Coming into the season, there were plenty of question marks surrounding the collection of players making up the 2008-09 Atlanta Thrashers. But with new faces throughout the team, the Thrashers were able to put an exclamation point on the first weekend of the season.
Friday’s game against the Washington Capitals marked a lot of beginnings for the Thrashers. It was the first game of the season for both teams and the first NHL game for new head coach John Anderson. Anderson spoke often about bringing offense to his new team throughout the offseason. His players backed up all the talk, scoring seven goals in their first game. Goaltender Kari Lehtonen kept Atlanta in the game early, keeping the game scoreless despite getting peppered with shots. After sustaining the Capitals’ early onslaught, the Thrashers were able to open the scoring floodgates. New Thrashers Ron Hainsey and Marty Reasoner each scored first-period goals, helping Atlanta to a 3-1 lead after one. Washington came back with three goals in the second, leaving the game tied at 4-4 going into the final frame. Four minutes in, Atlanta forced a Washington penalty shot when a Thrasher fell on a bouncing puck inside the crease that was heading for the empty net. Reigning MVP Alexander Ovechkin was stopped by Lehtonen, keeping the game tied and giving Atlanta the game’s momentum. Bryan Little, Colby Armstrong and Todd White scored within a three-minute span, giving Atlanta the 7-4 victory. Atlanta’s seven goals were their most since Dec. 13, 2005.
NO REST FOR WEARY
After the win, Atlanta flew directly to Sunrise, Fla., to take on another Southeastern Division foe, the Florida Panthers. The Thrashers looked like they would take their second win in as many games, throwing 16 shots at Florida goalie Tomas Vokoun in the first period. Unfortunately, only one Slava Kozlov shot made its way into the net in the period. Trailing 2-1 in the second, left winger Jason Williams was able to get a stick on a long pass from Ron Hainsey to tie the game. Lehtonen continued making great saves to send the game into overtime, earning the Thrashers points in their first two games. Four minutes into the overtime, however, Florida’s David Booth scored his second goal of the game to give the Panthers the 3-2 overtime victory.
At weekend’s end, there was some good news. Last year, the Thrashers were not only one of the worst defensive teams, but had one of the lowest scoring bluelines in the NHL. Not only did the team score seven goals in its opening game, but the Thrashers also boasted the top scoring defenseman in the league through two games. At press time, Niclas Havelid sat in a tie for first for top-scoring defenseman honors. His four assists had him tied with Ottawa’s Filip Kuba.
INJURY UPDATE
Before the beginning of the regular season, the team made first adjustments to the final roster. Forward Mike Hoffman was placed on injured reserve with a broken hand. Hoffman had just made his first NHL roster a few days before going on IR. The injury will keep him out of the lineup until mid-October.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Well, if a kid’s gonna fight a guy, might as well go to one of the toughest guys right away. … In a couple years, maybe Donald won’t want to do that to him anymore.” - Head coach John Anderson on rookie Zach Bogosian fighting Donald Brashear
OFF THE FIELD
Before the puck dropped on the 2008-09 season, the Thrashers were already making news, as the team hosted their annual Face Off Event. First, the team unveiled alternate uniforms for the season, which will be worn 14 times during the year. The uniforms will be worn for the first time on Nov. 14 when the Thrashers host the Hurricanes. Later, the team announced the five alternate captains for the season. The team kept the three alternates from last year, Niclas Havelid, Ilya Kovalchuk and Slava Kozlov, and added Colby Armstrong and Mathieu Schneider to the list. Thrashers head coach John Anderson said about the decision, “I didn’t come in here to upset the apple cart. … We wanted to add a couple more.” A final decision on the team’s captain will come later on in the season.
If you thought one Thrasher looked a little “babyfaced,” it’s probably because he was. Atlanta’s 2008 first-round draft pick Zach Bogosian became the youngest player in franchise history to play in an NHL regular-season contest. He was 18 years and 87 days old on Friday night. Bogosian beat out Ilya Kovalchuk by 85 days, who previously held the team record.
On the other end of the spectrum, Tuesday night’s game for Mathieu Schneider marked the 13-year veteran’s 1,200th game. The mark moves Schneider into 74th place for most games played in NHL history.
Boral can be reached at jboral@scoreatl.com.
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