Atlanta, we have a problem.
Let’s face it folks, the Atlanta Thrashers have been bit shaky on their four-game road swing through Florida and California. While some of it is to be expected as the season is still young and the team is still coming together, the undertones of Atlanta’s two-game losing streak show some signs of trouble ahead.
The good news is that coach Craig Ramsay realizes that there are some fundamental things that need to be addressed and according to the Blueland Blog’s Ben Wright, put the team through the paces with a number of repetitive, grueling fundamental drills during Wednesdays practice.
Nevertheless, here are five things that need to be corrected if the Thrashers do not want to end up as also-rans in the Eastern Conference.
1) They’re just plain powerless with the man advantage. The numbers are daunting. Atlanta was 0-for-5 on the power play in their 3-1 loss against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday and they are 1-for-14 on the season when having the advantage. However, Atlanta’s lone power play goal came on a 5-on-3 break when Tobias Enstrom scored from the point against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Atlanta has not converted a single 5-on-4 chance in 12 opportunities.
Something’s telling about the status of the power play when your fourth line is pressed into action in the final 30 seconds of a man advantage and they absolutely, positively outplay your more seasoned and arguably better special teams units.
2) The 30-30 club: Thirty homers and thirty stolen bases might be amongst the most elite of all clubs in baseball, but 30 is not a number you want to see in hockey. The Thrashers have continued an alarming trend that plagued them last season, allowing opponents to throw 30 or more shots on net per game.
Ramsay was supposed to install a defense that limited opponent’s opportunities. Three games in, that hasn’t happened. The Thrashers have allowed 31, 36 and 34 shots in their first trio games. The Thrashers are 27th in shots allowed thus far this season and that must improve if Atlanta wants to get out of the Eastern Conference’s basement.
3) Silent Niks and Rich: Atlanta had just three scorers on the team that posted 20-plus goals last year: Nik Antropov (24), Rich Peverley (22) and Niclas Bergfors (21). None of the trio of Thrashers has a goal in Atlanta’s first three games. Evander Kane has more shots (16) than the trio does combined (13).
Ramsay is already looking for answers, pairing Peverley with Antropov and possibly sitting Bergfors for Atlanta’s next game vs. the Anaheim Ducks.
4) Under three is key: Atlanta has allowed an average of three goals per game over their initial three. That’s down slightly from last season’s 3.12 goal pace. However, if Atlanta wants to make a move in the East, they’ll need to get that number into the 2.6-2.8 range.
What’s most discouraging is that there’s been too many defensive lapses thus far this season that have harked to the bad old days under coach John Anderson. The Thrashers must adapt quickly to Ramsay’s new system if they are to have any chance of making any further improvements.
5) The lines are upside down: Atlanta’s best line is actually its fourth line. Yes folks, the line of Chris Thorburn, rookie Alex Burmistrov and Ben Eager are playing better than any of Atlanta’s top six or even top nine forwards.
They have notched three of the team’s eight goals this season and are a combined plus-8. The rest of the team is a brutal minus-18. Yes, it’s a bit of a work in progress and Ramsay has begun to play with the line combos, but Atlanta has to find some answers soon. The Thrashers need production from each and every line to make waves in the East.
Slater could be back with a lineup that’s all shook up: Ben Wright of the team’s official blog reports that Jim Slater has been cleared to play and could see his first game action on Friday in Anaheim. Slater practiced alongside Fredrik Modin and Nigel Dawes on Wednesday while Antropov was moved alongside Peverley and Evander Kane.
Anthony Stewart teamed with Bryan Little and Andrew Ladd on another line. Atlanta’s fourth line remained the same while Bergfors and Eric Boulton practiced with each other, perhaps signaling that Bergie might sit on Friday.
Should Slater be reinstated from the IR, Atlanta will have to make a roster move, perhaps exposing Boris Valabik to waivers.
“I think I’ll be back on Friday,” Slater told Wright. “I practiced on a line today with Modin and Dawes and I kind of thought that if I was making the road trip all of the way out here I’d probably play. We have the last two games of the trip before we go home and I hope I can bring in an element that helps this team.”
No Bo-go: Defenseman Zach Bogosian did not practice on Wednesday with a minor upper-body injury. If the injury lingers, expect Freddy Meyer to start in Anaheim.
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