I for one hope that Wheeler doesn't disappoint.
http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/players/...t_C3rFu_ZivLYF
Valabik's NHL stats. -14, 7 assists in 80 games. And absolutely HORRIBLE in the defensive zone. That's a bust in my books.
http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/players/...t_C3rFu_ZivLYF
Wheeler's NHL stats. 45 points, 21 goals, +36 in rookie season. Only in his third season. He had an under performing 2nd season but now he is on a team that will give him minutes and he's not behind any stars.
I gave Valabik the benefit of the doubt one to many times. He is a bust in my books, I don't care who he plays for.
Last edited by AtlantaSportsFan; February 18, 2011 at 3:23 PM.
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS
I for one hope that Wheeler doesn't disappoint.
I've always liked him, and thought we'd see much more from him by now. That being said, he's your prototypical PF and could take a few more years. I like his hands and his size. Boy, will Atlanta be tough to play against with all their size and the addition of Stuart. If they can tone their defensive game just right and continue to grow offensively, this team could find that consistency they sorely lack.
10tm Dynasty Lg - $96M CAP
G A PTS +/- PIM PPP SOG W GAA SV% SO
C: Barkov, Eichel, McDavid
RW: P. Kane, Okposo
LW: E. Kane, Couture
D: Subban, Byfuglien, Faulk, Vatanen, Morgan Reilly
G: Schneider, Gibson/Andersen
UTIL: Kuznetsov, Kadri, Little, Stone
Farm
D: J. Schultz, Sekera, Hanifin, Hamonic
F: Spooner, Silfverberg, Konecny, Roussell
G: F. Andersen/Gibson, Mason, Ward, Anderson
Prospect:
F - D Strome, Burakovsky, Raantanen, Bjorkstrand
D - Ryan Murphy
Thrashers blow 3-1 lead in 3rd, lose to Oilers 5-3 in yesterday's matinee game.
Same old story, nothing really new for me to talk about. I don't think the Thrashers will make the playoffs and I won't speak of "playoffs" until it actually happens, whenever/if ever that is. Scoreboard watching isn't worth my time when the Thrashers aren't winning themselves. I hope these relocation rumors aren't getting to the players heads and resulting in bad play.
However, the new guys looked really good. Boy am I impressed with Wheeler. His size, strength, shot, ability to control the puck, all were there. He used his size on the boards to win some puck battles. What I'm most impressed with is how good of a backchecker and forechecker he is. I was not expecting him, with his size, to get back down the ice that quick and steal the puck a few times. He had an assist in his Thrashers debut.
Stuart looked really good as well but didn't get enough time (only 10 minutes). Thrashers went with 7 defensemen and that could have been a reason why. But Stuart also fought which could have been another reason why. I really like Stuart's defensive game. He's an upgrade over Hainsey and Oduya, without a doubt.
Quick fantasy rundown:
Evander Kane continues to play well, looks like he is finally developing into the star that he is destined to be. Ladd continued his hot streak with another goal. Buff and Enstrom both had a point each, now both have 45 points each with 22 games remaining. I could see both reaching 60 (Enstrom missed 6 games to).
More important news, it was reported by Pierre Lebrun that the Thrashers have only 6-8 weeks to find a buyer or else the team would be sold to Winnipeg. Here is the brief rundown.
Pierre LeBrun talked about the situation on HNIC earlier:
Bettman is desperately searching for local owners... it's his "only priority"
League has a 6-8 week deadline before they give up
If no local owner is found, Winnipeg will get the team
Some players are adding Atlanta to their limited NTC's because they don't want to end up in Winnipeg
The future for the Thrashers doesn't look well right now. Is anyone going to step in and fix the mistakes of the Atlanta Spirit LLC? They should have never been able to purchase the team. Thrashers went downhill from there. Sad.
I wonder what the future holds and if they do relocate, are current players not gonna wanna play for a city like Winnipeg? I still wouldn't know what I'd do, as a die hard Thrashers fan, if it happened.
Last edited by AtlantaSportsFan; February 20, 2011 at 7:24 PM.
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS
Thrashers have acquired Ben Maxell and a 4th round pick from the Habs, in exchange for Brent Sopel and Nigel Dawes.
I like what Rick Dudley is doing. Sopel has some value but not much, and Dawes was an AHL throw in. He was able to get a hit or miss package with the 4th round pick, and Ben Maxwell. Maxwell is only 22 years of age and was a former 2nd round pick. The word is Maxwell was never going to get a chance on Montreal, so now maybe he will get a chance at the NHL level with the Thrashers.
In my opinion, Dudley completed the ridding of the unneeded Blackhawks. There was no room here for Sopel. And acquiring Stuart made Sopel tradable instead of riding him out and just letting him walk.
The word on the street is Dudley is high on Mark Stuart and is going to try to re-sign him. Stuart has impressed me a lot in his two games as a Thrasher, and I really hope a deal occurs to keep Stuart here for few seasons.
Also, Craig Ramsay is starting to take major heat from some fans for this embarassing collapse.
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS
I'm speechless right now. It's tough to make a game review because of all this losing.
I want to say one thing though. Wheeler is a stud. He's played great in all three games thus far. Definitely brings 100% every game. I'm really impressed with this kids game in every zone. I didn't really follow his career in Boston, so I'm not sure why he hasn't gotten any credit yet. He seems like a great NHLer. The fantasy numbers will surely come as well. I just don't understand why Boston fans were telling me he doesn't bring 100% or use his size. Lol.
Tomorrow, I'll give my take on the Thrashers recent play, and what I think will happen the rest of the way. Also, it will be interesting to see if Dudley makes a move come Monday.
Last edited by AtlantaSportsFan; February 25, 2011 at 11:58 PM.
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS
Thrashers will face the Leafs in an important game tonight.
The out come may give Rick Dudley a better mindset going into deadline day. I still think Dudley is going to make a significant move, no matter what the out come is. However, Rick Dudley is no Don Waddle. Don't expect to see the Thrashers make some mind boggling trade that dents the franchise even more. Some of these rumors going around are laughable, just plain laughable. Bogosian is not going to get traded for other team's garbage. Dudley is a trustworthy GM, and will not give away a franchise defensemen for an awful return, I promise. Like I said, he's no Waddle.
Also, Pavelec is out. Mason starting tonight with Drew MacIntyre backing up.
I'll report more on this tonight after the game.
Last edited by AtlantaSportsFan; February 27, 2011 at 5:07 PM.
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS
Don't want to rain too hard on the Thrashers, but they look awful today. They've done some good things but they're also making all the mistakes that lead to tough losses. I don't see any unity or concentration.
Contact me for Frozen Tools bug reports and inquiries
Follow Frozen Tools on Twitter @FrozenTools
Follow me on Twitter @DH_EricDaoust
I've heard Don Waddell called a lot of things before, but never waddle. That said as president I fear he still has too much to do with this team.
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS
I'm pissed with the trade, too. But Bergfors was never going to make it on this team, and to be honest he sucks defensively. He better sure up that part of his game if he wants to be a solid NHLer. Regardless, I don't agree with trading him for a 33 year old UFA. I guess Duds wasn't able to fetch more.
I hope Dvorak re-signs so it looks better.
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS
CANADIENS 3 THRASHERS 1
Thrashers outshoot the Habs 41-22, and lose. Price was great in net, but I didn't think the Thrashers took advantage of the chances they had. I'm still upset with the system and the way the Thrashers offense is ran. The powerplay was 0/5, and it is as predictable as Tim Stapleton on a breakaway. No pun intended, Stapleton actually had a breakaway tonight. Should I even mention the pathetic defense? I'll skip that for now. Putting penalty killers on the ice when your team is down one goal with under a mintue left, tells me Ramsay isn't too bright. I really do think Craig Ramsay needs to be blamed for this unacceptable skid, but I don't want to sound like a broken record so I'll save that for another time. The newcomers (Dvorak, Schremp, Maxwell) didn't look bad for the TOI they got. Will need to see those three more to make a better evaluation. The Thrashers have 6 goals on their last 171 shots (3.1% shooting percentage). However, I'd say most of those shots are bad. Shots that are just thrown to the net from the blueline in hopes of something positive.
The Thrashers most likely fell out of the playoff race for good, and it will be another year with potential lottery pick on the horizon.
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS
Thrashers 4, Panthers 3
The pieces are there, the future looks pretty, and the win tonight felt good. I don't know how much winning means at this point, but it's always good to show that you want to win. I'd rather have the higher pick but I won't ever root for them to lose. The building blocks are in place with only a few more additions needed. A few of the building blocks, including Wheeler, Ladd, and Byfuglien, contributed in tonights win. In reality, playoffs may not happen this season, but it is still fun to watch the young players blossom.
Fantasy Impact
Andrew Ladd- Had a great performance tonight with 2 goals and an assist. He now has 25 and 50 on the season. Really a great year for the 25 year old captain.
Blake Wheeler- I cannot say enough about this kid. I'm still in shock that Dudley was able to acquire him for so little. I mean he really must have fallen off with Boston because no one in their right mind would trade him for anything less than overpayment. He contributed with 2 goals tonight as well.
Dustin Byfuglien- Big Buff is starting to pick it up again with 4 more points in tonights game giving him 50 on the season.
Tobias Enstrom- He had a point tonight, leaving him 2 shy of 50 points which would make it his second straight 50 point season.
Last edited by AtlantaSportsFan; March 5, 2011 at 10:02 PM.
Go Jets Go
Featured Columnist for the Winnipeg Jets
http://bleacherreport.com/users/386108-anthony-capocci
Follow for Winnipeg Jets Updates
www.twitter.com/CapocciJETS