For the third straight game the Atlanta Thrashers were taken to overtime. This time they ended up on the wrong end of a 3-2 shootout against Carolina. Atlanta was unable to hold a 2-0 lead that they took into the third period. However, the Thrashers earned a point for the fourth consecutive game. The Thrashers came out strong in the first period with 18 shots on goal.
But they couldn’t capitalize on a four-on-three power play opportunity. In the second period, it looked like Tobi Entstrom scored the first goal, but the officials made a horrendous call, as they ruled that Nik Antropov was in the crease, when he clearly was not. Justice was quickly served just 10 seconds later with a goal from Evander Kane, his tenth of the season, to put Atlanta on top 1-0. “The referee saw what he’s going to see, and I think we saw it a little different,” Kane said of the play. “But it was good for us to respond after that.” Anthony Stewart scored the Thrashers second goal, assisted by Kane and Dustin Byfuglien, late in the same period.
Chris Mason started in goal for Atlanta and played well through two periods, making 20 saves. His fortunes changed in the third period, when he was the victim of a hard luck rebound and an Eric Staal slap shot that tied the game at two. “They came out really hard in the last period. They were down two goals and we knew they would be coming out real hard. They put a lot of pressure on us,” Mason said.
The Hurricanes gained momentum in the third period and through overtime behind 45 saves from goalieCam Ward. “We were pretty darn good in the overtime,” said Carolina head coach Paul Maurice. “Clearly our best player was in the net, and he should be.”
Nik Antropov scored in the opening round of the shootout, but none of the other Thrashers could muster a goal, which ultimately proved to be the difference in the game. Antropov had seven shots on goal and plenty of golden opportunities to score in regulation, but was unable to put the puck away. “Niky had some great chances, but I tell you what, he played hard. He battled and he was there for those chances,” said Thrashers head coach Craig Ramsay. “Of course we’d like to have them go in. I know he did. That’s why I gave him the chance in the shootout, first. He deserved it, he earned it and he buried it.”
A win would have been nice and it would have meant that the Thrashers were in first place in the Southeast Division, but earning a point at this juncture of the season will prove to be important down the line. “Anytime you get a point, it can be crucial, coming down the stretch,” Evander Kane said. “I think as much as you want to get the two points, that point can be huge (towards) either making the playoffs or not making the playoffs.”
The Phillips Arena crowd will have a lot to cheer for and a lot to boo on Saturday night with Ilya Kovalchuk and the New Jersey Devils in town. The Devils are languishing in the bottom of the Eastern Conference with just 20 points; and Kovalchuk has struggled to find the scoring touch that made him famous as a Thrasher. Coach Ramsay hopes for a raucous Atlanta faithful. “I hope it’s loud. It’s fun to play in a loud building,” he said. “Our team plays hard, they’re a good group. I think for the people that have come out, they’ve seen a good product. I know from just how difficult it is to coach it, (that) it’s gotta be fun to watch.”
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