Gameday Panthers & Miscellany

Yea, I'm back. Jury duty is worse than I ever could've expected. Disrupts your life in every possible way. I'd rather not talk about it. Still slowly reintroducing myself into the world.

Thrash tonight. We got the Panthers. Their entire season evidently hangs on this one game. The Thrashers (through years of practice) have developed a keen knack for dashing playoff hopes - we got this one in the bag.

All trendy detached irony aside, I'm extremely excited for next season. The Toby-Bogo pairing is probably the best young D pair in the league. The emergence of the Chicago Pipeline, the miracle that is Rich Peverley, and the wonder that is Ilya Kovalchuk all point toward (at the very least) better things next year. Add some potential FA signings, and we may just have a playoff contender.

Some points to consider:
- The best UFA option not named Hossa (to my eyes) would be Mike Cammalleri. Bruce Boudreau once said that Cammalleri is "the smartest player I’ve had the good fortune to coach. He sees the ice well. He can take a one-timer better than any player I’ve seen. He reads plays like Gretzky and Lemieux.” If Cams looks for the upper-range of his assumed asking price the Flames may have to watch him walk - a situation now somewhat eased by the aquisition of Ollie Jokinen. C'mon, tell me a power play unit that could include both Kovy (shoots right) and Cammalleri (shoots left) doesn't make you salivate. Kovy's more than willing to pass, as we've seen all year, so this duo would be pretty exciting to watch. Some concerns: Chemistry, for one. How would he fit in this dressing room, and more importantly, on the ice with Kovy. Then there's salary. Word on the street is a range of $5-8 mil for Cams, and we'd likely be paying the upper end of such a range. Would the ASG assent to something like that? What do you think?

- As a side note, imagine this headline: Maxim Afinogenov Reinvigorates Career in Atlanta. I could see that happening.

Recipe of the Week. Next time you're out at Cracker Barrel (Craker Barrel? You brought her! Ba dum bum. Thanks, Derek.), ask the waitress for an extra plate of biscuits and a little bottle of that blueberry syrup. Drop those in a to-go container, and that's half a meal right there, brother.

Betty Crocker I ain't.

A Display of Manliness That Just May End Your Will To Live. Please pay a visit to the brethren over at the Chronicle. It seems these mythological Kovy commercials do exist. And they are cooler than anything you'll ever do. That's why he is the Ruler of These Parts.

Colby Armstrong is My Second Favorite Player. I thought that deserved a bullet point.

Jeremy Heilpern is smarter than everyone. If the Thrashers don't hire this guy, I'll be... fricken... suprised. (We'll have to put in the liner notes, "during this joke, he points to the back"...)

Boston Gets the Classic. On Frozen Blog with the big-time artists' conception. I'm still holding out for Pens/Flyers in Happy Valley. I can combine a trip home with some hockey madness. But at this point, I'm not so sure I'd have a team to root for.

What's This? Yup, call me Roger Swain, cause I got me a Victory Garden.

Tomatoes, green beans, basil, chives, and sundry other green leafys. Just doin my part to support the cause.

A year-end retrospective may be in the works. Let's see how I feel about that idea tomorrow.

Speaking of tomorrow, anyone else going to the practice?

Peath out.

Go Thrashers.

Gameday Rangers: An Open Letter to Ilya Kovalchuk

Dear Ilya,

Hey dude! Can't wait to see you guys tonight; I actually got really good tickets this time, instead of that icebox up in the 300s I usually sit in. Well, not that it would take much to get better tickets, someone's always giving away something some where....

But don't think about that.

Anyway, in case you weren't sure who you were playing tonight, it's the New York *expletive* Rangers. Yea, that team with the $20mil "top line" that's averaging 50 points each. Yea, I know, right? Total.... whatever that Russian word was. They're in and out of the playoffs depending on what time it is, and on whether or not King Henrik has had his Wheaties. I mean, c'mon.. they had to go and bring back Torts, for pete's sake...

But also on the FYI tip... I don't know if you noticed, but they got Sean back. Yeah, the America's Top Model reject from the playoffs. But hey, that whole "Avery Rule" thing was kinda amusing, just cause it's Marty, right?

No? Okay, moving on.

My point here is this:

See, that's the Angry Kovy. You know where angry Kovy sits? In the time out box. Yes. Shame. You know who we want to see more of? Good-Lord-Where'd-That-Come-From Kovy:

And that's the thing, that Kovy there is... no offense here... a teensy bit more productive than angry Kovy. But, hey, in the moment, I like Angry Kovy just as much as I like Boults and Thor, and even Oyster-man lately. But just cause it feels good, well, that doesn't quite make it right. Y'know, Ryan Kennedy over at the Hockey News actually had some pretty good advice. He wrote that after you & that caveman Ian White mixed it up a little. But if Crosby can get away with throwing an occasional trantrum like the straight-laced 9th grade honor student who just can't take the pressure (or the bullying) anymore, why can't you?

But I digress. Before you let Mr. Avery get under your skin again, may I make a sugestion? Here's what he looks like to you:


Yea, it'd be real is to give in to the Dark Side and wipe that smirk off his face. But two things: 1) that'd probably get you at least 2 minutes of shame, and 2) ewwwww, you don't know where that face has been. But here's what Seany-boy looks like to the rest of us:

Yup. A great big tool. This joker is a headset mic away from being a Backstreet Boy. And just cause I'm in a little 'shoppin kinda mood:

Srsly, this guy is more worried about matching belts & shoes that anything else. So when you see this:


Just think:


Ooo ooo ooo.... and then.... and then.... and then you could check him real hard into the boards, and say something like "Blue shirts are so last year" in that bad motha Russian accent and skate away and score, like, a bazillion hat tricks. That would be SO awesome.

Anyway, do good tonight, congrats on the new baby, and anytime you need to hug it out, I'm here.

Your friend,
Aaron @ Blueland Outsider


Other business:

- Pens fans, someone please explain to me what use Matt Cooke is to your team. Other than, you know, hitting people really hard in slightly dirty ways. Cause he can't hit the broad side of a barn.

(Any mentions of Patrik Stefan will be ignored. We have Don Waddell. You have Ray Shero. We get, like, 10,000 mulligans when it come to draft choices.)

- As if this post didn't have enough pictures. Here's a warning to all the refs out there:


Get that whistle ready. He'll say things, & you'll cry.

Buncha pansies.

Go Thrashers.
Rangers suck.

I Been Thinking...And It Hurts

You can thank the good Mr. Timmy F over at Thrashing About for this next batch of lukewarm drivel. He did this great post about one-goal games the Thrashers have been involved in this year. He's got a chart. I can't even begin to fathom how one goes about making a chart, so I'm going to look at his data and add to it.

Me, thinking about making a chart.

I can tell you the exact date that I knew this season was a wash. October 25, 2008. The Thrashers were playing the Bruins at Boston Garden (TD Bankwhaaa? Never heard of it.). I was spackling the big chunk o wall I had just replaced in my music room (leaky roof, shoddy patch job, more leaky, more patchy, a little head-bashing & finally got it right). I had the Kamalian on my nifty Grundig crank radio (Srsly, get one. It could Save. Your. Life. Or you could just play with the crank-thing until you get tired of it; and, look! Fashion colors!). Covered in spackle dust, I listened as our Thrashers blew 2 leads, and frittered away 12:38 of the third period without even being able to mutser a tying goal to claim a pity point. The B's still hadn't figured out what kind of powerhouse team they could become, and we hadn't yet seen the depth to which we could fall. The sky was the limit. Until that horn sounded, and we left Boston with no points. Then, The Decline of Thrasher Civilization.

Yup. That just happened.

They skated to a 19-31-5 record until the West Coast swing that netted them an improbable (at the time) 3-2-1 record, and some serious confidence. What happened? Well, on 1/16/09, Jason Williams was traded to Columbus. I'm not saying that Williams was a bad person, never met him, have no clue what he's like. But let's play What If. What if I really like a certain kind of music. Like country, maybe - just picking a random genre out of thin air. What if, in the locker room before a game, somebody (who I otherwise would have no issue with) decides to play some crap like "Russian Privjet" - again, out of thin air. That doesn't put me in the calm zen-like state needed for me to be able to bang some bodies into the boards. Thusly, my play may, just may, be affected. And then, what if I'm hearing he's griping about his lack of power play time? Once more, out of thin air....
The record after the Williams trade? 6-7-0. With 4 of those losses being by 1 goal margins. Then Matthieu Schnieder went to Montreal. 3-2-1. Then Havelid to Jersey. Christensen to Anaheim. 7-3-0. You will not find a bigger Havelid or Schnieder fan than me: both seasoned vets, both assets to their new teams. But I noticed that they may not have been as keyed into the system as some of the other players, whatever "system" we were running at the time. Three players traded, and the record improves. I want to reiterate - these are probably solid, upstanding human beings. But at the same time, they're all human beings. They all affect the ebb & flow of a dressing room.

Look at Kovy. His stats soared after being given the 'C' (as chronicled on this very blog). A conicidence? Well, let throw this theory out at you: Kovy comes in this year, expecting to be named captain, and rightfuly so; I thought it was a foregone conclusion. But here comes HC Johnny A. He's just been named HC, as a matter of fact. He's bad, he's nationwide. He's gotta see how this team works. He's thinking, "Let's hold on just a second on the whole 'C' thing... let's see who steps up." Hence, four 'A's & no 'C'. If I'm Kovy, I might be thinking, "Whoa, new HC is not a Kovy fan." Maybe not in those words, and maybe not conciously at all, but I start to grip my stick a little tighter, second-guess myself before I shoot, etc & etc.

I don't know if luck is the right word. Maybe chemistry might be a better term. But yes, Timmy F, I do believe in this hockey team.

Now, back to the rehashed crap I usually pass along.

*sigh* Okay.... Seems that.... Scott Hartnell may be... *swallows bile* an alright dude. Fartsmell. That'll get you to click the link.

Kevin Allen details the wealth of talent available in this years' draft. What he doesn't tell you is how easy it would be to completely derail their careers due to improper development.

Habs tonight.

Go Thrashers.

Gameday Wings

Can I tell you something? I hate the Red Wings. Have for a long, long time. I would lug my Dreamcast up to my buddy Rob's place, and we'd drink Strongbow and have it out until the wee hours. I was the Rangers (whom, ironically, I also now despise), and Rob was the Wings. Nothing would piss me off more than to see Stephane Quintal botch the reception of an Adam Graves pass, and next thing I know, there goes Federov trucking it down the ice... ah... jeeze.. LKASJFKASHFUIWANC!!!1! aaaaand he flips it right past Richter. Garbage. This sucks, I'm going home. Huh? We have HOW many bottles of Strongbow left? Crap. Fine, one more game. Then I'd make Rob pay with a steady string of Nedved - Fleury one timers. Eat THAT, Osbad... Yeah, we had the two-line pass & offsides off... didn't everybody?

Trip down memory lane notwithstanding, I really dislike Red Wing fans. The minute you mention that you're a hockey fan, out comes this stream of babble that inevitably includes "11 Cups, baby!"; "Scotty Bowman"; "11 Cups!"; "Dynasty"; "Stevie Y"; "Who else has 11 Cups? Yea, the Habs don't count..."; "The Joe" and/or "Hockeytown"; and the not-so-subtle insinuation that fans of sunbelt teams aren't really fans of hockey. Classy.

Anyway, Kovy sounds pumped. Me too.

AO can be a classless punk. But we knew that.

Elliotte Friedman of the CBC talks about Crosby's groin punching and general clownery. He says it's an improvement. Like Jarome Iginla. Mm-hm. Cause I love it when Jarome violates the third-man-in rule, uses another man's crotchial area as a speed bag, and then proceeds to cry because another guy looked at him funny.

Go Thrashers.

Wings suck.

Gameday, Oilers

Tonight in Edmonton
First off, the Oilers' website totaly curb-stomps ours for preview value. Instead of just the obligatory wire preview you get that + game notes + stat comparison + head-to-head stats... Thrasher web guys, the house tours and Blue Crew segments are nice and all, but this is a value-added service with low overhead - ya dig?

It might get chippy tonight with the Oil clamoring to hold on to a playoff spot. Good showing on the Oilers message board. That comic book thingy had me 'til panel 4.

Kovy Since the 'C'
20G - 15A - 35P, +4

I'll predict a 3pt night, 2G - 1A, Thrash roll 4-2 in regs. Oilers drop to tenth, and Molson flies off the shelves in Northern Alberta in record amounts as Oiler fans drown their sorrows.

Go Thrashers.

Gameday Avs

A 9pm game between two teams "playing for respect" - code for "there is absolutely no reason to care about this game at all." Budaj's in net, whom we lit up for 4 on 26 shots last time. This should be fun.

Over at Puck Daddy, there's linkage to a list of the top 10 undrafted players. Greg points out that Lou Lamoriello has had a hand in a couple of those - will Salmela's name be on a list like that one day? We can only hope.

Just weighing in on the anniversary patch: seriously, are there any other ways to turn this franchise into a peewee team? Serve orange slices between periods? The ASG has discovered yet another way to devalue this franchise: self-destructive marketing.

Over at BMR today? Just.... wow.

Some LOLs. Just for laughs.

Gameday/Devils

-Which team will show up tonight? No, I mean which Thrashers team will show up tonight?

-Knobes has a great writeup on the Kaluha line; Slava, Litts & the Todd seem optimistic the chances will soon turn into points, and that's half the battle.

- Boults racked up 26 PIMs in the last matchup with NJ. 3 guesses as to what they were for. Nope, not delay of game. He and Devil Mike Rupp may have to renew their acquaintance before the end of the night.

- Lehtonen in goal tonight. Let's not make him work as hard, shall we, boys?

- The NJD are on a 3 game roll at Phillips. Uh oh.

- Still no Army on the top line with Pevs & Kovy. When will we learn?

- I will eat a copy of the gameday program if we don't get outshot this evening. Promise.

- Speaking of eating:

No Marty yet. Sad face.

Go Thrashers.

Gameday v. Islanders & Nuggets

It's been a while since I've done one of these posts:

Re: Canadian Media Loves Atlanta. Darren Dreger recently posted one of those "Top 10 Players to Watch at the Deadline" things that get so popular 'round this time of year. The usual suspects: Tkachuk, Bouwmeester, the Toronto Maples Leafs...

...and Colby Armstrong?

C'mon, Dreg... seriously? He says:

"[Pittsburgh] would like to see him reunited with Penguins captain Sidney Crosby."

Um, so they can hang out on the weekends? I don't recall Army getting a ton of top line minutes in the 'burgh. I mean, at least make it plausible. Like: "The Pens would really like to have more guys to slam into Colton Orr during Ranger games."

Re: Great Diplomats - Roosevelt, Churchill, Kovalchuk...

First, we had the Malkin-Ovechkin Accords of 2009. Then we had high praise from one of them Kostitsyn boys. Now I find this thought running through my head: What kind of effect could Kovy now have on bringing Illya Nikulin into the fold? Hmmm...

(Yes, that bullet point was just an excuse to post that sweet 'shop.)


Re: Great Writing Speaks For Itself. From Puck Daddy: "Flyers Upset the NHL Thinks They're the Flyers." Great mysteries revealed within.

Re: The Isles Tonight. The frontrunners for the John Tavares Sweepstakes (i.e. "Yet Another Chance to Prove the Islanders Should Be Relocated Before the Thrashers") are in Phillips tonight. Lets review the checklist:

___ Move legs
___ Hit people
___ Shoot puck

Some (if not all) of these tricks may work against the Islanders.

But you gotta show up.

Go Thrashers.

Gameday v. Stars

I'm not so much in the gabby mood right now. But I did have time for a quick shop:

To be fair, Turks & the rest of the Stars seem to have found their mojo since the "incident." And really, these incarnations of these teams are different from the ones that have faced each other in the past. The Stars' PK is abysmal, and our road PP is tough (3rd in the leauge, or something as equally surprising). If we can plant ourselves in Turco's kitchen and make 'em take penalties, the games is as good as won.

Go Thrashers.

Gameday v Flyers, or Everyone Loves Hartnell

- Slates out w/ a bruised shoulder, listed day-to-day. The break is a good thing.

- No Ex tonight. Sad face.

- Briere is headed back to the doctor? Oh my. Didn't see tha.... Oh, wait.

- Alan Muir of SI.com predicts the Don is headed out to pasture sometime soon. See? Muir gets it! EDIT: But who might Darren Eliot be referring to with the comment about a "well-known winger that fits in on Sidney Crosby's line"?

- Thrash are 4-5-1 on the tail of back-to-backers, but 0-11 against Nitty. But he's had the sniffles. So... there's that.

- Bogo knows what to say (from yahoo.com):

"We have worked hard the last couple of games,” rookie defenseman Zach Bogosian said. “We need to not get a big head and keep things simple. Play every shift like it’s 0-0.”

- For those that don't know, congratulations to the staff of the Blueland Chronicle on one year of blogging success.

Finally, just 'cause it's Hartnell...

(The look on that lady's face is classic...)

Flyers suck.

Go Thrashers.

Gameday v. Habs

No staying or going today - focusing on beating the Habs tonight. Halak gets the start, he of the 11.2 GAA against the Thrash. This is also the same Montreal team that blew the two goal lead in the third against Ottawa. As long as the momentum keeps rolling, we can outplay them. They'll run out of comebacks sooner or later.

Tonight's Checklist:
__ Keep the legs moving
__ Go to the net
__ Play physical
__ Have fun

Yes, it really is that easy.

...and just 'cause I'm on a roll:

Go Thrashers.

Pens Tonight

According to Helene Elliott @ the LA Times, the Kings need help in net.

No way! Really?


Hmm....


If only we had an extra goalie we could send them... maybe we could pick up a Jarret Stoll or an Oscar Moller or ANYTHING TO HELP US WIN....


Anyway, Cros & Co. at Phillips tonight. Anyone remember this?

Someone needs to make sure Letang remembers.

I'm looking at you, Eric Boulton.

Let's see more of the team we saw in Ottawa.

The Flower is back in net for the Pens, Taffe & Stone are up from trolling the Wyoming Valley Mall. Let's hope Stone is wearing clothes. Some of our guys might remember them from a small series of games last year.

Anyone know a good place in the GA400/GA20 area to get a Guinness and watch the game?

Let's make tomorrow a bad day for some bloggers.

Go Thrashers.

Gameday - Boston Bruins

- First off, as sick as we all are of this "Trade Kovy" garbage, the media at large is just starting to catch on, so we may have to endure some more of this garbage (along with a good many ignorant Canucks submitting such bold and intelligent comments as "Atlanta sucks! Move 'em to Winnipeg/Kitchener/Hamilton/Toronto/Kamloops/Regina/Other Backwater Commenter Happens to Be From"). Puck Daddy has an article, and I encourage everyone that see to ignore said article. Instead, focus on the possibility of Kovy beating the league's current top netminder multiple times this evening.

- Yes, according to the Boston Globe hockey blogger, Timmy Tommy is the likely starter tonight. I like his 3-3 record (3.08GAA/.897 SV%) a whole lot better than Manny Fernandez's 5-0 (1.80GAA/.923) against the Thrash. But John Anderson was being a little cagey with the Boston media this morning; I don't put it beyond wily veteran coach Claude Julien to pull a little slight-of-hand, either.

- Welcome back, Savvy & Hnidy. Sav, we hope you continue your pointless streak (3 games, and no goals in the last eight? Hm.... maybe you should grip the stick a little tighter), and Shane, keep up that pace for a career-high 100 PIMs!

- Adam Proteau hates the Atlanta Thrashers. What better way to get back at him than to make the playoffs?

- Milan Lucic & Phil Kessel must be stopped.

- Sean Grace over at the Roar has an almost poetic statement as to why trading Kovy would be awful.

- Congrats to former Thrasher Pascal Dupuis on his first career hatter. Postgamer with Dan Potash, go to the 1:00 mark for creamy goodness.

Gameday Mongoose

The unequaled, the original...

Go Thrashers.

See you at the bulb...

Pens @ Phillips

For some reason, Pens fans don't like Kovy.....

Go buy a tshirt or hoodie from Sally. I did; it'll change your life.

I don't know why that would be...

Predictions:

- Army w/ GWG
- Malkin takes a run @ Kovy
- Boulton vs. Goddard: Boults is 1-1-2 against Goddard; they really like scrapping. It's a sure thing they drop the gloves by the middle of the second.
- Battle of the Backups: Moose v. Sabu. Moose is finding his stride, but Sabourin's already hot.
- Here's to hoping the lucky bounces continue.
- Defense is key; we've got to tighten up on Crosby & Malkin, something we've not really had success with lately. The Pens haven't been overly successful at the Bulb, but this really two completely diferent teams. Score first, score often; mongoose.

And now we throw it over to Puck Daddy with one of the most important questions ever asked...