Prior to the opening of full training camp on Sept. 18 the Thrashers will hold a rookie camp from Sept. 13 to Sept. 16 in Duluth at the team’s practice facility. As always all on-ice sessions are free and open to the public. In a bit of a switch from the regular season when the team usually practices in the morning, all of the prospect sessions begin at noon. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday they kick the day off with a 4-on-4 scrimmage.
Here is the full schedule and roster which includes top prospects like Akim Aliu, Alex Burmistrov, Patrice Cormier, Angelo Esposito, Paul Postma, Andrey Zubarev and goalies Chris Carrozzi and Ed Pasquale.
Notably absent is Carl Klingberg who seemed fairly certain he’d be playing in the Swedish Elite League this year when he was in Atlanta in July (no word yet on the official reason for him not coming to the camp). Speaking of Swedes, forward Fredrik Pettersson will be at this camp, marking his first trip to Atlanta since he was signed as a free agent in June. Rick Dudley has him tagged as a player who could compete for a roster spot in the main camp.
The top performers at the rookie camp will earn invitations to the main camp while the others will return to their junior teams or wait for their minor league camps to open.
Yahoo! Puck Daddy editor Greg Wyshynski posted his 2010-11 Thrashers preview today (they all follow a pro wrestling theme) and overall it seems pretty fair. It’s well worth your time to read it but if you’re in ahurry here are the grades he gave the team heading into the season:
2010-11 Preseason Report Card:
Forwards: C
Defense: B
Goaltending: C+
Special Teams: C-
Coaching: Inc.
Management: B-
Obviously it’s tough to give final grades without knowing what the full roster looks like and Wyshynski is under a deadline to get all the previews done this month, but what do you think? Is he off the mark in any area?
I’m hoping he’s on the low side when it comes to goaltending and special teams. If those two areas are more improved than he thinks the Thrashers should be in the thick of things come April.
The Thrashers made a fairly minor trade yesterday afternoon, sending defenseman Grant Lewis to the Nashville Predators for minor-league forward Ian McKenzie.
McKenzie, 23, split last season between the AHL and ECHL (where he won an ECHL championship with the Cincinnati Cyclones). The 6-5, 235 Saskatchewan native is an energy player who doesn’t mind dropping the gloves and realistically he’s probably not going to challenge for an NHL job this season.
The writing was on the wall for Grant Lewis when the Thrashers loaned him to the Hershey Bears last March rather than add him to the Chicago Wolves clear list and playoff roster. Lewis is a talented defenseman but has struggled with injuries since turning pro in 2007-08, averaging just 38 games per season over the last three years.
With 12 pro defensemen under contract for next season and Kyle McLaren coming in on a tryout the move frees up some space and ice time for whichever defensemen find themselves playing for the Wolves this season.
Former Thrashers beat writer John Manasso has been busy churning out content for NHL.com and two of his latest features should be interesting for most Thrashers fans.
The first is a feature on prospect Angelo Esposito and how he is willing to adapt his game to earn a spot with the Thrashers. The former junior star had two knee surgeries in the span of a year but is back at full strength and ready to prove he still has what it takes.
The second story is about former Thrashers strength and conditioning coach Ray Bear who left the team to work for the US Army where he will be in charge of physical training for troops. Ray Bear was a pleasure to work with and will be missed this season, though new strength and conditioning coach Barry Brennan comes in with a great reputation among players as well.
Both parts of my lengthy interview with Rick Dudley have been posted on atlantathrashers.com. Part one was posted on Friday and covers potential rule changes, Clint Malarchuk and the team’s vacant captaincy. Part two was just published a little while ago and is much more focused on the roster.
Individual game tickets for the 2010-11 Thrashers season go on sale to the general public on Friday, Sept. 10, but you can get access to the online presale which begins this Friday (Set. 3) if you’re on our Blueland Insider mailing list. If you aren’t already on it you can sign up right here.
Your most economical option if you aren’t a season ticket holder is still to go the Flex Plan route. You get better per game prices and a Home Depot gift card with each plan purchased.
Rich Peverley has quietly become one of the leaders on the Thrashers roster and now that he’s back in town getting ready for training camp ThrashersTV had a chance to catch up with him. Hear what he had to say about playing for Team Canada, his friend Chris Mason, and the changes that were made to the team.
And if you missed it yesterday, here is a video of Evander Kane talking about his summer:
There has been a lot of talk recently about whether or not NHL teams should give credentials to bloggers who are not affiliated with larger media outlets and Greg Wyshynski from Yahoo!’s Puck Daddy sparked more discussion today by commenting on recent NHL proposals for log credential guidelines.
Before I began working for the Thrashers I had a hockey blog of my own (it’s long since gone) so I can see the issue from both the team and blogger sides. Without taking sides I posed the following question on Twitter for bloggers to respond to:
“If you had game day/night locker room access what would you do with it?”
Here are some of the responses which came from bloggers and non-bloggers alike from a variety of media markets:
- Use it exactly like a columnist. More feature-based and column pieces, maybe more in-depth analysis based work. MSM (main stream media) is the best at providing game stories, the context and other layers are what blogs do best. Access could help that.
- I’d rather have access to coaches than players. But since you asked: bloggers lack context/background. Being there helps. Even if I can’t write about it, noticing Bogosian favoring his wrist or seeing how guys act off-ice could help us understand.
- Talking to coaches at morning skate would be valuable in getting ready to cover the game. Talking to players afterwards gives more depth to a recap piece on the game, and I would use that to improve my coverage.
- I’d look for reportable things about the players that the media doesn’t tell us–the real player behind the milquetoast quotes
- Inside access should be reserved for paid-professionals only. Giving an amateur journalist access to professional content is a slap in the face of media ethics. No problem putting credentialed bloggers in the press box, but giving them the same access Vivlamore gets? Doesn’t seem right.
- Probably do Q&A, though I’d be worried my questions passed muster.
- I would ask players of their health, mentality, and expectations for the match; possibly their “keys to the game”. Post game, inquire their aspects of how they played, felt on their specific lines w/ teammates, injuries, preparation ahead.
Whether they’re credentialed or not, the trick for any blog is to find an angle that sets them apart from everyone else, whether it’s using humor, stats, good sources, or something else.
If you have a Thrashers blog and want to be added to our blog roll please let me know. With the way the media is changing you never know what could be in store for bloggers down the road.
The NHL national TV schedule is out and unlike last season the Thrashers are guaranteed to make an appearance on Versus.
The NHL’s American cable TV partner will carry the April 7 contest between the Thrashers and Rangers at Madison Square Garden in New York.
On top of that, the Thrashers’ home finale is currently listed as one of four options for NBC to carry on their flex schedule on April 10. Just like last season the Thrashers wrap up at home versus Sidney Crosby and the Penguins, so it could be a compelling game for a national TV audience, but there will be stiff competition. The other three games NBC has the option to carry that day are Boston at New Jersey, Detroit at Chicago, and Dallas at Minnesota. All things considered it’s hard to imagine NBC carrying anything other than the red Wings at the Blackhawks on the last day of the season.
The Thrashers will also have seven games televised from coast to coast in Canada. All four games versus Montreal will be on RDS as well as a game versus Ottawa (Dec. 13) and two games will be carried on the Canadian arm of the NHL Network. Those games are Oct. 12 when the Thrashers visit LA and Atlanta at Carolina on Jan. 9.
No word yet on when the local TV schedule will be unveiled but traditionally it’s in early September. Last year it was released on September 4.
Maxim Afinogenov made last year’s Thrashers team after coming into camp on a tryout basis and in a climate where there are many more mid and lower tier free agents available than there are jobs, going the tryout route is something more teams are likely to do this season. It’s a risk-free way to assess a player while also evaluating the needs of your team during training camp. Dan Fritsche was another tryout candidate in last year’s camp as were Mark Popovic and Manny Legace. Popovic earned a contract as a depth defenseman and if Evander Kane hadn’t looked ready for NHL action Fritsche may have gotten a contract as well. It turned out that Fritsche and Legace’s services weren’t required, but it cost the team nothing to bring them in and take a look.
With that in mind the Thrashers will be inviting at least one player to camp this September on a tryout basis.
According to Rick Dudley, who I had an extensive chat with today (look for the Q&A on the site sometime soon) veteran defenseman Kyle McLaren will be coming to training camp on a tryout in an attempt to revive his career and earn a contract.
McLaren is a 33-year-old 6-4, 220 lb dman who was drafted ninth overall in 1995 by the Bruins out of Kelowna (WHL). He played for them for seven seasons before being traded to the San Jose Sharks in 2003 when Hal Gill emerged as a dominating force on the blueline, making McLaren a movable asset. After establishing himself in San Jose as a solid defensive defenseman who hit like a train McLaren re-signed with the Sharks for three years and $7.5 million n 2006. Two years later the Sharks waived him and sent him to Worcester in the AHL to make room for Dan Boyle and Rob Blake. He hasn’t played in the NHL since and wasn’t able to attend the Rangers camp last year on a tryout because of a bad knee injury
Dudley likes the potential of what McLaren could bring to the table.
“Kyle is a big, strong guy who, if he can stay away from injuries, is certainly capable of playing in this league.”
In his last three years in San Jose McLaren led the Sharks in hits and was in the top three in blocked shots. That typifies his style of play which has led to a lot of his injuries, including foot and facial injuries from blocked shots.
“He was a big, nasty guy at one time and his agent assures me that he’s as healthy as he’s been in a long time,” said Dudley. “That’s encouraging, but we have a lot of options on the blueline.”
