Thursday, April 19, 2007
Turn Out the Lights
by Greg
The Thrashers end with at least one distinction -- the first team bounced from the playoffs. Hooray?
On a hungover morning, there really isn't much to say about the game. The Thrashers looked pretty good at times -- the Rangers just were a better team. The Thrashers seemed to be working hard. They.... just weren't that good.
So after a playoff debacle, what next? In instant messages yesterday I suggested fire Waddell, fire Hartley, trade Kovalchuk, who knows what else. Now, with a bit of sleep and sanity injected, that seems like a bit much. But what next? Atlanta blows everything out to make the playoffs, dumps picks and prospects, and they're still out in a not-too-competitive four games.
Waddell should be gone. Seven seasons, four playoff games. It's not so much that he's done a lot wrong (aside from the Alex Bourret for Pascal Dupuis trade, which was pretty foolish). But the team seems stuck in neutral -- they should have made the playoffs before now, they should have been battle-tested before now. Time for someone new. (note: this all gets reversed if the Thrashers think about Doug MacLean as an option.)
Hartley? The "Stanley Cup winner" label shouldn't mean much any more -- he won that with Sakic, Forsberg, Hejduk, Drury, Bourque, Blake, Foote, and Roy. I'm a fan of the guy, I've rooted for his teams in Colorado and Atlanta, but the team fell apart down the stretch, he clashed with Kovalchuk, and he was thoroughly outcoached in the playoffs. Bring in someone new. (note: Waddell has already said it's 100% certain Hartley will be back next year, though.)
The rest of the team? Nine players are under contract for next year -- Kovalchuk, Hossa, Holik, Havelid, Rucchin, Lehtonen, Slater, Hedberg, and Zhitnik. I'm ok with all of those -- though Holik is really overpaid for his level of contribution.
The rest of the guys? Tkachuk definitely shouldn't be back, though he played well after coming over. He's going to increasingly be an albatross, and a heartless one. Andy Sutton, for the love of all that's holy, shouldn't be back -- if they really need someone to take bad penalties and turn the puck over in front of the net, they can doubtless find someone cheaper. I love Greg deVries but he's too expensive. Slava Kozlov vanished down the stretch and is starting to head downhill. Scott Mellanby will probably retire.
I'd like to see Eric Belanger back, like to see Jon Sim back, like to see a few other guys back. But I think the key change is gonna have to come from outside. As much as terms like "heart" and "intangibles" make me roll my eyes, the Thrashers are a pretty heartless team. They're chippy, but when things get tough they fold like crazy. Aside from Mellanby and Garnet Exelby -- neither of which are core players -- and in his weird quiet way, Niclas Havelid, no one seems to be a chips-are-down type guy. Watching Brendan "Human Garbage" Shanahan snarl and sneer and hiss (and score goals) throughout the series, it really struck me that Atlanta didn't have anyone equivalent. The closest thing was Ilya K throwing his temper tantrums, which didn't really stack up.
So now, the offseason begins. In a few days, I'll decide who to cheer for going forward (hint: not the Rangers), and commence dreaming of Chris Drury in a Thrashers uniform. Then prepare for a summer where the Thrashers give Waddell a six-year extension, sign Tkachuk and Sutton, and trade for Derian Hatcher. Really, after a series like we just saw, I wonder if I'm better off giving all this up and starting a blog based on soccer or something. Feh.
The Thrashers end with at least one distinction -- the first team bounced from the playoffs. Hooray?
On a hungover morning, there really isn't much to say about the game. The Thrashers looked pretty good at times -- the Rangers just were a better team. The Thrashers seemed to be working hard. They.... just weren't that good.
So after a playoff debacle, what next? In instant messages yesterday I suggested fire Waddell, fire Hartley, trade Kovalchuk, who knows what else. Now, with a bit of sleep and sanity injected, that seems like a bit much. But what next? Atlanta blows everything out to make the playoffs, dumps picks and prospects, and they're still out in a not-too-competitive four games.
Waddell should be gone. Seven seasons, four playoff games. It's not so much that he's done a lot wrong (aside from the Alex Bourret for Pascal Dupuis trade, which was pretty foolish). But the team seems stuck in neutral -- they should have made the playoffs before now, they should have been battle-tested before now. Time for someone new. (note: this all gets reversed if the Thrashers think about Doug MacLean as an option.)
Hartley? The "Stanley Cup winner" label shouldn't mean much any more -- he won that with Sakic, Forsberg, Hejduk, Drury, Bourque, Blake, Foote, and Roy. I'm a fan of the guy, I've rooted for his teams in Colorado and Atlanta, but the team fell apart down the stretch, he clashed with Kovalchuk, and he was thoroughly outcoached in the playoffs. Bring in someone new. (note: Waddell has already said it's 100% certain Hartley will be back next year, though.)
The rest of the team? Nine players are under contract for next year -- Kovalchuk, Hossa, Holik, Havelid, Rucchin, Lehtonen, Slater, Hedberg, and Zhitnik. I'm ok with all of those -- though Holik is really overpaid for his level of contribution.
The rest of the guys? Tkachuk definitely shouldn't be back, though he played well after coming over. He's going to increasingly be an albatross, and a heartless one. Andy Sutton, for the love of all that's holy, shouldn't be back -- if they really need someone to take bad penalties and turn the puck over in front of the net, they can doubtless find someone cheaper. I love Greg deVries but he's too expensive. Slava Kozlov vanished down the stretch and is starting to head downhill. Scott Mellanby will probably retire.
I'd like to see Eric Belanger back, like to see Jon Sim back, like to see a few other guys back. But I think the key change is gonna have to come from outside. As much as terms like "heart" and "intangibles" make me roll my eyes, the Thrashers are a pretty heartless team. They're chippy, but when things get tough they fold like crazy. Aside from Mellanby and Garnet Exelby -- neither of which are core players -- and in his weird quiet way, Niclas Havelid, no one seems to be a chips-are-down type guy. Watching Brendan "Human Garbage" Shanahan snarl and sneer and hiss (and score goals) throughout the series, it really struck me that Atlanta didn't have anyone equivalent. The closest thing was Ilya K throwing his temper tantrums, which didn't really stack up.
So now, the offseason begins. In a few days, I'll decide who to cheer for going forward (hint: not the Rangers), and commence dreaming of Chris Drury in a Thrashers uniform. Then prepare for a summer where the Thrashers give Waddell a six-year extension, sign Tkachuk and Sutton, and trade for Derian Hatcher. Really, after a series like we just saw, I wonder if I'm better off giving all this up and starting a blog based on soccer or something. Feh.
Labels: don waddell, failure, kovalchuk, Rangers, thrashers
