Ottawa 3 - Atlanta 2
I don't get out of the house near enough. That's half the reason I force myself downtown to these contests. I enjoy watching hockey on any level, professional or amateur. But after nearly 10 years of this nonsense, I'm beginning to wonder if my time wouldn't be better spent at home with the lights off, shades drawn, huddled in the fetal position in a corner of my basement.
Another lackluster effort by a team that has more going wrong than right. For every positive in a game, I can almost always count 2 or more negatives. For every great save, there are easy goals. For every crisp pass, there are half a dozen that miss the mark by 5 feet. For every nice shot on net there's the next one sailing off into the corner or over the glass. Each season begins with the hope that it is the one the team will turn a corner. By mid-January, they are almost always where they sit now, near or at the bottom of the NHL.
I'm obviously not alone in my disgust. While official stats might say 14,000 tickets are sold, the actual attendance at Philips is horrible. Last night was probably the worse I've seen in recent memory. Those that do come want to cheer but instead come as some sort of group therapy to help them deal with the misery. The regulars in the 400s have resorted to making jokes about the expected shortcomings. It isn't a shock to see a pathetic giveaway. It isn't abnormal to witness a soft goal. A missed open net doesn't result in emphatic groans. Instead it has become a running joke. Laughter fills the rafters.
Thank goodness for the laughter as there wasn't much joy on the ice. While it was nice to see Little and Bogosian return to action, the end result was the same. The team simply didn't have much energy or synchronicity.
The checking game was almost non-existent until late in the 3rd and Ottawa players had an easy time gaining access to the Thrashers zone. Too many times I saw Thrashers defensemen back away from the puck carrier when they easily could have stood them up at the blue line. Someone needs to let these players know it is OK to make contact with the player who has the puck.
Passes were too often off target and great shot opportunities were squandered with shots that went way wide. Players are either out of position or don't know where to expect their teammates to be.
The Thrashers failed to take advantage of a weak Ottawa team. Their goalie looked very beatable on this night. Many soft rebounds but no Thrasher to grab the puck with the exception Thorburn on the second goal.
The Thrashers got themselves into trouble by taking a bunch of penalties in the first period. On two of those, Ottawa capitalized within seconds with quick cycles ending with a one-timer in the back of the net. Kari was not strong in goal and frankly I'm get tired of him so rarely raising the level of his play. His youth cannot be used as an excuse any longer. There are now many younger goaltenders better than him.
Todd White continued his revival netting a powerplay goal of his own and was one of the few bright spots along with Havelid and Christensen. Peverly's first game, playing on the first line with Kovy was nothing special but no worse than the dozen or so other players they have tried in that role.
Schneider had another horrible game and is almost certain to be headed elsewhere before the trade deadline. Who'll be the next aging defenseman to come in and disappoint?
Bogosian is a rookie and I'll cut him some slack. I'd just want to see him working on get his point shots on net and passing the puck a bit more instead of trying to skate all the way in on each opportunity.
My patience is running very thin with Anderson. It is hard to see a single facet of their game that has improved under his guidance. I wouldn't fire the guy yet but I'm not so sure he should be here beyond this season.
I hate to be so negative but this team doesn't do much to push me in the other direction. When they start turning it around get someone to shine a lit into my dark corner.
