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Encyclopedia: Atlanta Thrashers

Atlanta Thrashers
1999 - present
|arena = Philips Arena
|city = Atlanta, Georgia
|media_affiliates = SportSouth
WCNN (680 AM)
|team_colors = Ice Blue, Navy Blue, Red, and Gold
|owner = Atlanta Spirit, LLC
|general_manager = Don Waddell
|head_coach = Bob Hartley
|captain = Scott Mellanby
|minor_league_affiliates = Chicago Wolves (AHL)
Gwinnett Gladiators (ECHL)
|stanley_cups = None
|conf_titles = None
|division_titles = None

The Atlanta Thrashers are a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They play in the National Hockey League (NHL).

Franchise history

Atlanta was awarded an NHL franchise in 1997 to replace the Atlanta Flames, who 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 executives by Time Warner, along with the National Basketball Association's Atlanta Hawks. 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 and killed Thrashers center Dan Snyder, who was a passenger in the car. The Thrashers dedicated their 2003-04 NHL season in Snyder's memory. Thrashers players wore black patches with Snyder's number, 37, on their jerseys. It greatly diminished the popularity of Heatley among Atlanta in general, and led to his request of a trade in August 2005. However, some say that Heatley had tremendous support after the accident, but rather it was his request for a trade that led to his diminshed popularity.

The Thrashers have never made the playoffs in their short history. Their best complete season was in 2005-06, when they missed the playoffs by two points.

2003-04 season recap

Led by captain Shawn McEachern, and with the memory of Dan Snyder on their mind, the Thrashers jumped quickly out of the gates with some notable highlights. Super offenseman 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 reoccuring 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 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

The Thrashers may very well make the 2007 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Hossa, Kovalchuk and New York Ranger Jaromir Jagr have recently been vying for the NHL scoring crown and after their first 20 2006-07 NHL games, Atlanta is leading the Southeast Division with a record of 12-5-3.

Team colors and mascot

Logo

right|90px
The team unveiled their official team logo simultaneously in a live Internet launch (an NHL first) and at the CNN Center in Atlanta.

Jerseys

right|thumb|200px|Introduced in 2003 as an alternate, the team has since made it their official home jersey (2006- present).
right|thumb|200px||Away jersey (1999-2003); home jersey (2003-06).
right|thumb|200px|Home jersey (1999-2003); current away (2003- present).

The current team colors are ice blue, navy blue, red, and gold. In 2003, the NHL decided to switch home and road jerseyscite web|url=http://www.statenews.com/article.phtml?pk=15112|title=NHL 'quacked' up with hockey jersey switch|first=Kristofer|last=Karol|publisher=State News|date=January 27, .

Mascot

Thrash, a Brown Thrasher

Statistics and records

Season-by-season record

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 November 28, 2006. Hockeydb.com, http://hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/teamseasons.php?tid=1790 Atlanta Thrashers season statistics and records.

{| class="wikitable"
|- style="font-weight:bold; background-color:#dddddd;" |
|Season || GP || W || L || T || OTL || Pts || GF || GA || PIM || Finish || Playoffs
|-
| 1999-00 || 82 || 14 || 57 || 7 ||4|| 39 || 170 || 313 || 1422 || 5th, Southeast || Did not qualify
|- bgcolor="#eeeeee"
| 2000-01 || 82 || 23 || 45 || 12 ||2|| 60 || 211 || 289 || 1500 || 4th, Southeast || Did not qualify
|-
| 2001-02 || 82 || 19 || 47 || 11 ||5|| 54 || 187 || 288 || 1290 || 5th, Southeast || Did not qualify
|- bgcolor="#eeeeee"
| 2002-03 || 82 || 31 || 39 || 7 ||5|| 74 || 226 || 284 || 1253 || 3rd, Southeast || Did not qualify
|-
| 2003-04 || 82 || 33 || 37 || 8 ||4|| 78 || 214 || 243 || 1505 || 2nd, Southeast || Did not qualify
|- bgcolor="#eeeeee"
| 2004-05¹ || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || — || —
|-
| 2005-06² || 82 || 41 || 33 || — ||8|| 90 || 281 || 275 || 1318 || 3rd, Southeast || Did not qualify
|-
| 2006-07 || 26 || 15|| 7 || — || 4 || 34 || 88 || 78 || 463 || 1st, Southeast ||
|- align="center" style="font-weight:bold; background-color:#dddddd;" |
| Totals || 498 || 166 || 259 || 45 || 31 || 408 || 1321 || 1714 || 8411 || — || —
|}

:¹ Season was cancelled due to the 2004-05 NHL lockout.
:² 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.

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: Ilya Kovalchuk, 98 (2005-06)
*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: Pasi Nurminen, 25 (2003-04)
*Most Shutouts in a season: Kari Lehtonen, 4 (2006-07 as of November 30, 2006)

Current roster

As of December 2, 2006. 1|0&CID01=0f0198bb-5847-4542-a0a5-16b04a07d2f1

{| width=90%
!colspan=6 |Goaltenders
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
!width=5%|#
!width=5%|
|align=left!!width=15%|Player
!width=8%|Catches
!width=9%|Acquired
!width=37%|Place of Birth

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|1

|Johan Hedberg
|align=center|L
|align=center|2006
|Leksand, Sweden

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|32

|Kari Lehtonen
|align=center|L
|align=center|2002
|Helsinki, Finland

|}

{| width=90%
!colspan=6 |Defensemen
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
!width=5%|#
!width=5%|
|align=left!!width=15%|Player
!width=8%|Shoots
!width=9%|Acquired
!width=37%|Place of Birth

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|2

|Garnet Exelby
|align=center|L
|align=center|1999
|Craik, Saskatchewan

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|3

|Vitaly Vishnevski
|align=center|L
|align=center|2006
|Kharkiv, U.S.S.R.

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|4

|Braydon Coburn
|align=center|L
|align=center|2003
|Calgary, Alberta

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|5

|Steve McCarthy
|align=center|L
|align=center|2006
|Trail, British Columbia

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|7

|Greg de Vries
|align=center|L
|align=center|2005
|Sundridge, Ontario

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|25

|Andy Sutton
|align=center|L
|align=center|2002
|Kingston, Ontario

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|28

|Niclas Havelid - A
|align=center|L
|align=center|2004
|Stockholm, Sweden

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|34

|Shane Hnidy
|align=center|R
|align=center|2005
|Neepawa, Manitoba
|}

{| width=90%
!colspan=7 |Forwards
|- bgcolor="#dddddd"
!width=5%|#
!width=5%|
|align=left!!width=15%|Player
!width=8%|Position
!width=8%|Shoots
!width=9%|Acquired
!width=37%|Place of Birth

|-bgcolor="eeeeee"
|align=center|9

|Glen Metropolit
|align=center|C/RW
|align=center|L
|align=center|2006
|Toronto, Ontario

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|11

|J.P. Vigier
|align=center|RW
|align=center|R
|align=center|2001
|Notre Dame de Lourdes, Manitoba

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|13

|Vyacheslav Kozlov - A
|align=center|LW
|align=center|L
|align=center|2002
|Voskresensk, U.S.S.R.

|-bgcolor="eeeeee"
|align=center|14

|Jon Sim
|align=center|RW
|align=center|L
|align=center|2006
|New Glasgow, Nova Scotia

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|16

|Bobby Holik - A
|align=center|C
|align=center|R
|align=center|2005
|Jihlava, Czechoslovakia

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|17

|Ilya Kovalchuk
|align=center|LW
|align=center|R
|align=center|2001
|Tver, U.S.S.R.

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|18

|Marian Hossa - A
|align=center|RW
|align=center|L
|align=center|2005
|Stara Lubovna, Czechoslovakia

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|19

|Scott Mellanby - C
|align=center|RW
|align=center|R
|align=center|2004
|Montreal, Quebec

|-bgcolor="eeeeee"
|align=center|20

|Steve Rucchin
|align=center|C
|align=center|L
|align=center|2006
|Thunder Bay, Ontario

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|23

|Jim Slater
|align=center|C/LW
|align=center|L
|align=center|2002
|Petoskey, Michigan

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|29

|Brad Larsen
|align=center|LW
|align=center|L
|align=center|2004
|Nakusp, British Columbia

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|36

|Eric Boulton
|align=center|LW
|align=center|L
|align=center|2005
|Halifax, Nova Scotia

|-bgcolor="#eeeeee"
|align=center|39

|Niko Kapanen
|align=center|C
|align=center|L
|align=center|2006
|Hämeenlinna, Finland
|}

Team captains

*Kelly Buchberger, 1999-00
*Steve Staios, 2000-01
*Ray Ferraro, 2001-02
*Shawn McEachern, 2002-04
*Scott Mellanby, 2005- present

===Hall of Famers

*None

Retired numbers===
*99 Wayne Gretzky, number retired league-wide February 6, 2000

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)

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

{| class="wikitable"
|- align="center" style="font-weight:bold; background-color:#dddddd;" |
| align="left" | Player || Pos || GP || G || A || Pts || P/G
|- align="center"
| align="left" | Ilya Kovalchuk* || LW || 325 || 174 || 155 || 329 || 1.01
|- align="center" bgcolor="#eeeeee"
| align="left" | Vyacheslav Kozlov* || RW || 257 || 75 || 144 || 219 || .85
|- align="center"
| align="left" | Marc Savard || C || 184 || 63 || 133 || 196 || 1.07
|- align="center" bgcolor="#eeeeee"
| align="left" | Dany Heatley || LW || 190 || 80 || 101 || 181 || .95
|- align="center"
| align="left" | Patrik Stefan || C || 413 || 59 || 118 || 177 || .43
|- align="center" bgcolor="#eeeeee"
| align="left" | Ray Ferraro || C || 223 || 56 || 91 || 147 || .66
|- align="center"
| align="left" | Marian Hossa* || RW || 100 || 54 || 68 || 122 || 1.22
|- align="center" bgcolor="#eeeeee"
| align="left" | Andrew Brunette || LW || 158 || 38 || 71 || 109 || .69
|- align="center"
| align="left" | Yannick Tremblay || D || 300 || 33 || 74 || 107 || .36
|- align="center" bgcolor="#eeeeee"
| align="left" | Frantisek Kaberle || D || 272 || 20 || 82 || 102 || .38
|}

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 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.