Atlanta Thrashers Team Report

Once again, there isn't a single member of the Thrashers competing in the NHL playoffs, unless you count former Atlanta players Marian Hossa (Detroit), Marc Savard (Boston) and several others. But the team is well represented in the International Ice Hockey Federation World Championships going on in Berne, Switzerland. When you play for Atlanta, you have to take what you can get when it comes to spring hockey games. A total of nine Thrashers, including captain Ilya Kovalchuk, and one Atlanta draftee are playing for six separate countries in the tournament. The world Championships hardly compare to the intensity of the NHL playoffs, but the fact that so many Atlanta players are competing has to bode well for the team's future. For Kovalchuk, it gives him a chance to continue to build on his leadership skills on the Russian team, traits which improved dramatically as the NHL season progressed. For World Championship rookies like Zach Bogosian and Colin Stuart, who are representing the U.S., it's simply another way for them gain more experience against high-level competition. Both Bogosian and Stuart are expected to be a big part of Atlanta's future, so the more they can play the better it will be for their careers. It hardly compares to the chance to lift Lord Stanley's Cup, but sometimes representing your country can be the highlight of an athlete's career. That's especially true if you aren't used to competing for an NHL title. Unfortunately, that's exactly the case for most Thrashers playing in the tournament.Some teams make huge improvements from one season to the next. The Thrashers aren't such a team. In fact, Atlanta has had a hard time even making baby steps over the last few seasons, a disturbing trend for an organization battling to keep itself from sinking into the financial and attendance abyss. The Thrashers went from being the NHL's third-worst team last season to being the fourth-worst in 2008-09. Minor improvements are not what this team needs. It needs giant leaps, home winning streaks, consistent goaltending, more scoring depth beyond Ilya Kovalchuk and Bryan Little, a couple more promising defenseman like Zach Bogosian and boisterous fan support. Oh, and it wouldn't hurt to have a stable ownership group that could spend less time in the court room, more time in the arena, and more money on free agents. Other than that, the Thrashers are in great shape. The team showed some promising signs over the final five weeks of the season, which included a franchise-best record of 11-3 over 14 games from March 3 through April 3. However, Atlanta took too long to figure out how to balance new coach John Anderson's offense-first style of play while still trying to limit the opposition's scoring chances. By the time the season ended, the Thrashers appeared to have finally figured it out and won 13 of their last 20 games. However, it was clearly too late. Going into next season, the Thrashers have some solid building blocks, starting with All-Star Ilya Kovalchuk, who will enter his first full season as the team's captain next October. Mix in the constantly improving play of rookie defenseman Zach Bogosian along with emerging forwards Bryan Little and Rich Peverley, and the Thrashers should only be a few players away from turning it around. Of course, that's exactly what the team has said for several years. One bright spot on the horizon is the potential addition of 20-year-old center Angelo Esposito next season. Esposito, acquired in last season's trade that sent Marian Hossa to Pittsburgh, has spent the last four seasons playing in the Quebec junior league. Other than adding players that they already have in the system, like Esposito, the Thrashers will continue to have trouble improving the team partly because it's hard to attract top free agents when they've been a non-playoff team for so long. Perhaps the best hope Atlanta has of turning things around lies with the 10.7 percent chance it has of winning the NHL's draft lottery. If the Thrashers do get the No. 1 pick, they probably would select highly touted John Tavares, who would quickly make the team's supporters forget about that little Patrik Stefan mistake. SEASON HIGHLIGHT: It took almost all season for the Thrashers to put together some memorable moments, but when the calendar hit March, Atlanta finally began to show signs of what the future might hold. The Thrasher played their best hockey by far from March 3 through April 3, posting a franchise-best 11-3 record. That stretch, which began with a season-best six-game winning streak, included three straight road wins over the Avalanche, Oilers and Sabres, two overtime wins and two shootout victories. Unfortunately, the Thrashers came crashing back to reality over the final week of the season, losing three of their final four contests. TURNING POINT: Atlanta's postseason hopes were dashed almost from the beginning of the season. For teams to be successful under a new coach they need to develop confidence in his system. And there's no better place to test that confidence than on the road. Unfortunately for the Thrashers, they lost their first six road games, including the first two of the season in overtime.NOTES, QUOTESPhilips Arena has been a dead zone during the NHL Playoffs as usual, but the venue hasn't been without its share of spring excitement with the Atlanta Hawks run through the NBA Playoffs. While the city's basketball team has little to do with its hockey club, hopefully some of the Thrashers' players who remained in town were able to get a feel for what it's like to play in the postseason. Atlanta might not be the most die-hard sports town (and that's putting it mildly) but crowd support had been better than average for the Hawks' playoff games. Hopefully, the same will soon be said about the Thrashers in the playoffs.The Thrashers, in a trend that permeated their season, didn't have any luck when it came to the NHL Draft lottery. Although they had a slight chance of moving up to the No. 1 spot, they remained in the fourth spot. From there, they would likely pick Canadian center Evander Kane out of the Western Hockey League. Kane, a smooth skater, with better-than average play making skills, would give Atlanta another legitimate center. Hopefully, he would be able to make the jump to the NHL quickly. Atlanta needs the help. QUOTE TO NOTE: "Quite honestly, it would be better to be in the playoffs, but it will be a good experience." Thrashers D Zach Bogosian, on playing for Team USA for the first time in the World Championships. ROSTER REPORT MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Once again, Ilya Kovalchuk is Atlanta's runaway MVP after leading the team with 43 goals and 48 assists in 79 games. Along with his scoring prowess, Kovalchuk emerged this season as a locker room leader after Thrashers general manager Don Waddell rewarded him with the captain's "C" halfway through the season. Kovalchuk still takes the occasional shift off, but that sure beats a few years ago, when he would take the occasional game off. MOST DISAPPOINTING PLAYER: The title clearly goes to Mathieu Schneider. Signed as a free agent for $5.6 million during the offseason, Schneider spent most of the first half of the season injured. He was eventually traded to Montreal. The only good thing Schneider did during his time in Atlanta was mentor rookie defenseman Zach Bogosian. And based on Bogosian's play the second half of the season, Schneider is a good teacher. FREE AGENT FOCUS: There have been no contract talks between C Marty Reasoner and Thrashers general manager Don Waddell, but that doesn't mean Atlanta doesn't want to keep the veteran. After all, the deadline to re-sign Reasoner isn't until July 1. PLAYER NEWS:D Tobias Enstrom suffered a facial fracture below his orbital bone when he was hit from behind in Sweden's game against Latvia in the World Championships. Enstrom left the tournament and underwent surgery, but was expected to make a full recovery.LW Ilya Kovalchuk ranked second among all scorers through the first four games of the World Championships with three goals and six assists. Only Tampa Bay's Martin St. Louis, playing for Canada, had more with four goals and seven assists.G Johan Hedberg might be from Finland, but he seems to have a bit of "Jersey" in him. Hedberg and his wife, Pernilla, recently went to a Bruce Springsteen concert at Philips Arena. It was Hedberg's third time seeing the New Jersey rocker. Perhaps he just likes when the crowd cheers "Bruuuuuce" because it reminds him of the chants of "Mooooose" he is typically showered with. MEDICAL WATCH:G Kari Lehtonen sat out most of the final month of the season with an upper-body injury, the latest bump along the road for Lehtonen, who has battled injuries most of his short career.LW Ilya Kovalchuk missed a few games late in the season with an undisclosed left arm injury. While he was able to return to form, Kovalchuk and the team might want to consider surgery if there's any question that the problem could return.