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. 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. Boxing Day marked both a bright and dark day for the Thrashers.
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 team went a dismal 2—16—3. However, fans were entertained regardless of the team's struggles. While the Thrashers' playoff hopes were done for the year, they finished second in the Southeast Division to Tampa Bay and tenth in the Eastern Conference, only a handful of wins away from the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Before the start of the —06 season, the Thrashers signed several NHL veterans in the hopes of making the playoffs, including forwards Bobby Holik and Scott Mellanby , defenseman Jaroslav Modry and goaltender Mike Dunham.
At the same time, however, they lost one of their brightest stars as Dany Heatley requested a trade in an attempt to leave behind memories of his tragic car accident. He was eventually swapped to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for Marian Hossa a four-time goal scorer at the time of the trade and Greg de Vries. The —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, Kari 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 netminder stepped in, but also promptly injured himself only a few games later; this left only prospects Michael Garnett and Adam Berkhoel to tend goal. Journeyman goaltender Steve Shields was signed, but he too was injured within ten games.
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. The Thrashers' —07 season began with the highest expectations in franchise history, even after the team's second-leading scorer Marc Savard departed as a free agent for the Boston Bruins.
With NHL superstars Marian Hossa and Ilya Kovalchuk, as well as a healthy goaltender in Kari Lehtonen, the Thrashers clinched their first and only playoff berth, winning the Southeast Division title with 43 wins and claiming the third seed in the Conference and home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs. However, they were eliminated from the playoffs on April 18, being swept by the New York Rangers in four-straight games in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.
This season was the highest attended the Thrashers ever had, with every home playoff game sold out as well as the season opening and closing games. The team was gaining notoriety within the league for their playoff debut and team popularity within Atlanta reached an all-time high. Even hip-hop artist Lil Jon expressed his support for the Atlanta Thrashers by wearing a Thrashers jersey while posing with the Stanley Cup.
After this season, the Thrasher's ticket sales would start dwindling due to the housing market crash of and a stale economy in Atlanta.
Although the ticket sales dropped, the fans remained loyal throughout the decline of the team. Just months after reaching the playoffs for the first time, the Thrashers began the —08 season 0—6.
The Thrashers ended the season with only 76 points, finishing 14th in the Eastern Conference. The game had originally been scheduled for the —05 season, but the NHL lockout of that year, followed by the Winter Olympics the following season and the Dallas Stars' hosting of the NHL All-Star Game, made the earliest available date. The Eastern Conference won the game 8—7, with former Thrasher Marc Savard scoring the game winner late in the third period.
On June 20, , John Anderson was named as the fourth head coach in Thrashers history. In his first season, the Thrashers matched their previous season with 76 points, while finishing 13th in the Eastern Conference. On November 3, , court proceedings began in Maryland to decide the group's fate. In the final year of his contract, Ilya Kovalchuk and the Thrashers could not come to an agreement on an extension.
Rather than potentially losing him to free agency in the off-season, the team traded Kovalchuk on February 4, to the New Jersey Devils. Atlanta received defenseman Johnny Oduya , rookie forward Niclas Bergfors , junior prospect Patrice Cormier and a first-round pick in the NHL Entry Draft in exchange for Kovalchuk and defenseman Anssi Salmela ; the teams also traded second-round selections in The Thrashers finished tenth in the Conference with 83 points which would be the most points they had earned in a regular season from the time they won the division title in —07 to the team's eventual relocation in the summer of On April 14, , three days after the finish of the —10 season and after two unsuccessful attempts at making the playoffs, the contracts of Head Coach John Anderson and his coaching staff were not renewed.
This was the only general manager change in Thrashers history. On June 23, , Dudley made his first trade involving nine players and draft picks, with the Chicago Blackhawks. The Blackhawks who were the Stanley Cup champions found it necessary to trade players for prospects and picks as they were in difficulty with the salary cap.
The next day, the team named Craig Ramsay as the team's new head coach. Ramsay who had been an assistant coach for the Boston Bruins for the previous three seasons was a former NHL player who had been a teammate of Rick Dudley's on the Buffalo Sabres. In the following weeks, the Thrashers hired an associate coach John Torchetti and an assistant coach, Mike Stothers.
The team also hired Clint Malarchuk as a goaltending consultant. Tim Stapleton scored the last goal in Thrashers history in a 5—2 loss to Pittsburgh. Due to financial losses and ownership struggles, the team was frequently a target of relocation rumors. In later years, reports saw the team courted by suitors intending to relocate to Kansas City; Quebec City; Hamilton, Ontario, or Winnipeg.
In February of , majority owner Michael Gearon stated that the team would be seeking new investors. Atlanta never had such a moment particularly with the Thrashers.
There was some interest from Tom Glavine]. The lone playoff year, , the team drew a respectable 16, per game, more per game than either Boston and Chicago, two of the Original Six NHL teams. There are two other minor-league teams in the state of Georgia, both about a two-hour drive from Atlanta. If financial woes and declining attendance do not makes things worse, the Atlanta Spirit LLC was reportedly interested in investing the future of the Atlanta Hawks and Philips Arena and not the Thrashers.
Perhaps the reason why the ownership wanted to support the Hawks and not the Thrashers is due to the basketball team getting higher ticket sales. The relocation to Winnipeg was finalized in time for the season. The Flames would go on to win the Stanley Cup in Stefan would play for Atlanta for six seasons and score 59 goals.
Table of Contents.
0コメント