Today brings us to Part 4 of our Draft Preview. We’re lucky enough to have Ben Wright from the Official Atlanta Thrashers blog: The Blueland Blog. If you ever want to know what’s going on with the Thrashers, it’s really the first place that you should be looking. Not only does he write for the Blueland Blog, but he’s one of the better hockey people you can follow on Twitter. You can check him out over there at @BenThrashers.
Here’s where he thinks the Thrashers stand going into the offseason, as well as the direction they will go in this year’s draft.
1. What was the Thrashers’ biggest strength last season?
Youth. The Thrashers struggled at times last season but got younger as the season progressed, trading Jason Williams, Mathieu Schneider, and Niclas Havelid before the trade deadline and filling all of those spots with younger players. Atlanta finished with season with seven defensemen on the roster- all of whom are 28 or younger. Five of them- Toby Enstrom, Zach Bogosian, Anssi Salmela, Nathan Oystrick and Boris Valabik- have two or less years experience in the NHL. Up front Ilya Kovalchuk (still only 26) leads a young group of forwards that includes Bryan Little (21), Colby Armstrong (26) and Rich Peverley (26). That foursome combined for 121 goals, including 31 from Little. While veterans Slava Kozlov, Todd White, and Marty Reasoner had great seasons, the core of the team is well under 30 years of age and those players should grow together.
2. What was the team’s biggest weakness last year?
Team Defense. The Thrashers gave up 280 goals last season to finish second-last in the NHL in that stat (Toronto gave up 293). They were fifth worst in goals against at even strength but last in 4-on-5 goals against. Part of the problem stemmed from giving up too many quality shots, and that was at least partially addressed in the second half of the season. At times the defense and forwards struggled to work as a unit in their own end, and that was a bigger issue than a lack of ability on the blueline. As noted earlier, the defense is an inexperienced group, and they need support from the forwards to get better.
Yeah, he can pretty much do everything
3. What is the biggest strength of the pipeline/young players?
Blueline depth. It might sound odd for a team that struggled to prevent goals, but the Thrashers have a nice stockpile of young defensemen waiting for a chance to play in the NHL. They aren’t all ready yet, but they should be within a year or two. Latvian Arturs Kulda was Zach Bogosian’s junior defense partner and had a solid rookie pro season with the Chicago Wolves. Grant Lewis looked good in a brief callup and is an incredibly smooth skater, with or without the puck. Paul Postma dominated the WHL this year with 23 goals and 84 points in 70 games with Calgary, and late-round pick Zach Redmond is progressing nicely at Ferris State. With an already young blueline in Atlanta the Thrashers can afford to dangle a defensive prospect or two as trade bait if needed.
4. What is the biggest weakness of the pipeline/young players?
Scoring Wingers. The Thrashers have two bluechip prospects in goal who have yet to go pro (Alex Kangas at Minnesota and Chris Carrozzi with Mississauga in the OHL) and plenty of help on defense. They have depth down the middle in Angelo Esposito (who will go pro this year), Riley Holzapfel (a two-way center who had a good rookie pro year with the Wolves), Eric O’Dell and (Sudbury in the OHL) and John Albert (Ohio State). If there’s a weakness in the pipeline it’s scoring wingers, but with so many centers it wouldn’t be hard to move a couple to the wings like the Thrashers have done with Bryan Little. The only natural wingers on the horizon are Brett Sterling, whose window for sticking in the NHL is closing after three pro seasons and dwindling goal totals, and Spencer Machacek. Machacek is a heart and soul winger in the mold of Colby Armstrong who was teammates and sometimes linemates with Milan Lucic as a Vancouver Giant. His points in the NHL will come more from hard work than from pure skill, so the Thrashers could use a flashy wing or two.
5. Who WILL the Thrashers GM (Don Waddell) pick?
I expect Don Waddell to draft the best forward available, unless Victor Hedman is somehow available at fourth overall. Given how unlikely that is, you’ll probably see Waddell and his staff take one of Matt Duchene, Evander Kane, or Brayden Schenn and two of the three will probably be available, so a decision will have to be made. In an interview with atlantathrashers.com a few weeks ago Don Waddell hinted that he might be more likely to take a North American than a European player who plans to stay overseas for a few more years.
6. Who SHOULD the GM pick?
This is going to sound like a cop out (and it might be, since our GM has to power to have me fired) but I think he should take the best player available, although I don’t necessarily think that means the most NHL-ready player. If Kane has a higher upside than Schenn, but Schenn is more ready (hypothetically), I’d take Kane. There aren’t a lot of holes in the Thrashers roster right now and assuming a free agent or two is acquired there might not be a spot for the top pick unless they flat out steal it. I also wouldn’t be opposed to trading down within the top 10 spots if a solid roster player was part of the deal. There would be nothing wrong with getting some immediate help and a guy like Magnus Paarjarvi-Svensson, Jordan Schroeder (though the Thrashers need size), Jared Cowen, or Zack Kassian who could be ready in a year or two.
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No matter what the Thrashers end up doing with this year’s draft, they’re headed in the right direction. The most difficult part of building a successful team is acquiring a young player that you can truly build your foundation around. With last year’s selection of Zach Bogosian, it looks like the Thrashers have their cornerstone player.
When I look at Atlanta’s team, I see a visible void at the center position. Brayden Schenn, Evander Kane, or Matt Duchene (if he were available) would all be great fits for the Thrashers. They look like they’re in a perfect position that the best player available will also be the guy that fits their position of need.
Tomorrow we move onto the Los Angeles Kings, their 2009 season and the possibilities of the #5 overall pick. I will do my best to stay out of our guest bloggers way and keep the F-Bombs to a minimum. Just as a reminder, you can check out the schedule for each of the Top 11 teams that we’ll review in the days leading up to the draft. We’ll see you then!
Matt Reitz is the Editor-In-Chief here at ViewFromMySeats.com and former NHL Writer for ProHockeyTalk on NBCSports. When he’s not shoving a mic in the face of NHLers or explaining why home teams should wear white, he’s usually trying to figure out what song to play next on his iPod. It’s a never-ending job.
