Ilya Kovalchuk is no longer a Thrasher.
He was traded today to the New Jersey Devils along with Anssi Salmela in exchange for Swedish Olympic defenseman Johhny Oduya, rookie center Niklas Bergfors, prospect Patrice Cormier and a first-round pick in this year’s NHL Entry Draft which will be held in June in LA. The teams will also swap second round picks in this year’s draft.
Oduya, 28, is a solid defensive defenseman who has 17 goals, 70 points and a +45 rating to his credit in 273 NHL games. The Stockholm native was drafted out of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League in 2001 but played five seasons of pro hockey in Sweden before returning to North America to suit up for the Devils in 2006-07. Since then he has been a constant on the New Jersey blueline, using his skating ability and hockey sense to shut down the opposition on a nightly basis. In a lot of respects he resembles an older Toby Enstrom, except he’s more of a stay-ay-home defender instead of a playmaker. Within their own ends their games are very similar, and both will represent Sweden at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver later this month. Oduya averaged 22:10 of ice-time this season with the Devils and played approximately a minute and a half per game on the penalty kill. Like Enstrom he’s not particularly physical, but he can step up with a big hit when needed (see video). He can also spark an end-to-end rush on occasion (as seen here and here). Oduya has two years remaining on his current contract.
Niclas Bergfors was a first-round pick (23rd overall) in 2005 and in his first full season with the Devils after playing mainly in the AHL in the previous two seasons. The rookie winger has 13 goals and 14 assists for 27 points in 54 games, good for fifth in rookie scoring (Evander Kane is ninth) and third in goals scored by rookies (behind Matt Duschene and John Tavares and ahead of James van Riemsdyk). Just 22-years-old, Bergfors has already represented Sweden three times in international play. At 5-11, 195 lbs he’s not particularly big but he is a high-end talent. In 2005-06 he led the Albany River Rats in scoring while playing as the youngest player in the AHL. Here is what Hockey’s Future has to say about him:
“Bergfors is a well rounded player, and is more than willing to compete hard at both ends of the rink, a trait that is quite important for a player that gets drafted into the Devils organization. Bergfors sees the ice very well, possessing above average hockey sense that keeps him one step ahead of everyone else. He is a responsible defensive player and is not afraid to play physical style of game.”
Here’s just one Bergfors highlight from YouTube but there are plenty to be found. He clearly has great hands and above average speed and acceleration. He is in the final year of his entry-level contract.
Patrice Cormier, from Moncton, New Brunswick, is a top prospect who was taken in the second round (54th overall) in the 2008 draft. The 18-year-old was the captain of team Canada’s silver-medal-winning team at the World Junior Championship this year and was having a strong season for Rimouski in the QMJHL before being traded to Rouyn-Noranda at the league’s trade deadline. Unfortunately he was involved in an ugly on-ice incident three games into his time with the Huskies and has been suspended for the remainder of the season. At 6-2, 205 lbs Cormier has great size and a mean streak, as his 118 PIMs in 54 games last season attest. Here is his pre-draft scouting report from NHL.com:
“Patrice is at his best when he is using his speed and playing an aggressive game. He is a hard worker and is hard to knock off of the puck – at this point in his development, projects to be a third line-type checker. Is the type of player who likes to play in traffic and likes to drive to the net.”
The first-round draft pick is also a key part of this deal, as it could either be used to bolster the prospect depth of the team or potentially flipped between now and the trade deadline for some more help down the stretch. With the Devils being as good as they are this season the pick will likely end up being a late one.
In case you were wondering, the Thrashers play the Devils one more time this season, and it’s at Philips Arena on April 6- the third-last game of the season.
Goodbye Kovy.
I like Bergfors. Oduya I’m not too fond of. We have plenty of d-men like him already.
Here’s what I hope we see tomorrow night:
Kane-Slater-Bergfors
Army-Peverly-Little
Kozlov/White-Antropov-Afinogenov
Boulton-Reasoner-Thorburn
Bogo-Hainsey
Kubina-Enstrom
Oduya-Popovic
Bergfors is exciting I think. Hopefully he’s not the next Erik Christensen.
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Mike Milbury on NESN is bashing DW for not getting enough in return… then again, he traded Chara and a pick (which was used to select Jason Spezza) to Ottawa for Yashin, so what does he know.
He is also bashing Colby Armstrong “and his nine goals” when comparing the Hossa and Kovy deals.
Did we get enough?
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Бляди. Просрали Кови
FIRE WADELL!!!
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Popovic isn’t playing over Valabik. We sent Salmela in the deal so Popovic could be the 7th dman because that’s what he is.
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We got nothing!
I hope Kovy will come back to Atlanta at summer. NJ will not give him $8.0 million
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If we were going to let him go before his contract was up, I expected it to be to AT LEAST get a few decent players. We got nothing. So what was the hurry if they were just going to give him away?
We must be the laughing stocks of the League right now….
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At least Atlanta got something. Not as much as I would have liked. Hopefully Oduya and Bergfors start producing right away. Hope we can make the playoffs without Kovy. Salmela is not a huge loss.
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I have hopes that maybe we can get Kovy this summer when he realizes no one will pay him that much.
Maybe Kovy really does want to be a Thrasher for life and is pulling a Keith Tkatchuk.
Bergfors could be a good player. We all like Kane, and we should, but Bergfors is ahead of Kane in rookie scoring.
Oduya I’m not thrilled over.
After seeing how Popovic played Tuesday night, I bet he plays tomorrow. Oduya or Valabik will sit. Please sit Valabik. He’s terrible.
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Begfors hasn’t scored a point in 13 games. I thought we were going to get something in return. I guess we will rebuild for another 9 years.
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Nina, this team has been the laughing stock of the league since day one. Now its just sad.
F U WADDELL
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Wow, of all the rumors of players we could get from the NHL, and DW picks that package? There are no words, the trade and the lack of the players speaks for itself.
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Nice write up, Ben.
A defensive D-man? OK, I can go with that, but will Anderson????
Begfors has 13G, 14A, -7 and plays 14 min/game.
And Cormiers has been suspended the rest of the season for an illegal elbow.
Wow. This is less than we got for Hossa. What a crap deal. Where are the 50+ goals/season we just lost?
And with Salmela going back to NJ, what did we end up getting for Nic Havelid last year???
Waddell should be fired.
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Yah I agree we totally got screwed on this deal. Way to go Don!!!
It’s another Hossa trade all over again.
But there is a good side though, at least now our power play unit wont rely on kovie and might actually score some goals… And why the hell isn’t Kane on the damn powerplay!!!!!!
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I’m telling you, DW won’t quick until he has his name on the top 5 WORST NHL trades of all time! Come on Donny boy, you can dooo it!
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Don’s letter was well-written. Good riddance to Kovalchuk, the the Atlanta management would be fools to sign him and give up 20% of their salary money. Not only did New Jersey get a rental player, but they gave up 4 solid assets in exchange!! How dumb is that? On top of that, Don said it best now they can go out and get some quality players (2-4) in the off-season to build the team. Well done, great job. I have no doubts Atlanta is heading in the right direction, I wonder what people will say in the next few years when Atlanta is amongst the elite.
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all of you who are asking where the 50 goals are gonna come from are out of your minds. Did you think we were gonna get 50 goals in return? If you did you’re even more retarded than DW.
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I love Kovy, but the Thrashers don’t need a single 100M player. Its too much! They need lots of players. Even if current ownership came up with the number of years Kovy wanted, he would be the only NHL player on the team. Our owners wouldn’t pay for anyone else. It would be Kovy and a bunch of scraps. It is sad he had to go. But, if you are really serious about hockey, and Kovy is, why would he want to play in Atlanta? The really sad part is, the Thrashers got absolutely nothing for him. They should have just kept him till the end of the season. It makes no sense.
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The way TW is playing he should have 50 by 2027
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FIRE DON WADDELL NOW!!!!!!!!!!
There was not a thing that the Devils could have given us to make this trade even. Don has doomed us for the rest of the season and possibly the next couple. I hope hes happy that he got rid of the face of the Thrashers.
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Common folks… it’s obvious that it’s not about money… Kovy wanted to leave for a chance to finally win a title and that was the right decision.
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I’ll put this in perspective – One player (or line for that matter) does not make a team good, teams with 3 solid lines win the cup. For example – Buffalo is one of the elite teams, and other than Ryan Miller the rest of the Sabres are a bunch of OK players, nothing special. That’s the model Atlanta has needed to follow and thats what they’re doing. Atlanta just got 3 first rounders, Kane, this guy from Jersey, and another 1st round pick – PLUS, the Canadian Junior captain – PLUS some good talent already in Peverly and Little. I hope those of you who love Kovalchuk more than the Thrashers don’t become hypocrites when Atlanta starts kicking ass in the near future…..
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Don Waddel what a deal. I hate to say but this is it for me with the Thrashers! I am a long time Atlanta hockey fan back to the Flames. Heatley, Hossa, Kovalchuk and we got what?? Thrashers will never amount to anything! Goodbye!!
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Sam. We also got NJ 2nd round pick last year in that deal. That guy happens to be the 3rd best scorer in his junior league right now, you might recognize the name Jeremy Morin. And he will play in ATL next year promise. That being said…I like the trade, we were going to lose Kovy at the end of the season. Oduya is a nice asset, as we may not be able to keep Kubina after this season, don’t know if he will re-sign. Bergfors is a great asset, he was a 1st round pick and putting him with Kane, Bogo, Toby and some of our prospects from this past draft has the makings of a talented young team. The prospect Cormier is good as well. Is there some baggage, sure. But he is young and that can be overcome, one thing you can’t teach is passion and he apparently has a ton of that, we just have to channel it. And then there is the pick, two 1st rounders is never bad.
Remember, DW is not in total control anymore. Dudley is here and he is a supreme talent evaluator…as evidence of our last draft. With his input we will make the most of what we received.
I will continue to have faith in our PLAYERS & FANS & DUDLEY, read into that what you will, always. Nice job by whoever put this move together.
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Drew, the only problem with your philosophy is the “except for Ryan Miller” part. Can you say the same thing about Pavelec or Hedberg or Lehtonen? I don’t think so…
That being said, I think we won’t be that bad. This team needed a spark. Getting this behind them will be a spark. They can just go out now and play hockey and not think about the Kovy situation.
Tomorrow:
Kane-Slater-Little
White-Peverly-Bergfors
Kozlov-Antro-Afinogenov
Kozlov-Reasoner-Thorburn
Boults takes a seat. I think those lines have potential.
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Let’s face the facts. Atlanta and the Thrashers are having a difficult time selling an underperforming product. In the real business world, the chairman, Don Waddell, would have been removed years ago for his subpar performance. But we are beyond that point now. Kovy sees the writing on the wall. Why stay in Atlanta for all the money available in the cap if the team sputters and spits and cannot find an identity. The marketing and ad campaigns are woeful at best. Consider this- when one goes to Philips in an Atlanta sweater, we are often out numbered by the visitors.
Waddell has always been a prospect kind of GM. There is nothing wrong with prospects as long as they develop and become something of themselves. The problem is– how many of his prospects have actually made the top line offensively and top pairing defensively? I am really scratching my head after 10+ years and I cannot put together a complete 1st top line and 1st defensive paring from his great potential prospects we have collected.
The whole thing is disappointing. I had hoped he would go out of conference to the West Coast where he would not do us more harm. Instead the brainchild of this franchise keeps him in the East and then gets prospects. An open letter to Waddell would ask in all sincerity— Who in the locker room is going to be able to step up and score goals with this kind of regularity? Lose an offensive minded player, and receive nothing but prospects and defensive players. Go figure.. Hello — a little bit of common sense. Unless the Thrashers begin to play 5 man defense in their zone all night, nothing is going to help them win games.
But this has all been discussed before. That’s okay. I have gone from being part of a group of 10 ticket seat holders with two down low and eight up high to just two high and two low. From season one with 41 games to this season with 12. I speak with my wallet. I don’t necessarily think the Thrashers should win every game. Just give me effort. Give me excitement, emotion, passion. Stick up for team mates. Lay someone out if there is a cheap shot. I want character, I want grit, I want determination, I want effort, and most of all I want this team and all that are a part of it to want to be here and put their efforts and actions behind their mouths. If you don’t want to be here its time to part ways. If you cannot produce or won’t then your time is up too.
Hockey fans in Atlanta may want to adopt another franchise. Play off hopes is all but doused due to the inability to find the correct environment for players. I would even go out on a limb and recommend to any future player coming to Atlanta or currently here staying away from the “C”. It is dangerous to your career here and ensures an express route out of Atlanta either by your choice or the organizations.
BOTTOM LINE___ PITIFUL ___PITIFUL___PITIFUL
Take that one on the chin Donnie Boy!!!!
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We have put up with this for 11 years now.. there is one constant. DW…Is ownership ever going to hold him accountable? Must be nice to be able to blame everyone else!!! Great job security!!
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Why did Ilya turn down the money? That’s a hard one. Come on people if Waddell could put winning team together we would still have him and Hossa. It all goes back to Waddell.
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I think there are more deals to come. What does everyone think about Army and NJ’s 1st round pick (it won’t be great) to STL for Tkachuk and STL’s second round pick? The picks wouldn’t be that far apart (NJ will be high, STL low). Army is a RFA and probably won’t resign (see Kevin Allen of USA Today’s blog- he reports Anderson and Armstrong don’t see eye to eye), and Tkachuk could help this team this year. Thoughts?
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Wake up people, this is not DW’s fault. Kovy placed unreasonable demands on the money so he could leave, so with that said good bye. I hate seeing him go however it will be nice to see all the players hustling and not having to worry about running over Kovy at the blueline every night as he does his figure eights. Wow amazing that we might actually have all 3 linemates getting involved in the defense…..
Now let’s build a team around a bunch of good players and not have to rely on Kovy everytime he is on the ice. I think we might all be in for a big surprise how this team responds!!!!!
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well said Maxfan.
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The AtlantaThrashers: a perennial expansion team. Buy your season tickets now.
Set your tivo for the draft lottery event. Followed by a lovely draft day autograph signing event in June (No, no “superstars” yet…its not important…they’re young and talented and we’re all sooo excited about them!)
You never have to buy playoff tickets because we’re never really there…we just say we’re going to be. you’ll get used to it.
And if we do get close to the middle-of-the-pack in players’ salaries, and it looks like we might make the post-season again, we’ll just dump the best player we have asap. Problem solved.
And we keep that fresh, youthful glow of an expansion team.
Unless Jim Baisille makes us a good deal for some oceanfront property in Ontario. A deal like that would be right up our alley.
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The worst trade imaginable. I kept holding faith that dw would at LEAST come up with A quality player. I think it’s worse then the Hossa trade to be honest. I agree, we should have kept him until the end of the season. The only thing I can imagine is that I must have died in a previous life and went to hockey hell.
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Is Kovy a dynamic player, yes. But you can’t forget about the defensive liability that he is and has been for his entire career. He’s a 40-50 goal scorer, but his defensive laxity single-handedly cost the team 8-10 goals a year (see the Matt Moulson give up earlier this year). I can’t blame DW for not going any higher than the $100million + over 12 yrs.
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I would have no problem keeping DW if we could just get some competent owners. revenues are needed and the root of the problem is the lack of fans at the games. We have…had a great team and a playoff team, but we still are not drawing and building a fan base. With the price to get in as well as $7 for a beer $5 for a pretzel I completely understand why fans are not going to the games. I hope the team rallies together and gets into the playoffs…we need it bad…
I will still be rocking the Kovy jersey Sat night!
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I was at the World Juniors and Patrice is NOT the Good, and he has a history of BAD hits. He should have been suspended from the World Juniors when Canada played Sweden. He elbowed their team captain there, as well. As far as his “passion” … Team Canada looked HORRIBLE for both of the games against the US. The only thing that saved them was the shaky goaltending in the New Year’s Eve game. If he had been a good captain, then the team would have moved its feet.
I honestly did not see that much speed out of him or Team Canada. They looked flat-footed the whole time. They are trained to play Dump and Chase, and that is not how the elite players or teams remain elite. I hope he gets traded. The only asset from Cormier is the fact that he is good in the face-offs. If he were that good a player and Lamoriello really believed in his skill, I doubt if he would have parted with him. I think Lou was getting a lot of heat for keeping him in the franchise, and he is happy to be rid of him!
Overall, I am unimpressed.
That being said, I will cheer for NJ and hope they win the Cup. At least Kovy is going to a team that I like.
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I love hockey in this town it is by far the best sport to go see in person. It is so disheartening that we seem to be making the same mistakes over and over. I really hope DW got it right this time and perhaps Kovy will come back this summer. Either way, the seats are not going to have butts in them unless the team wins a game or two in the playoffs. If that does not happen soon I fear some other city will be rooting for our Thrashers. How about someone study how the Capitals turned a loser into a winner in just 3 seasons. Please!!!!
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Ok, with how this played out… (btw, people stop suggesting Tkachuk, he’s the biggest scammer in the NHL, or have you already forgotten what he did?)
Why not just trade Kovalchuk to Boston for just their 1st round pick, which will be a top 3 (from Toronto). I feel like that would have been a better move.
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Wow..i’m done with this team. Funny how we have the worst owners and GM in history. Best of luck to Kovy and I can honestly say I’m no longer a fan of the Thrashers.
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WADDELL SHOULD IMMEDIATLY BE FIRED! WE GAVE UP FAR TOO MUCH FOR WHAT WE GOT BACK WHEN THE DEVILS HAVE THE LIKES OF ROLOSTON,ZUBRUS,LANGENBRUNNER,PARISE AND AM HAVING A HARD TIME BELIEVING THIS WAS THE “BEST” HE COULD GET FOR KOVY.( WHY WOULD THE DEVILS GET RID OF SUCH “KEY PIECES” IN A PLAYOFF RACE, …LIKE WE DID…. F*CK WADDELL AND THE ASG, YOU ARE KILLING THIS FRANCHISE. PLEASE GET THE F*CK OUT OF ATLANTA, BUT LEAVE THE TEAM AND LET PEOPLE WHO WANT TO WIN AND CARE ABOUT THE THRASHERS TAKE OVER FOR YOUR DISGRACEFUL GIANT F*CK UPS….HAHAHA DEVILS WIN ANOTHER CUP, I WONDER WHAT THAT FEELS LIKE….. MUST BE NICE….EAT SH*T DW AND ASG
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For the first time in a long time I sympathize with DW. Not his fault at all. Kovy wasn’t gonna settle for anything less than 11.3 for 10-12 years. I even think he knew he wouldn’t get that and said that just to get out of town. He never had any intention of staying in Atlanta, contrary to what he said.
I’m a little disappointed in the return, but we’ll have to see how Bergfors and Cormier turn out before we judge this deal.
I just hope DW isn’t done dealing if he still plans to make the playoffs this year. I think moving Lehtonen is next on the list, hopefully he can get a player in return that helps us THIS year.
All of you who are bashing DW are right to do so based on his past deals and performances. But this one, is not his fault. I hope you all are educated enough to realize that.
Very sad day. My feelings right now are comparable to breaking up with a long time lover. It hurts a lot right away, but maybe, just maybe, it’s for the best.
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You know Drew might actually be one of the most sensible people in here. I guess all of these idiots thought we would get Parise or that maybe LA would be crazy enough to give us Simmonds or even Simmonds and Johnson. So many nieve people in here.
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Once again Waddell has let the fans down and destroyed this team.. I have been a long time hockey fan and season ticket holder since the begining. I hate to sya this is my last season as this franchise will never go any where under the current management. Hopefully Waddell will be fired at the end if the playoffs are not made.
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I don’t know about the deal as I don’t know much about the players we got. You can’t judge this trade as we have to wait and see who we get in the draft and how the young players we got turn out. But, being a fan of this team from the start it’s sad to see every good player come and go. Kovy most likely never really was going to stay but, still he is your star and you wish for the best.
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I’m aBruins fan born and raised and i know what it’s like to lose a great player (joe thornton for crap) Now you trade Kovy for crap it cost our G.M. his job and should cost yours his DW’s track record speeks for itself he should be gone for the horrible deals he’s made. I know your pain Atlanta fan’s my sympathys to you.
Fire DW you could have got more and should have got more you owed that to your fan base you tool!!!
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Im a devils fan first, Thrashers fan 2cd…that being said, I follow the two teams and this trade is very one sided…DW should be fired he screwed the pooch again, his hockey stick has got to have fleas…since ASG or DW don’t read these threads obviously, everyone going to the next home game bring signs….some ASG or DW signs to show how the fans feel like…
A.nother
S.tar
G.one
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I doubt many fans go to anymore home games. I know I will not. What are we going to watch? A mid level team without a star? As, long as DW is still our GM I will no longer support this team in anyway.
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Three steps forward, two steps back for the third year in a row. I do understand you can’t sell the stable to keep the horse, and our dear departed captain , as much as I like the man, wasn’t worth what he wanted. Ovie, and (although I can’t stand him) Sid both play on both sides of the puck, they earn their keep. However, if the ownership doesn’t hold the Teflon Don responsible for the results of this and the LAST THREE YEARS, I’m afraid they will no longer have my respect, or get what little money I can afford to spend supporting the Thrashers.
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Ok, so Kovy is gone… but what will become of the Thrashers? The top player now in Atlanta is Afinogenov, and he only has 44 pts. So, in the NHL, he would rank 45th. Just think about that for a second… 45th. There are only 30 teams. So that means there are 15 teams with two players better than our best. And we basically got nobodies. I like Bergfors, but he is a rookie. And Oduya! What a scrub! He will be tied 2nd to last in the least pts. Take out Oduya and Salmela out of the deal; Kovy for Bergfors, Cormier (cant even play this year), and a first round draft pick. That is a great deal! Waddell really did another great job!
I, and prob all of ya’ll have heard of Quebec pestering the NHL to put a franchise team there. Well, Atlanta will just be sitting there in the next couple of years if we don’t get a stud. The NHL will not only look at the losing record, but how much of a wonderful hockey town Atlanta is and the amazing fan base. I really don’t want to drive all the way to Nashville or Tampa to see a good NHL game. I just hope that the Thrashers will pull something out of the hat, and save the team from a permanent trip to Quebec.
And as for Kovy, forget him! Jeeze! I am tired of being pissed on in the face by good hockey players to come through Atlanta. Maybe if we all went to the games it would be different. Just a closing thought…
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Let’s Go Thrashers… Go somewhere else. Waddle PLEASE go with em.
I’m done watching this boring team. They never even reached the mediocre
level. They had one player with talent and they GAVE him away again.
Good-bye Hossa, Heatly and now Kovy.
I don’t care what happens with this pathetic franchise. Leave, stay or whatever.
As long as the current ownership and management remain the same nothing
will change except for me doing something else with my time.
Kovy I don’t blame your desire to leave this minor league organization.
Good Luck and hope you win a couple of cups.
To the Thrashers. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.
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This is probably the worst deal that DW has made. ever…………
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u could have more here in montreal we have both kostitsyn a first round pick and price for kovy ….waddell could have more here…..bad trade for the trashers fans
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I LOVE THIS TRADE FOR THE ATLANTA!!!
we had to trade kovalchuck and we cant get anything near him back, not in one player. But now we will have a great defence with our players + oduya, and bergfors is a great player he will produce for us. and cormier and a draft pick, thats great, that can both be special.
COME ON ATLANTA!!! PLAYOFF HERE WE COME!!!
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Waddle should be ashamed for acquiring Cormier. His elbow cheap shot put the opposing player into convulsions. I hope someone in the NHL returns the favor.
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Ochen zhal’ chto tak sluchilos…or in english, Very sad for what has happened… I do not want to say that “Atlanta now will be nothing without him” but no denying he was a leader, a motivator and a top guy in every statistic possible in the franchise…all the questions are coming to my mind…who will Enstrom be giving a puck to on the power play…who will be starting from behind the goal line and crossing over left and right while wildly stickhandling the puck and deaking amongst opposing defence…who will assist Kozlov in shootouts… it is a BIG LOSS.
On the other hand Waddell must be understood…he cannot jeapordize all of the available $$$ just for one guy…he needs to create a well balanced hockey team, fill in all of the positions, spark up the team atmosphere….
Good luck to Thrashers and good luck to Kovy does not matter where he ends up!
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This team continues to get prospects and draft picks that will never see the ice in Atlanta since the team will be gone in a couple years. At least Kovy put the few people that went to the games in their seats. Now it will be even more embarassing to see 8,000 in attendance on a weekend home game. I guess its time to get on the Gwinnett Gladiator bandwagon – at least its more affordable, and now probably more entertaining to watch.
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Waddell has been here for 11 years and has made the playoffs once! Any other franchise would have fired him and moved on. Atlanta Spirit is the real culprit in the demise of hockey in Atlanta. We don’t have a proven hockey GM, nor a proven hockey coach. Thrasher Players and Fans both deserve more than what the Atlanta Spirit want to give.
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To say that we would not be able to build a team around Kovy if we paid him his 10mil a year can not be true. Difficult… sure, but the 9+ mil for Ovi has not stopped the Caps has it.
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,
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disappointed to loose kovy but face it/all the talk of him wanting to be a thrasher for life was a load of crap/ i would enjoy much more a team that grinds first then gives flashes of greatness/lets be honest, we do have some pretty good players on this team who bust the hump each and every night/ who knows how all this season will pan out,but i bet the rest of the team wont give up like kovy did/kovy stated, what am i supposed to do cry like a baby? well he not only cried but took his ball and left/ cant wait to see him get lit up when nj visits phillips in april.
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Every team needs at least one star player so at the very least so they can promote the team using his image. Put his face on a billboard or use him as a promotional tool to represent the club. This gets more people excited about the team and increases ticket sales and television viewership. Without any apparent stars at this time with the departure of Kovalchuk it looks like the future of hockey in Atlanta will be quite dim. This begs the question of how long can this go on without an Atlanta Spirit bankruptcy and the Thrashers becoming history in Atlanta?
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I forgot to mention that I’m originally from New Jersey although I live here now and although I would have preferred that Kovalchuk stay with Atlanta I’m a bit excited that he’ll now be playing for the New Jersey Devils who are my favorite team. Go Devils!
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Down with DON!!!
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i agree. what does this franchise have to do to get rid of him?
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Build a competitive team??????? We’ve never had one before so why start now. The bottom line is that you’ve had 9 years to build a competitive team around Kovy. He want’s to win a Stanley Cup and it’s obvious that with this ownership, that will NEVER happen in Atlanta.
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Don’t blame the management, blame Kovy and his agent! How much money does he really need? I’m am SOOO tired of players like this and their crazy salaries! These guys make more in a couple of months than a spectator makes in his WHOLE life. See anything wrong here?
Yeah, he IS a great player, but you have to leave some money on the table to build a team. A REAL team player would understand this and do what is good for the TEAM, not himself.
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KOVALCHUK LOOKED SAD TO LEAVE, HE HAD TO STOP HIMSELF IN HIS INTERVIEW FROM SAYIN HE WANTED TO BE A THRASHER FOR LIFE. KINDA MAKES ME SAD BUT I READY FOR THE CHANGES I THINK BEFPRE THE SEASON ENDS WERE GONNA HAVE A NEW IDENTITY LIKE WADDELL WAS SAYING KOZZIE IS GONNA BE GONE, ARMY, POSSIBLY MAX. MAX MAKES ME THE SADDEST BUT I THINK WERE GONNA BE ADDING A LITTLE MORE GRIT IN THE FUTURE. I LOVED KOVY AND EVERYONE CAN SAY WE ONLY WENT TO THE PLAYOFFS ONCE WITH WDDELL BUT IN THE SAME BREATH KOVY HAS ONLY TOOK US TO ONE PLAYOFF BIRTH. SO FOR EVERYONE SAYING THE TEAM IS OVER IS CRAZY WE’LL STILL PUSH AND AS FOR A FRANCHISE PLAYER WHO IS NASHVILLES FRANCHISE PLAYER. I DON’T KNOW I WILL BE A FAN TIL I DIE OR THE TEAM DIES.
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THANK YOU Anonymous, THERE ARE PEOPLE OUT THERE STRUGGLING FOR PART TIME JOBS MAKING NOTHING BARELY SUPPORTING THERESELVES AND HER HE IS ASKING FOR THE MOON
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Let’s face it Kovy did not want to be here otherwise he would not have asked for the max salary without any flexibility. So it was a sure thing he was not going to stay here. The problem I have with this deal is the low price that Don Waddell let him go for. If the ownership groups continues to his bone-headed moves, they might as well sell the franchise because it will never get any better and the support from the fans will continue to dwindle.
One note to ownership – save the postage and don’t bother sending me the renewal packet for next year’s season tickets.
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I can’t believe we get Comier, a dirty playing punk for Kovy. Waddell just signed the Thrasher’s fate. I don’t blame the team for trading Kovy if he wouldn’t sign, but get real…that’s the best we can do?
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I don’t blame Kovy one bit for wanting out. The guy just wants to win and that is not going to happen here. Watch this summer and see Kovy sign a contract with a team that is competitive every night, fills up the arena, and has a chance to win a Cup for a lot less than $100 million. As for Waddell, I don’t agree with everything he has or hasn’t done, but he can only do so much since this ownership is in such disarray. Unfortunately, none of the top tier NHLers want to come here to play and I don’t blame them. It will be interesting to see what kind of crowd will be there tomorrow night – I’m guessing it will be “pick any seat” night!
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Love hate is all I can say. Kovy is great to watch sometimes. On other days I was sick to think he was the captain of the team. To me to many players looked like they needed to always, always give the puck to kovy. I have so much respect for the other player who worked game after game giving it up to make Kovy gain points. This can bind a teams success. Something Kovy has shown he did not have the heart to do for others. Kovy you are no captain to me. It didn’t take long to see that Kovy is all about Kovy. I will pull more now for the rest of the Thrashers. Maybe good thing will happen. I know they will make a strong effort. Like they say, you never know until you play.
One thing, Kovy how are you going to react when its not all about you. From your history not very well. You are no team captain. We as fans could see all the negative body language and faces you have made.You need work at being a true team player. I’m not sure you will ever have it in you.
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Listen to yourself are we Thrashers Fans or Kovy Fans…let’s support the team now more than ever. If the franchise moves what are we going to watch during winter time… the HAWKS???? LOL…
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I have had it with the nonsense about building a team. The fans are the ones who lose out. We were told the Thrashers were building the team around Kovy. They couldn’t come through for Kovy or the fans.
The Thrashers only know how to let all the top players go…look at history…it always repeats itself…Hossa, Heatly, Savard and now Kovy. Who will be next in a few years…Kane or Bogo. We only groom players to move on. Atanta fans lose out.
I agree with the previous post…safe your stamp…I am not renewing my season tickets and take my name off the wall of embarrassment for ever Believing in Blueland.
I guess that is why our stands have so many other teams jerseys. Those teams now how to build a team and keep it’s fans. Atlanta has never been able to do that with any team!
Good Luck Kovy, I hope you get the cup!
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I feel like I’m living in a B-rated movie entitled – ‘Hockey Groundhog Day’!
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I have to agree with Rebidue. Clearly money was not the issue, rather Kovy didn’t want to stay here. He is infinitely more media savvy than I ever would have given him credit for, as he always came off sincere about wanting to stay. IMHO you can’t blame DW…I mean, what the heck was the offer gonna have to be for him to take it?! It will be interesting to see if someone offers him more than that to sign once his “rental” period in NJ is up. And, what happens if anyone does not? I wish Kovy well, but am not terribly happy that he more or less jacked up our season while he played primadonna, ala Marian Hossa.
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LETS HELP OUR TEAM TO THE PLAYOFFS!!!!!!
BE HAPPY!!!!!!
I am from Sweden and Oduya is a great defender, we are going to
have a more complete Defence now. And with Hedberg in goal we are a top
Defensive team. Now to the forwards. Berglund is a young top prospect, already has 8 pp goals, he is a special player, at least 30 goals a year, maybe even more. and Cormier are a great player too, and from what I understand he is not a bad guy, what he did was awful, but I will learn and become a better person. and then a 1round pick, with our great scouts. And with our young team that we already have. Kane Boghossian, and more. Entröm, goalies. And now Little can come back and take a bigger role and score all his goals again.
WE ARE GOING TO THE PLAYOFFS! and then we win over New Jersey Devils!
Now that is wat is going to happen. lets give our team hope and love!!
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i think even the braves have made better deals than this….
lets just save everyone pain, money, and time and just sell this franchise and be done with it cause obviously its never going to change
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Well folks,
We all knew it was going to come. Don Waddell did the best he could, took what he could, and tried like hell to get Kovy to stay here. If he’d done the smart thing.. Kovy would have been traded last summer.. For much more than we got for him.
In this case, I say “shame” to Kovy. You obviously didn’t want to stay here. You didn’t want to play here. And YOU screwed the Thrashers. Not the other way around. You’ll get your money, get your laughs, etc.. But those few hockey fans that live here.. We got our hearts ripped out by this whole process. It’s obvious you had no desire to stay here. To build something. To be lionized, and adored by a small market.
You wanted bigger and better. Well. You got it. In doing so did you have to trample on the rest of us along the way? Did you have to get the Thrashers to get players to fit YOU and then leave? Couldn’t this all have been avoided by making one phone call last summer? The Thrashers could have gotten a better trade, a better deal to work on their future..
I wish you well in your future endeavors. I hope all your dreams come true. I just wish it didn’t have to be at our expense.
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Well said tindomul.
And let’s not forget what kind of examples Kovy showed the kids that looked up to him, GREED and SELFISHNESS!
Let’s go THRASHERS!
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Watch Kovy on the NJD site… “this is my first time playing for the first class organization”… i can understand his excitement but just yesterday he was swearing that he wanted to stay… what a dual-face cyborg programmed to say what others want to hear.
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kovy good luck ur not going to win the cup……. GO THRASHERS
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First Heatley, then Savard, Hossa, and now Kovy. It’s official, the Thrashers have officially become the Pittsburgh Pirates of the NHL. Great young talent grows here, playoff teams shop for bluelight specials here.
Good that we’ll be able to see Kovy often since he got traded to an Eastern Conference team. I’m just shocked Wadhell didn’t send him to a South East Division team.
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don waddell needs to leave as soon as possible! what another terrible trade. we got a mid to low level defensmen who has 4 points in 40 games this year, a rookie winger who has less than half the points of kovy this year, and a brutal junior player who is suspended for the rest of the year. we did get a first round draft pick that we will squander(look at our draft record over the years). we got these players for the top goal scorer in the nhl since the 2001-2002 season???!!! we might as well have kept him for the rest of the year and made the playoffs. yea, we wouldn’t have gotten anything for him, but it’s not like we got anything for him in this trade. its like dont waddell said so much for making the playoffs this year, just look forward to next year (yea right). now we have no star player and no one to put butts in the seats. i don’t know who is truly at fault, whether its waddell or the ownership, but they are making it clear that for the near future we are going to stay a low level team. i could go on and on about this trade and the numbers involved and the bull crap coming out of waddell’s mouth about not being able to afford our talent. what talent!? kovy was our only talent and now we have no one. argue all you want about bogosian, kane, or anyone else on this team…none of them are top tier players. max is the closest thing we have. this is a tragic trade and unforgivable. so much for another season. we are the oakland a’s of hockey…no wait they make the playoffs. we are the pittsburgh pirates of hockey. i’m a diehard fan and will be no matter what, but until waddell and the atlanta spirit are gone, the atlanta thrashers will stay at the bottom, if they stay in atlanta at all. R.I.P. heatley, hossa, and now kovy
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Whewwww!!! I’ve not read so much uninformed BS since the last bit of “Job stimulus” out of the White House!!
You sissies need to dry your tears, and straighten your melodrama. Change your drawers, and spit out your Momma’s… errrr pacifier.
Kovy already has a “Sweetheart”.
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FYI.
For all those who attribute the Kovy situation to “Southern Hockey”, “attendance”, “lousy fans in Atlanta” ETC.
That hockey hotbed in Jersey fielded, in there spankin new bldg. WITH their spankin new superstar…….. Quality Org., w/ how many Cups?
15,000….. on a Fri…… 2nd in the Conference, virtual lock for 2nd season.
Hmmmmmmmmmm?
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I don’t think Kovy left because of the money. I think Kovy left because the Thrasher management let him down. There is no doubt he is a star player and all stars want to win a stanley cup. Don Waddell, the Thrashers. or ANY team can win the stanley cup with just one star on the team. Look at any team and they all had a handfull of stars. Kovy was patient in staying in Atlanta for as long as he did but the management didn’t get their job done!! Don Waddell had to trade Kovy now because otherwise he looks like another complete fool the way he lost Hossa. I was sad when we lost Heatley but I understood why he had to leave Atlanta. If we had a team around Kovalchuk he would have stayed here. Don Waddell got lucky with some draft picks but hasn’t done enough to make this team a contender. I look at other teams who have come into the league with the Thrashers and already won stanley cups, Hurricanes, Lightning, Ducks BUT NOT THE THRASHERS!!! Why? Please get rid of Don Waddell and the management TEAM. They suck. I love the Thrashers!!!
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i agree so much
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It was awful we had to trade him but it’s great we actually got something out of it. He coulda just went for nothing. With unrestricted free agents, that’s often what happens. And who knows, we’ll be looking at him next year with everyone else. Worst case scenerio we’ll have some extra cash to spend on a new rising superstar.
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