The Atlanta Thrashers wrapped up their four game West Coast road trip with a game against the West-leading Sharks, and they put up a fight that even the Sharks weren't expecting.
Unfortunately, the team went down 3-1 to the Sharks, but in the process, they showed some true grit.
Bryan Little scored a power play goal in the contest, and Kari Lehtonen made 28 saves in the loss. Ilya Kovalchuk's goal streak also came to an end in the contest.
The game featured several questionable calls and no-calls that went against the Thrashers, including a bogus hooking penalty against Bryan Valabik that led to the Sharks second goal of the third period and ended up being the game winner.
The first Sharks goal also came on a no-call, with a Thrasher catching a wicked cross check in the back that wasn't called and enabled Ryane Clowe to score. Aggravating all around for Thrasher faithful.
If you want a more complete recap of the contest, and also are interested to know my opinion as to what we learned about the Thrashers on this trip, feel free to check out my piece on The Hockey Writers. I always appreciate feedback, so feel free to email me.
The Thrashers are next playing Tuesday night against the Avalanche in Atlanta. The game starts at 7pm and can be seen on Sports South. Until then, enjoy the rest of your weekend, and I'll keep you updated.
Showing posts with label Bryan Little. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bryan Little. Show all posts
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Thrashers-Sharks Preview Highlights
Was just checking out the Thrashers' website, and the preview for the game tonight against the Sharks has a lot of bad omens for the game tonight. I'd say that the Thrashers don't have much of a shot against San Jose, but if you had told me that the Thrashers would be on a five game points streak on the road, I wouldn't have believed you. Enough about me though. Let's get to the good stuff.
Note: If you want to read the entire game preview, you can visit the Thrashers' website.
-The Thrashers are 0-4-0 with a tie all-time at HP Pavillion. The Sharks are also ridiculously good at home this season, having only lost twice in regulation at home this season.
-Bryan Little has six points in his last three games, and Ilya Kovalchuk has scored goals in six straight contests coming in to this one.
-The Thrashers have only beaten the Sharks one time in their ten all-time meetings in an overtime game in 2002.
-In the last 22 games, Kovalchuk has 19 goals and eight assists. He's taking this "captain" thing really seriously.
The game starts at 4pm EST on Sports South, and is available on NHL Gamecenter. Go Thrashers!
Note: If you want to read the entire game preview, you can visit the Thrashers' website.
-The Thrashers are 0-4-0 with a tie all-time at HP Pavillion. The Sharks are also ridiculously good at home this season, having only lost twice in regulation at home this season.
-Bryan Little has six points in his last three games, and Ilya Kovalchuk has scored goals in six straight contests coming in to this one.
-The Thrashers have only beaten the Sharks one time in their ten all-time meetings in an overtime game in 2002.
-In the last 22 games, Kovalchuk has 19 goals and eight assists. He's taking this "captain" thing really seriously.
The game starts at 4pm EST on Sports South, and is available on NHL Gamecenter. Go Thrashers!
Friday, February 20, 2009
Thrashers-Coyotes Recap: Atlanta Loses Duel in the Desert
For a less traditional recap of this game, check out the running diary that I wrote about the game on The Hockey Writers (my other website):
"Thrashers Invade Desert, Lose to Coyotes"
The Thrashers went in to Phoenix looking for a franchise record fifth straight road win, and the Coyotes were looking to avoid a seventh straight home defeat, which also would have been a franchise record.
In a game that featured its fair share of physical play and questionable officiating, the Coyotes beat the Thrashers in the shootout by a score of 4-3. The shootout, which lasted eight shooters on each side, finally ended when Daniel Carcillo made his first career shootout goal to get Mikkel Tellqvist the win.
Erik Christensen got the scoring started six minutes into the contest with a power play goal. The hero of the Los Angeles game, Eric notched his fifth goal and continued his solid production of late. Perhaps he's auditioning for other teams to try to trade for him? Stay tuned on that front.
About three and a half minutes later, Joakim Lindstrom scored to tie the game at one on another power play goal. The Coyotes ended up outshooting the Thrashers in the period, with Atlanta only getting three shots in on Mikkel Tellqvist.
Phoenix struck twice to start in the second period, with Viktor Tikhonov and Steven Goertzen scoring goals for the Coyotes.
Just when it looked like the Thrashers were in for a long night, they struck with eight minutes to go in the period, when Ilya Kovalchuk found Bryan Little on a fantastic centering pass to make it a one goal game. It was Kovalchuk's eighteenth point since being named captain of the Thrashers, and it was Little's 24th goal of the season.
The third period was a defensive struggle throughout, with the teams trading scoring chances that their defenses snuffed out. The Coyotes did an especially good job of shutting down a lot of Atlanta's offensive attacks, and I was impressed with their effort throughout the period.
Just when it looked bleakest, Kovalchuk did what he does best: he took the game over. With 53 seconds left, Kovalchuk pounded home a juicy rebound off the blocker of Tellqvist to tie the game at three apiece. As the Coyote crowd groaned its disapproval, the Thrashers ensured that they would get at least a point in a game that they had trailed in for 37 minutes.
The overtime was a physical battle that saw few scoring chances, and the defensive struggle continued even into the shootout, as both goalies exchanged save after save, before Daniel Carcillo finally scored to give the Coyotes the victory.
It was a good physical game for the Thrashers, who are playing some of their best hockey of the season right now. It may be too late for them to salvage a run at the playoffs, but they are setting themselves up in prime position to make a good run next season.
The Thrashers' next game will be on Saturday at 4pm EST against the Sharks. It can be seen on Sports South.
"Thrashers Invade Desert, Lose to Coyotes"
The Thrashers went in to Phoenix looking for a franchise record fifth straight road win, and the Coyotes were looking to avoid a seventh straight home defeat, which also would have been a franchise record.
In a game that featured its fair share of physical play and questionable officiating, the Coyotes beat the Thrashers in the shootout by a score of 4-3. The shootout, which lasted eight shooters on each side, finally ended when Daniel Carcillo made his first career shootout goal to get Mikkel Tellqvist the win.
Erik Christensen got the scoring started six minutes into the contest with a power play goal. The hero of the Los Angeles game, Eric notched his fifth goal and continued his solid production of late. Perhaps he's auditioning for other teams to try to trade for him? Stay tuned on that front.
About three and a half minutes later, Joakim Lindstrom scored to tie the game at one on another power play goal. The Coyotes ended up outshooting the Thrashers in the period, with Atlanta only getting three shots in on Mikkel Tellqvist.
Phoenix struck twice to start in the second period, with Viktor Tikhonov and Steven Goertzen scoring goals for the Coyotes.
Just when it looked like the Thrashers were in for a long night, they struck with eight minutes to go in the period, when Ilya Kovalchuk found Bryan Little on a fantastic centering pass to make it a one goal game. It was Kovalchuk's eighteenth point since being named captain of the Thrashers, and it was Little's 24th goal of the season.
The third period was a defensive struggle throughout, with the teams trading scoring chances that their defenses snuffed out. The Coyotes did an especially good job of shutting down a lot of Atlanta's offensive attacks, and I was impressed with their effort throughout the period.
Just when it looked bleakest, Kovalchuk did what he does best: he took the game over. With 53 seconds left, Kovalchuk pounded home a juicy rebound off the blocker of Tellqvist to tie the game at three apiece. As the Coyote crowd groaned its disapproval, the Thrashers ensured that they would get at least a point in a game that they had trailed in for 37 minutes.
The overtime was a physical battle that saw few scoring chances, and the defensive struggle continued even into the shootout, as both goalies exchanged save after save, before Daniel Carcillo finally scored to give the Coyotes the victory.
It was a good physical game for the Thrashers, who are playing some of their best hockey of the season right now. It may be too late for them to salvage a run at the playoffs, but they are setting themselves up in prime position to make a good run next season.
The Thrashers' next game will be on Saturday at 4pm EST against the Sharks. It can be seen on Sports South.
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