Practice - 2007/12/10

You know, when the Thrashers usually acquire a new player, us fans are used to the idea that there is always a price to pay. Some feel that after last year's trade for Keith Tkachuk, we traded away everything but the kitchen sink. We didn't stop there and obtained Pascal Dupuis from the Rangers for one of our picks, Alex Bourret. And then there was the "at the time it seemed like a good idea, but..." trade for Alexei Zhitnik, which led to Braydon Coburn's departure. Other than those transactions, the only other "main" trade is the one everyone falls back on when the Thrashers are mentioned - the Hossa/Heatley deal. So as a Thrashers fan (at least in my limited awareness of these kinds of deals), I've grown accustomed to the idea that in order for us to gain anything in terms of players, the team usually gives up a little more than they bargained for.

For once, history did not repeat itself and the upper management team of the Thrashers shocked the NHL world and picked up veteran forward Mark Recchi off of re-entry waivers from the Pittsburgh Penguins. Because of this kind of signing, the Thrashers only pay half of his salary, while the Pens pick up the other half.

So you're gonna tell me that we picked up a player who, in his career, averages almost a point per game for only six figures? This is a great move by our GM and it already showed this morning when I attended practice up in Duluth. Rex was all smiles it seemed and got his mouth flowing with his teammates. I often saw him hang around Todd White, but he spent some time with Brad Larsen and (to my knowledge) shared a line with Bryan Little and Eric Perrin. Tom over at Talkin' About Practice (a Thrashers practice blog) has some more information on the types of drills that were run and what other players Recchi teamed up with.

Like what Ben mentioned in this morning blog post, I couldn't help but think of the similarity between Recchi and Brett Sterling. The body type was pretty similar and I feel that some of the facial features were close as well. The whole reason why I made my way up there was because of Recchi, but when I saw him on the ice about 10 minutes early and with the number 8 on the back of his helmet, I kept telling myself that Sterling usually wears number 21 and he's in Chicago... what's going on?! Good thing I was solo and kept my mouth shut there. :)

With regards to the Sterling thing and the pairing with Little, I think it's gonna be great that Recchi will spend some time with the young'uns and I know that the kids will be all ears whenever Recchi has some words in their direction. What will be interesting is the moves that will transpire because of Recchi's spot on the roster. George over at Talking Thrash speculated about what roster moves might occur, but here's to hoping that kids like Little and Haydar aren't affected by the signing of Rex.

For now, take some time to get used to this new face in Blueland:



For more pics from this morning's practice, just check the ol' reliable Flickr.