After responding from some great mishaps (against the Isles - but with a win - and against the Flyers), the Thrashers had the momentum carry over from their great win over Jersey the other night... at least, you would think that would happen. Granted, I did get to the game about 5-10 minutes late, so I definitely cannot attest to how they came out of the gate. With Jon Sim coming up with an early goal though, it seemed as if the Thrash could finally get something started and perhaps finish it. Walking into Philips, I discovered that the score was already tied up even though I just heard the goal on 680 from the parking lot across the street.
Finally getting a seat, I was able to assess the situation and witness the game for what I thought it was worth.
For all the Dunham haters out there, the guy was the second star of the game and pretty much deserved it. Granted, the Isles played some trusty defense and killed off a bunch of penalties. That's not to say that the Thrashers had their chances though.
With five power plays (including an early 5-on-3), the Thrashers' power play unit that includes Hossa, Kovalchuk, and Kozlov - three guys you think would be able to outplay opponents' PK units and score in numbers - once again proved inept at the chances handed to them.
There were several moments during the game that the Thrash should've been up a few goals. There were fantastic opportunities to cash in on. There were attempts by Kapanen with great shooting angles - but this was quickly minimalized by Niko's lack of puck-handling in some intense situations. There was a penalty shot from Hossa that could've started something in the Thrashers' favor - but the goalpost let off a resounding "NOPE!" And Kovy had shot after shot that could've hit some kind of twine in the back of the net - but it seemed like for every shot fired, Dunham had an answer.
Yes, THAT Dunham.
Did he play outstanding tonight? Not necessarily, as there were moments (but not many, unfortunately) that he would find himself in poor positioning or unsure as to what to do with the puck. For the vast majority of the game, however, Dunham was everything that he was not during his tenure with the Thrashers last season - a reliable asset that the Isles pretty much banked on for the duration of the evening. Did he play solid hockey for close to 60 minutes? I'd say so.
And with his history with this Atlanta team, for the Isles to get that kind of win in our building, with him manning the nets - it's really unforgivable. It makes you very angry as a Thrashers fan. After all of the misery and hardships the team and its followers had to endure last year, the one person we hoped would pull through would be the back-up goalie. Mike Dunham really gave no evidence of that to the team last season. And for him to just casually walk out of Philips knowing that he played his heart out to prove himself in front of probably close to 13000 people (maybe I'm being generous? It was a week night) - it just boggles my mind how this kind of player didn't show up AT ALL last season.
So looking at the game from that viewpoint, I'm pretty much disappointed, frustrated, and pretty pissed. I'm disappointed that our team, with as much fire-power it possesses, cannot get itself started on any kind of roll lately. I'm frustrated because it's really appearing that our team isn't used to being in the position that they are currently in - as one of the top teams in the NHL - and that they can't seem to handle it (or that kind of respect) in game situations. And I'm livid because of Dunham and how this kind of talent and promise didn't present itself during a season when we needed it the most... and now he seems to be thriving in the role as someone who can be relied upon.
We'll see how things turn out against the Flyers on Saturday.
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