Atlanta Thrashers

For current news on this topic, see 2007-08 Atlanta Thrashers season

Atlanta Thrashers
Conference	Eastern
Division	Southeast
Founded	1999
History	Atlanta Thrashers 1999 - present
Home Arena	Philips Arena
City	Atlanta, Georgia
Colors	Ice Blue, Bronze, Gold, Copper, Midnight Blue, and White
Media	SportSouth WCNN (680 AM)
Owner(s)	Atlanta Spirit
General Manager	Don Waddell
Head Coach	Don Waddell (Interim)
Captain	Bobby Holik
Minor League Affiliates	Chicago Wolves (AHL) Gwinnett Gladiators (ECHL)
Stanley Cups	None
Conference Championships	None
Division Championships	2006-07

The Thrashers take the puck into the offensive zone against the St. Louis Blues at Philips Arena on September 22, 2007

The Atlanta Thrashers are a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). Their home arena is Philips Arena.

Franchise history

Atlanta was awarded an NHL franchise on June 25, 1997. This marked a return to Atlanta, Georgia by the NHL. The old Atlanta Flames team departed for Calgary in 1980 and became the Calgary Flames.

The nickname "Thrashers", after Georgia's state bird, the brown thrasher, was selected from a fan poll. "Thrashers" had actually been runner-up to "Flames" for Atlanta's first NHL team, and Philips Arena, the Thrashers' new home, was built on the site of the former Omni, which had been home to the Flames.

The newly-formed Thrashers selected Patrik Stefan with the first overall selection in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. They played their first game on October 2, 1999, losing 4-1 to the eventual Stanley Cup Champions, the New Jersey Devils. Captain Kelly Buchberger scored the franchise's first goal in the loss.

On September 21, 2003, the team was sold to a group of Atlanta Spirit, LLC by Time Warner, along with the National Basketball Association's Atlanta Hawks. Atlanta Spirit is comprised of Bruce Levenson, Ed Pestkowitz, Rutherford Seydel, Beau Turner, Michael Gearon, Sr., Michael Gearon, Jr., Felix Riccio and Steve Belkin. That same month brought tragedy as just five days later, star forward Dany Heatley crashed his Ferrari in a one-car accident that seriously injured him (broken jaw and arm, sprained wrist,torn ACL and MCL) and severely injured Thrashers center Dan Snyder, who died five days later due to infection stemming from the accident. The Thrashers dedicated their 2003-04 NHL season in Snyder's memory. Heatley's blood alcohol content was far below the legal limit, but his combination of speeding (he was driving an estimated 80 miles per hour) and recklessness led to criminal charges (eventually settled with three years' probation and a penalty of community service).

Thrashers players wore black patches with Snyder's number, 37, on their jerseys. At the end of the season, Heatley requested a trade for personal reasons. Heatley was traded to Ottawa in a move that brought Marian Hossa, a four-time 30 goal scorer at the time of the trade, to Atlanta. At the end of the 06-07 season, Hossa had made his mark as the first Thrasher to score 100 points in one season, eclipsing Ilya Kovalchuk's franchise record of 98 points.

The Thrashers clinched a spot in the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in team history in the 2006-2007 season, while also capturing the first division championship in franchise history. They were swept 4-0 in the first round of the playoffs by the New York Rangers.

2003-04 Season Recap

Led by captain Shawn McEachern, the Thrashers jumped quickly out of the gates with some notable highlights. Ilya Kovalchuk scored eight goals in the first seven games, including two hat tricks, one in a 7-2 rout of the Chicago Blackhawks and another in a come-from-behind victory against the Nashville Predators. Those comeback victories became a recurring sight throughout the season, including shocking upsets against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Boston Bruins, and the Ottawa Senators, as well as wins from games against the Los Angeles Kings and the New York Islanders.

Eleven games into the season, the Thrashers were alone in first place atop both the Southeast Division the NHL. Although they continued to play well, they could not keep up with the Tampa Bay Lightning, the eventual Stanley Cup champions, or other teams in the league. The absence of Heatley and a lack of depth started to appear. Boxing Day 2003 marked both a bright and dark day for the Thrash. On that day, Heatley skated for the first time since his car accident with Snyder, but it also marked the last win for the Thrashers before an extended losing streak. From December 28 to February 11 the Thrashers went a dismal 1-17-3. However, fans were entertained regardless of the team's struggles. Kovalchuk became only the second Thrashers' player to score in the NHL All-Star Game (after Heatley), an exciting overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings occurred on New Year's Eve, Randy Robitaille broke Brian Boucher's shutout streak, Dany Heatley eventually returned to game action, and a twelve-man brawl against the Edmonton Oilers took place. The losing streak finally ended with a 4-1 win against the Vancouver Canucks.

While the Thrashers' playoff hopes were done for the year, they still played on and ended up finishing second in the Southeast Division and tenth in the Eastern Conference, only a handful of wins away from the playoffs. Kovalchuk ended up tying for the league lead in goals (41) with Jarome Iginla and Rick Nash. Goaltender Kari Lehtonen started his NHL career with four wins in four starts, including one shutout.

2005-06 Season Recap

Before the start of the 2005-06 season, the Thrashers picked up many veteran players in the hopes of making the playoffs for the first time. They signed Mike Dunham, Peter Bondra, Bobby Holik, Jaroslav Modry, and Scott Mellanby. They traded Dany Heatley on August 23, 2005, to the Ottawa Senators, in a blockbuster deal for forward Marian Hossa and defenseman Greg de Vries.

The 2005-06 season saw the Thrashers win a club-record 41 games, even with numerous goaltending injuries. Only a few minutes into the first game of the season, Lehtonen pulled his groin, an injury that would keep him out for a good portion of the season. Veteran backup Mike Dunham, an experienced number-one net minder, stepped in, but also promptly injured himself only a few games later; this left only prospects Michael Garnett and Adam Berkhoel to mind the nets. Journeyman goalie Steve Shields was signed, but he too was injured within ten games. On April 6, Lehtonen was run into by Tampa Bay's Chris Dingman, injuring him yet again. The remainder of the season was left to Dunham. Garnett was injured in a game against the Washington Capitals. Dunham, who had started the game but was relieved by the young rookie after poor play, was forced back into action in the third period.

Recent

For a complete overview of the 2006-07 season, see 2006-07 Atlanta Thrashers season

October 13, 2006, the first official event on the new SportSouth was a National Hockey League game between the Atlanta Thrashers and the Carolina Hurricanes. The Thrashers ended up losing 4-3, giving the Hurricanes their first win of the season. On April 24, 2007, team captain Scott Mellanby announced his retirement. On October 17, coach Bob Hartley was fired after an 0-6 start.

Team colors and mascot

Introduced in 2003 as an alternate, the team has since made it their official home jersey (2006-07).

Away jersey (1999-2003); home jersey (2003-06).

Home jersey (1999-2003); current away (2003-07).

Jerseys

The current team colors are ice blue, navy blue, red, and gold. In 2003, the NHL decided to switch home and road jerseys.^[1]

Mascot

The team's mascot is Thrash, a Brown Thrasher.

Statistics and records

Individual records

Regular season

• Most Goals in a season: Ilya Kovalchuk, 52 (2005-06)
• Most Assists in a season: Marc Savard, 69 (2005-06)
• Most Points in a season: Marian Hossa, 100 (2006-07)
• Most Penalty Minutes in a season: Jeff Odgers, 226 (2000-01)
• Most Points in a season, defenseman: Jaroslav Modry, 38 (2005-06)
• Most Points in a season, rookie: Dany Heatley, 67 (2001-02)
• Most Wins in a season: Kari Lehtonen, 34 (2006-07)
• Most Shutouts in a season: Kari Lehtonen, 4 (2006-07)

Season-by-season record

This is a partial list of the last five seasons completed by the Thrashers. For the full season-by-season history, see Atlanta Thrashers seasons

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes

Records as of May 10, 2007.^[2]

¹ As of the 2005-06 NHL season, all games tied after regulation will be decided in a shootout; SOL (Shootout losses) will be recorded as OTL in the standings.

Current roster

As of October 19, 2007. [1]

Goaltenders
#		Player	Catches	Acquired	Place of Birth
1		Johan Hedberg	L	2006	Leksand, Sweden
32		Kari Lehtonen (IR)	L	2002	Helsinki, Finland
33		Ondrej Pavelec	L	2005	Kladno, Czechoslovakia

Defensemen
#		Player	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
2		Garnet Exelby	L	1999	Craik, Saskatchewan
5		Steve McCarthy	L	2006	Trail, British Columbia
7		Mark Popovic	L	2005	Stoney Creek, Ontario
22		Ken Klee	R	2007	Indianapolis, Indiana
28		Niclas Havelid – A	L	2004	Stockholm, Sweden
39		Tobias Enstrom	L	2003	Nordingra, Sweden
77		Alexei Zhitnik	L	2007	Kiev, U.S.S.R.

Forwards
#		Player	Position	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
9		Pascal Dupuis	LW	L	2007	Laval, Quebec
10		Bryan Little	C	R	2006	Edmonton, Alberta
11		Eric Perrin	W/C	L	2007	Laval, Quebec
12		Todd White	C	L	2007	Kanata, Ontario
13		Vyacheslav Kozlov – A	LW	L	2002	Voskresensk, U.S.S.R.
16		Bobby Holik – C	C	R	2005	Jihlava, Czechoslovakia
17		Ilya Kovalchuk – A	LW	R	2001	Tver, U.S.S.R.
18		Marian Hossa – A	RW	L	2005	Stará Ľubovňa, Czechoslovakia
20		Steve Rucchin (IR)	C	L	2006	Thunder Bay, Ontario
21		Brett Sterling	RW	L	2003	Los Angeles, California
23		Jim Slater	C/LW	L	2002	Petoskey, Michigan
27		Chris Thorburn	C/W	R	2007	Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario
29		Brad Larsen	LW	L	2004	Nakusp, British Columbia
36		Eric Boulton	LW	L	2005	Halifax, Nova Scotia
38		Darren Haydar	RW	R	2006	Toronto, Ontario

Team captains

• Kelly Buchberger, 1999-2000
• Steve Staios, 2000-01
• Ray Ferraro, 2001-02
• Shawn McEachern, 2002-05
• Scott Mellanby, 2005-07
• Bobby Holik, 2007- present

Honored Members

Hall of Famers: Currently, no member of the Thrashers has been inducted into the Hall of Fame.

Retired Numbers: The Thrashers have not retired a number, although Wayne Gretzky's Number 99 was retired League-wide on February 6, 2000. Number 37 (though not retired) has been taken out of circulation since the tragic death of Dan Snyder in 2003.

First-round draft picks

• 1999: Patrik Stefan (1st overall)
• 2000: Dany Heatley (2nd overall)
• 2001: Ilya Kovalchuk (1st overall)
• 2002: Kari Lehtonen (2nd overall) & Jim Slater (30th overall)
• 2003: Braydon Coburn (8th overall)
• 2004: Boris Valabik (10th overall)
• 2005: Alex Bourret (16th overall)
• 2006: Bryan Little (12th overall)
• 2007: none

Franchise scoring leaders

These are the top-ten point-scorers in franchise history. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season.

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game; * = current Thrashers player

NHL awards and trophies

Calder Memorial Trophy

• Dany Heatley: 2001-02

Rocket Richard Trophy

• Ilya Kovalchuk: 2003-04 (shared with Jarome Iginla of the Calgary Flames and Rick Nash of the Columbus Blue Jackets)

Media

The giant flaming birdheads at Philips Arena, lit when the players are introduced before the game and when the Thrashers score a goal

The Atlanta Thrashers are broadcast on cable television on SportSouth, which is available in many Deep South states. Until October 13, 2006, SportSouth was known as Turner South. In 2006-07, the channel will broadcast about 75% of the team's schedule. Outside of the league's contract with NBC, the team has no broadcast (over-the-air) TV contract; thus, games are only available on television to fans with cable or satellite.

Radio coverage includes play-by-play of all games on 680 The Fan -- an AM sports station in Atlanta. The station is the flagship of a network that includes 18 stations. Most are in Georgia, but there are two affiliates in South Carolina and one in Scottsboro, Alabama.

References

1. ^ Karol, Kristofer (January 27, 2003). NHL 'quacked' up with hockey jersey switch. State News. Retrieved on 2006-08-30.
2. ^ Hockeydb.com, Atlanta Thrashers season statistics and records.

See also

• Atlanta Flames
• List of NHL players
• List of NHL seasons
• List of NHL franchise post-season droughts

External links

• Official website of the Atlanta Thrashers

Sports teams based in Georgia
Baseball	MLB: Atlanta Braves, SAL: Augusta GreenJackets • Columbus Catfish • Rome Braves • Savannah Sand Gnats, SCL: South Georgia Peanuts • Macon Music
Basketball	NBA: Atlanta Hawks, CBA: Atlanta Krunk, ABA: Atlanta Vision • Georgia Gwizzlies, WBA: Atlanta Hardhats • Marietta Storm • Gwinnett Ravia-Rebels • Rome Gladiators
Football	NFL: Atlanta Falcons, AFL: Georgia Force, af2: South Georgia Wildcats, AIFA: Augusta Spartans • Columbus Lions, IWFL: Atlanta Xplosion
Hockey	NHL: Atlanta Thrashers, ECHL: Augusta Lynx • Gwinnett Gladiators, SPHL: Columbus Cottonmouths
Soccer	USL-1: Atlanta Silverbacks, PDL: Atlanta Silverbacks U23's
Roller Derby	WFTDA: Denim Demons, Sake Tuyas, Toxic Shocks, Apocalypstix
College athletics (NCAA Division I)	University of Georgia • Georgia Southern University • Mercer University • Georgia State University • Kennesaw State University • Savannah State University • Georgia Institute of Technology

be-x-old:Атланта Трэшэрз

Donate to Wikimedia