Once again the Thrashers played decent for the bulk of a game but were beaten when they took the foot off the gas and lost focus for a three minute span to end the second period and start the third.
Last night’s 4-1 loss in Buffalo to the Sabres was the fourth straight loss for the Thrashers but all four were close for the majority of the game. The Thrashers have played just good enough to hang with their opponents but not good enough to get over the hump in crunch time, and that’s where seasons are won and lost. A 40 minute or 50 minute effort doesn’t get you wins down the stretch, and that’s what the Thrashers have been getting. there are players who are giving it 100% every shift, but on any given night there seem to be 4-5 who are having a really off night, and as Andrew Ladd said following last night’s game (as quoted in the AJC):
“You need big efforts from everyone in the room… It seems like we have some guys going and some guys not. This time of year we have to have everyone on the same page.”
A quick look at the stat sheet from last night tells you who was having the off night- Toby Enstrom was -4 and on the ice for goals on three consecutive shifts. Dustin Byfuglien was -3, as were Evander Kane, Nik Antropov and Anthony Stewart who were on the ice for the two goals in 30 seconds to end the second period (the 22nd time this season they’ve given two in a span of39 seconds or less according to Chris Vivlamore).
Compounding the problems for the Thrashers right now is a lack of depth due to a rash of injuries. The Thrashers have four forwards on the shelf, three of which started the season on the opening night roster (Jim Slater, Freddy Modin and Alex Burmistrov). none of those three players was expected to carry the load offensively but they have contributed a combined 17 goals and 22 assists for 39 points this season in 127 total games. Compare that to the one goal and three assists scored by their replacements (Patrice Cormier, who is injured, Nigel Dawes, Tim Stapleton, Patrick Rissmiller, and Spencer Machacek) in 63 games.
None of those replacement players is expected to put up big numbers, and Rissmiller actually played very well last night, but when you have three to four callups in the roster who can’t be leaned on for depth scoring late in close games the bench gets very short very quickly, especially when you consider that Chris Thorburn and Eric Boulton are two more players who aren’t generally used much when goals are needed. The end result is that the top two lines get leaned on heavily and they tire, which leads to mistakes, and then things spiral out of control.
At some point someone other than Andrew Ladd (six goals in his last six games) and the new guys (Wheeler and Stuart who both had strong games again last night) has to step up and contribute on a regular basis. Time is running out and fans know this routine too well.
The good news is that a five point gap isn’t insurmountable if they can get back on track. The Thrashers usually play well at home versus the Panthers (who they host tomorrow night) and Carolina plays the Penguins next. An Atlanta win and Hurricanes loss cuts the gap to three points with a game against Toronto coming up on Sunday. A really good weekend could have the Thrashers in striking distance heading into Monday’s trade deadline.
Can the Thrashers do it?
A really good weekend! Really?
I’d have to be paid to write that. But, oh, right.
Yeah, a really good weekend.
21 Games left with 15 wins needed to get to 90 pts… they can only stand to lose 6 more games maximum.
“Can the Thrashers do it?”
Sorry. No. Wait for next season.
Although frustrated, I still love this team. Let’s look to next year and keep in mind that Dudley is still building this team. I could not have expected them to see the playoff’s this year, but was very hopeful by the good play early on. We still have an outside chance, but next year is far more realistic.
Very happy to see that Dudley signed an extension!!! Now let’s get Ladd signed and a few other key positions.
By the way, I am really impressed with Stuart and Wheeler. I love the grit and effort of their game and hope they stick around too. I was also actually impressed by Bogosians play last night as well.
I agree with this sentiment in its entirety. I’m still ready to watch the next 21 games as long as they keep playing as well as they have. I had that glimmer of hope they would make the playoffs, but realistically I don’t expect them to “have” to. They still might though (I’ll still hope lol). Either way we wouldn’t get far in the playoffs and getting better picks is better than listening to fans whine about how the team didn’t do well in the playoffs.
The re-tooling Dudley has done so far is fantastic.
I know all the fans want something NOW, but you have to be realistic and support a team that is good, which is what we have.
Can they do it? Absolutely. Will they do it? I doubt it.
“A really good weekend could have the Thrashers in striking distance heading into Monday’s trade deadline.
“Can the Thrashers do it?”
Ben, I know you’re paid to see the glass half-full, so I don’t blame you for the Pollyanna spin on this season. But let’s take a look at grim reality:
*3 regulation wins in the last 26 games. At nearly 1/3 of a season, that is no small sample size.
*All three of those wins by a single goal. The team’s last win by >1 goal was 12-20-10 at Toronto.
*The goal differential for the season now stands at -27.
*Shot differentials can be deceiving, but FWIW the Thrashers rank dead last in SA/G with 33.8. This confirms what I see, which is that the team spends too much time in its own zone and not enough on the forecheck.
This team is not very good, though we were fooled by a hot start. I’ll say it because I know you can’t. Making the playoffs is not a realistic goal this season, nor should it be. Here’s where we really are, which makes for a blog post that is much less sanguine: Rick Dudley is too smart to mortgage the future for another 4-and-out beatdown. So, it’s more likely we’ll sell off what assets we can, focus on the draft, and try to be better next year. Oh, and hope to find a local buyer to keep the team in ATL.
THAT is the state of the franchise. Sad but true.
thank god dudley is too smart to do that. the sooner we all admit that this season is in the pisser the better. i think we can all agree it’s time to sell and look to the future, which if managed right, will be very exciting.
It’s over.
And next year is no big consolation prize since it will be the Winnipeg Thrashers.
The Torch needs to be LIT!! if you get my drift!!
na-na-na=na……..na-na-na-na……..hey, hey, hey………….GOODBYE.
The fans of Blueland need to be realistic. The owners have instructed Dudley to spend as close to the league minimum as possible and build a playoff caliber team. Is that possible? It could be, but you can’t have 20% of that total salry tied up in Hainsey and Antropov. That leaves you with $32mm to spend on the other 20 players. It doesn’t work!!! Hainsey’s contract was a DW disaster and Dudley’s hands are tied. Antro’s contract wasn’t too bad until he had surgery. You can’t blame this on injuries because EVERY team has injuries and we are no exception. Actually, when you look at “man games lost” I think we are far from the league leader (Islanders). This demise is a result of the ownership disaster, a $40mm budget and DW’s previous contract blunders. This should not be a shock and is not the fault of Dudley or Ramsey.
Time to make smart trades to make us better down the road. IMHO, the following should be traded to help us moving forward: Pick one between Boulton and Thorburn, I’d prefer to see Bolts gone cause he seems to be a step slow and seems to get us in a pinch when he is on the ice plus Thorburn and Mark Stuart can handle the enforcing. Hainsey, not sure he really fits in here anymore. Sopel, too old and slow, let him go back to Chi_town for Morin(Please), Antro maybe unfair but he seems to be a step or two slower after his surgery and maybe just not enough guts to push himself to be better. Bergfors as he seems too want out and never really wanted to be here. Maybe Chris Mason if we can get a good offer for him. I like Johnny Oduya, but maybe he would bring a decent return. Love to hear others thoughts on trades and who should go.