlanta Thrashers news, Atlanta Thrashers tickets, Craig Ramsay, Grand Rapids Griffins, John Anderson, John Torchetti, Mike Stothers, National Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, Owen Sound, Philadelphia Flyers
By Bud L. Ellis
Fans of the Atlanta Thrashers are accustomed to seeing the team make a bevy of moves in the offseason, only to be disappointed with the results on the ice the following winter.
That comes with the territory when you’ve made the NHL playoffs just once in a decade of existence.
With that said, it’s easy to get excited about what the Thrashers have done this summer. (Read More…)
Friday, July 9, 2010 at 10:00 am by bud
Tags: Akim Aliu, Atlanta Thrashers, Ben Eager, Brent Sopel, Chris Mason, Craig Ramsay, Dustin Byfuglien, John Torchetti, National Hockey League, Rick Dudley
By Bud L. Ellis
Down two goals on the road against one of the top teams in the NHL, the Atlanta Thrashers dug deep and entered the Olympic break with momentum.
The Thrashers scored three times in the second period, fought hard through overtime and eventually lost in a shootout Saturday night at Chicago, 5-4. Despite the loss, Atlanta wrapped up a difficult Midwestern road trip with four points in three games.
The burst to close the pre-Olympic part of the schedule moves the new-look Thrashers to within two points of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Atlanta traded franchise all-time leading scorer Ilya Kovalchuk and former No. 1 goaltender Kari Lehtonen in separate deals last week.
In Chicago to face the Blackhawks, who are third in the NHL with 85 points, Atlanta fell behind 3-1 in the first. Jim Slater scored at 3:41 of the first before the Blackhawks ripped off three goals in six minutes against Ondrej Pavelec.
But the Thrashers fought back in the second, getting goals from Evander Kane, Max Afinogenov and Tobias Enstrom to take a 4-3 lead entering the final period.
Chicago beat Pavelec early in the third on a Dave Bolland goal to tie the game. In the shootout, Jonathan Toews scored the only goal to give the Blackhawks the win.
Still, it was a strong finish to the pre-Olympic break for Atlanta. The Thrashers resume pursuit of their second playoff berth in franchise history on March 2 at home against Florida.
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Sunday, February 14, 2010 at 11:30 am by bud
Tags: Atlanta Thrashers, Chicago Blackhawks, Dave Bolland, Evander Kane, Florida Panthers, Ilya Kovalchuk, Jim Slater, Jonathan Toews, Kari Lehtonen, Max Afinogenov, National Hockey League, Ondrej Pavelec, Tobias Enstrom
By Bud L. Ellis
In eight years, Ilya Kovalchuk wrote his name all over the Atlanta Thrashers’ record book, becoming the franchise’s cornerstone and the face of hockey in Atlanta.
That era ended Thursday night with the soon-to-be free-agent Kovalchuk packing his bags for New Jersey and the Thrashers looking to move on without their career leader in games, points, goals and assists.
Ending months of tense contract negotiations during which general manager Don Waddell offered as much as $100 million, the Thrashers dealt the perennial All-Star left winger to the Devils as part of a deal involving five players, three draft picks and plenty of teeth-grinding in Atlanta on who to blame for Kovalchuk’s departure.
Atlanta also sends defenseman Anssi Salmela, traded from New Jersey last year for Niclas Havelid, to the Devils. In return, Atlanta gets defenseman Johnny Oduya, rookie forward Niclas Bergfors and prospect Patrice Cormier.
Bergfors is fifth in the NHL in rookie scoring, with 13 goals and 14 assists. Oduya is a strong defenseman who has just four points this year, but scored 27 points a year ago while playing all 82 games. Cormier had 31 goals in 31 games in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League before being suspended for the rest of the season for a high elbow.
Without a doubt, though, the centerpiece is Kovalchuk, who scored 31 goals with 27 assists in 49 games for an Atlanta team just one point out of a playoff spot. But Kovalchuk, who will be an unrestricted free agent July 1, and the Thrashers could not come to terms. Rather than keep him and risk getting nothing in return if a contract couldn’t be reached, the Thrashers decided to roll the dice that they could make the playoffs without their top scorer.
For many, the blame rests with Waddell, who wasn’t aggressive enough early on in negotiations. For some, the blame rests with Kovalchuk, who was offered plenty of money but wanted the absolute max salary possible.
Either way, the Thrashers’ playoff chase begins anew Friday night against Eastern Conference leader Washington. For the first time since April 2001, they’ll take the ice without Kovalchuk as part of their organization.
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Thursday, February 4, 2010 at 8:36 pm by bud
Tags: Anssi Salmela, Atlanta Thrashers, Don Waddell, Ilya Kovalchuk, Johnny Oduya, National Hockey League, New Jersey Devils, Niclas Bergfors, Patrice Cormier, Washington Capitals
By Bud L. Ellis
The Atlanta Thrashers find themselves in a logjam for the final Eastern Conference playoffs spots. Every game leading up to the Olympic break is critical for a team that’s fighting to be in position to make a postseason push come March.
This is not the time the Thrashers want to see Antero Niittymaki in the pipes at the opposite end of the rink. But that’s likely what will be the case Tuesday at Philips Arena, when Atlanta plays host to Tampa Bay.
Niittymaki is 15-0-0 – yes, 15-0-0! – against the Thrashers in his career, with a 1.79 goals against average. Two of those wins have come this season, including a 2-1 shootout victory on Jan. 23 during which Niittymaki stuffed the Thrashers through five rounds of the shootout.
Both teams are coming off tough road losses. Saturday, the Thrashers battled back from an early 2-0 deficit only to lose in Nashville, 4-3. Sunday, the Lightning fought back to tie red-hot Washington before the Caps prevailed 3-2, extending Washington’s win streak to 10 games.
If the playoffs opened today, both teams would just miss a postseason spot. Atlanta wakes up tied for ninth with Montreal with 56 points, one point out of eighth. Tampa Bay sits with 55 points, tied for 11th with Boston.
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Tuesday, February 2, 2010 at 5:27 am by bud
Tags: Antero Niittymaki, Atlanta Thrashers, Boston Bruins, Montreal Canadians, Nashville Predators, National Hockey League, Philips Arena, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals
By Bud L. Ellis
There is a long way to go until the Stanley Cups Playoffs begin, and plenty of teams fighting for a handful of spots in the middle of the Eastern Conference.
There is plenty of time for the Atlanta Thrashers to slide back in the standings. But, if the Thrashers find themselves among the eight teams from the East entering postseason play, circle Thursday night’s remarkable 4-3 victory at Philadelphia.
The win moved Atlanta from 13th to sixth in the tightly bunched Eastern Conference standings. It’s just late January, but for a franchise that’s tasted the postseason just once in its decade of existence, it’s huge nonetheless.
Trailing on the road by two goals, against a team that historically gives Atlanta fits, the Thrashers rallied for three goals in the third period. Johan Hedberg made it stand up, putting on a performance that included perhaps the save of the season in the NHL.
The hot-shot rookie, Evander Kane, and the forgotten man, Jim Slater, teamed up for two goals that sparked Atlanta. The first goal gave Atlanta a 1-0 lead six minutes into the game. The second one was far more important.
After Ilya Kovalchuk snapped a four-game scoreless streak with his 31st of the season just 29 seconds into the third period, Rich Peverley tied the game with 15:34 left on a breakaway.
Kane then broke free down the left side, wrapped around the net and found an open Slater in the slot for the game-winner with 6:34 left.
Hedberg made it stick, coming way out of his net to slap away a shot. In the process, his mask and jersey fell over his head, and he blindly tried to clear the puck. Hedberg emerged with a smile on his face, and his teammates were all grins a few minutes later when the game ended, Atlanta’s first back-to-back regulation wins since mid-December.
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Saturday, January 30, 2010 at 12:17 pm by bud
Tags: Atlanta Thrashers, Evander Kane, Ilya Kovalchuk, Jim Slater, Johan Hedberg, National Hockey League, Philadelphia Flyers, Rich Peverley
By Bud L. Ellis
These are the types of games the Atlanta Thrashers can ill-afford to lose if they want to reach the playoffs.
But Antero Niittymaki once again kept the Thrashers at bay, and after 65 minutes of dramatic hockey and five shootout rounds, Atlanta left Tampa with a bitter 2-1 loss.
Jeff Halpern beat Johan Hedberg in round five of the shootout, and Niittymak improved to 15-0 lifetime against the Thrashers, making 37 saves. As great as Hedberg was, Niittymak was better.
The loss moves the Lightning into a tie with the Thrashers for 12th place in the Eastern Conference with 52 points, three behind the Rangers and Montreal, who occupy the final two playoff spots.
Nik Antropov scored the lone goal for the Thrashers at the 5:23 mark of the first period. Tampa tied the game two minutes later. The score then remained knotted at 1-1 the rest of the way, in a game that features playoff-type intensity and hard-fought play from both sides.
Atlanta looks to rebound Tuesday at Philips Arena against Anaheim.
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Sunday, January 24, 2010 at 1:18 pm by bud
Tags: Anaheim Ducks, Antero Niittymaki, Atlanta Thrashers, Jeff Halpern, Johan Hedberg, Montreal Canadians, National Hockey League, New York Rangers, Nik Antropov, Philips Arena, Tampa Bay Lightning
By Bud L. Ellis
Usually, it takes the Atlanta Thrashers a period or so to come to life.
Thursday night at Philips Arena, the Thrashers had plenty of jump in the game’s first three minutes, putting five shots on goal against Carolina. But then, the air went out of the balloon, Eric Stahl scored the first of his three goals and the rout was in motion.
Sure, the 5-2 final score didn’t look bad, but trust me, it was. Many inside Philips Arena left during the early stages of the third period, when Atlanta had three power plays and couldn’t muster much of a charge, down at that stage 4-1 to the team with the worst record in the NHL.
Colby Armstrong gave the home crowd a glimmer of hope, cutting the deficit to 4-2 with under nine minutes to play. But Carolina was too strong, and Stahl capped his hat trick with an empty netter in the final minutes.
Rich Peverley put Atlanta on the board midway through the second period. But by then it was 4-0, thanks to two quick Carolina goals three minutes apart in the first half of the first period, and two power-play goals 1:53 apart in the opening minutes of the second period.
The loss keeps Atlanta out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the East. The Thrashers remain at 51 points, tied for 10th with Montreal, three points behind the Islanders and Bruins, who are tied for seventh.
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Thursday, January 21, 2010 at 9:34 pm by bud
Tags: Atlanta Thrashers, Boston Bruins, Carolina Hurricanes, Colby Armstrong, Eric Stahl, Montreal Canadians, National Hockey League, New York Islanders, Philips Arena, Rich Peverley
