The play started in the Carolina zone as the puck was dumped in and Jimmy Slater was chasing. Slater ended up doing one of the things he does well - stumble to the ice in pursuit of the puck - but he didn't quit there. He stayed with the play and kept the play deep while Kozlov fought for possession. As a result, Kozlov gained control, swept a great pass to Eric Perrin who was waiting for the action right in the slot and took advantage of a gorgeous setup.
However, the team playing against the Thrashers were the 'Canes, a team who has a tendency to give us some weird, flukey games. So, anything can happen against this team because it just seems that that's the norm. For example, when Carolina stumbled out of the gate last season and struggled to be offensive following their Stanley Cup victory in '05-'06, the 'Canes came into Philips in early October winless and ended up pulling out the win with a few theatrics in the third period and overtime that were the results of last-second attempts to get the puck into the Thrashers net.
Such was the case last night. While the Thrashers had a 1-0 lead and were ready to enter the locker room after the first period with a little bit of an energy buzz (because they pwned the 'Canes for a majority of that period), taking a penalty against one of the better power play groups in the league at the end of the first wasn't the best idea and I just knew that nothing was a sure thing against this 'Canes team. Even with 10 seconds left in the period, I knew that, even if the Thrashers held their own, the 'Canes always had something left. Such was the case as Zhitnik's tripping penalty resulted in the Rod Brind'Amour goal with about SEVEN SECONDS left... in the period.
For the most part, the Thrashers did alright in their 3-5 loss to Carolina. It started out powerful and ended on a slightly exciting note, with the feeling that the Thrashers "might could" pull this game out of nowhere. But in the end, Carolina's three power play goals did the Thrashers in, contributed with a little bit of fatigue on Pavelec's end.
You absolutely have to figure the alertness of Pavelec with this game, but you simultaneously understand Don Waddell's decision to go with the rookie in net. In his three previous starts, he got a little rattled against Tampa Bay and held both Washington and Florida to one goal a piece. For a kid who's basically making the jump from juniors to the NHL, and is succeeding at this kind of rate, you want to ride that for a while just to see what might become of him. I certainly don't regret the decision because Pavs did a great job in his first NHL stint, and did everything he could in this game.My three stars of the game? Number three went to Hossa, just because it's Hossa. I kinda had my doubts about his play as of late, and I still do, but last nite's two-goal performance has to do wonders to his confidence. As I mentioned earlier, when the Thrashers meet up with Carolina, strange things happen. You can definitely apply this to Marian Hossa's performances, too. Back when we visited Carolina last season, Hossa got the Thrashers' scoring started there when he put a weird shot on Cam Ward, shorthanded, the puck deflected off of Ward's skate from the impossible angle and into the net. Hossa's second goal was eerily reminiscent of that moment from February. A bunch of stuff going on right by the net, and Hossa tries to create something from nothing, puts the puck on goal from behind the net and it results in a 3-4 game, closing the deficit to one goal now. I don't know what it is about Marian Hossa, the Hurricanes, and especially Cam Ward, but he finds odd holes in Ward's game when it's completely inadvertent and I appreciate that mindset from Hossa.
Star number two, hate to say it, was Carolina's Cam Ward. Let's face it - the Thrashers had several legitimate chances to break this game open. Great shots from Hossa, Kovy, Todd White, and even Mark Popovic were all cast away or snatched out of the air by Wardo and I have to give him credit for keeping his team in it. As Atlanta Thrashers fans (and fans of hockey in general), we all know how important it is to have strong goaltending. We found that out in the Washington game from this past week, with OND-REDGE's fantastic performance being the difference-maker. Pavelec wasn't on top of his game, while, on the other end of the ice, Ward was lookin' mighty good. Kudos to you, Cam Ward, for being able to give your team the win that they needed to maintain Southeast Division dominance.And this is kinda surprising (but not after last nite), but Eric Perrin earned star numero uno. His vision to be where he was for the first goal was great and he just knew that Kozlov was gonna make the pass. Incredible. Also, good for him for making the shot. I've seen enough times this year players squander these fantastic chances they have either right up in the goalie's grill or in the slot. Hooray for Perrin for cashing in on one of these opportunities. And I must mention the shortie that he created in the second. Just watch the video of the game and you'll see what I mean. Chasing down the puck in the Carolina zone, Perrin beat one of the Hurricanes to the puck, took him down in the process, created some open ice when the Thrashers were SHORT-HANDED, moved Ward around a bit, and make Ward commit to the play. Hossa caught notice of this, moved to the right a bit, and Perrin made the pass over to him and capitalized on the play that made Cam Ward sprawl over the ice in a feeble attempt to do SOMETHING. Eric Perrin's sense of what was developing was keen and commendable. I, for one, applaud you for your performance and stamina last nite, Mr. Perrin.
The next game is on Tuesday, against the Panthers in Blueland. I'll see you there?!
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