Excited to see that the Thrashers activated Ondrej Pavelec off of the IR today. Pavs has been out since about two minutes into the season with, as we all know, a terrifying moment of fainting coupled with a concussion. The doctors were unable to determine the cause of the fainting spell, so after observation they've cleared him to get back on the ice and get shelled with 30+ shots an evening.  Oh, how I'm sure that he's thrilled - and I'm sure that Chris Mason'd appreciate the break. Masonry's a workhorse, but he appreciates a day with about 25 SOG once in a while, you know?  Not sure when Pavs is starting again, but I would bet on Friday against Buffalo - unless the Thrashers want to fling him into the fire and get Mason some time off; in that case, Wednesday would be probable.

Someone who won't be playing any time soon is Blues defenseman Roman Polak, who almost got his hand cut off (I exaggerate for fun, but it still was a nasty slice) by Sidney Crosby's skate in the Blues 1-0 win over the Penguins Saturday. Tyson Strachan'll be in there for him.

To come (when I get a chance to relax) - power rankings that were supposed to go up last week, and a Jaroslav Halak feature. Because there aren't enough of those.

And no, I don't know if that was sarcasm there or not - as wonderfully as he's been playing, I honestly can't tell.

My previous post delt with the beginning of this season's series between the Blues and the Blackhawks - a beginning that was going ever so well thanks to David Perron until Marian Hossa felt the need to score... and the Blues felt the need to let the Hawks use Jaroslav Halak as a bench. This year's rivalry didn't start the way we wanted it to, but there's always Friday!  HA.

"Wait, it's "saber," not "saab-ray?"

Anywho, tonight marks the first time this season that the Buffalo Sabres come to Philips Arena. This annual migration of Buffalonians exascerbates Thrasher fans more so than any other team's visitors coming to pop in. Penguins fans are (mostly) cool. Blackhawks fans are fun. Wings fans, well, we tolerate them, but they're buying stuff from our vendors, so we'll cope. Even Flyers fans are getting to where I don't cringe when I see them - but that might be because of the ones who bought me sympathy beers at a blowout a few years back.

I am a hockey fan first off and formost. I like just about everyone, because they love the same sport that I do. If you've made the unfortunate lifestyle decision to wear a Winged Wheel, that's your choice, and I will try to accept that. But please don't be a raging ass for no reason. That's all I ask. Especially since I sit in the attack once side and am usually surrounded by visiting fans.

This is why the Sabres at Thrashers games are so... unique. I know a lot of Buffalo fans who are really, really cool and nice people (Vance from Bangin' Panger comes to mind)... and I really wish that they'd sit the folks who will be at the game tonight and teach them proper hockey decorum.

Yes, it's fine to heckle, as long as it's done with humor. No, it is not fine to call the home fans "douchebags" and "assholes" while you're in their arena if you're not doing it with a smile on your face. Make fun of Atlanta hockey - go on, be horribly un-original, because it's not like we've never heard it before. Get drunk - our beer dudes like the tips. But don't follow a seven year old kid into the gentlemen's room to start a fight. And don't do that in the stands, either.

Come to think of it, unless you're on the ice with skates and a stick, fighting should be generally frowned upon.

Honestly, the fixation that Buffalo and Atlanta fans have with each other should be grounds for a rivalry, but it's not. Buffalo has Toronto, and we have the Caps (or we like to think that we have the Capitals). No one in the league will ever tout the great back and forth between two cities so far apart. I swear that it exists, though. I don't know of a single person who, upon seeing that both of our home games against Buffalo are in October this season, didn't say "Oh, thank God, we get it over with early this year." If dreading the arrival of a team isn't a big contributing factor to a rivalry, what is?

How about going 7-0-2 against Buffalo since that awful 10-1 blowout in January of 2008?  In the past three seasons, we've gotten 18 out of 24 possible points from the Sabres, and yet we have to constantly hear how much the Thrashers suck and how much better the Sabres are. There - if a Sabres fan heckles you tonight, mention that. Maybe it'll make them focus their attention on something else more productive, like trying to come up with funny swipes at you and your team. Because that's what hockey's really all about. Forget geographic location, or a long and storied history - we need to base rivalries over annoyances, dammit.

Tonight's the first meeting between the Blues and the Stanley Cup Champion Blackhawks. That Cup changes nothing, because these two teams can't stand each other with or without it. It just gives bandwagon Hawks fans something to throw in our faces and non-bandwagon Hawks fans something to politely mention in passing as they dump a beer on someone's head during nickel beer night.

Good times.

Face it, I hate Detroit and just about everything about that team, city, and fans (except for the nice Wings fans I know - you know who you are). Chicago, by all accounts, is a nice town save for the folks they elect to be in charge. Good food, pretty city, nice museums, statues of Michael Jordan, one decent baseball team... my hatred of the Blackhawks is just plain old rivalry. It's fun to catcall them because they don't cry. It's old-school hockey hatred, and I adore that.

That, and both Blues and Blackhawks fans hate Detroit. It's like a bond or something.

Anywho, tonight's Turco versus Halak. I've found a photo of Marty Turco during the Blues' pre-season game... hold on... here it is:

Anywho, say hi to the nice guys at Blackhawks Down Low and my friend Jim Neveau over at Paint It Blackhawks. And, as always, Let's Go Blues!

Or, evidence that you're a Thrashers fan. Take your pick, but you have to admit that to have someone whose previous career high in goals was two score a hat trick against Jonas Hiller is funny. And then he's named the NHL's first star of the night, all while people in the comments sections on other newspaper-y blogs call for him to be waived. Hysterical:

Oh, is that not enough hilarity for you? Look at Atlanta's leader in all statistical categories:

Chris Thorburn hopes to keep the dream alive tonight when the Thrashers take on the Sharks at 10:00, radio only (or Center Ice/GCL depending on blackout restrictions). Please to harass my good friends at Couch Tarts tonight, if not just for their awesome artwork, commentary, and general hilarity.

From fellow SLGT member russkidan:

One would think that as an educator I could make the "Pfffft, dumbass" look as well as he does, but sadly, I have lots to learn from the master.  Lots.

We discussed the current rise of either frustration, exacerbation, or drama-queen tantrums amongst Thrashers fans on the last Birdwatchers Anonymous radio show. People are frustrated with Dudley for not signing a big scorer, or for focusing too much on "size" (whatever that means), or for nepotism, or whatever. People are already calling coach Craig Ramsay "John Anderson 2.0." Yes, it is difficult to see the difference between Anderson and Ramsay's offense first, five up, five back style of hockey. I know that Thrashers fans are conditioned to cringe when we hear the words "we need the defense to jump up into the play." And wailing and gnashing our teeth over goaltending issues is our right as an Atlanta hockey fan.

For God's sake, listen to the man. He must be doing something right.

For all of this to come only three games into the regular season, though? God, wait until November, at least. I understand the Thrash went winless in the pre-season, but pre-season hockey means exactly diddly and squat. Not every line-up every night is a full NHL roster. Techniques and lines are being moved about. Things are being tried out every night that may or may not work - that's the point of pre-season. It's a learning time. You have to expect that the Thrashers' learning time will be a bit extended, when you take the massive upheaval that happened over the offseason into consideration. New coach, new GM, new coaching staff, and ten new players who weren't on the roster at the end of last season - all of these people have to get onto the same page and do so quickly. Ramsay has reminded press and fans alike that the team has to "un-learn" bad habits from previous coaches - be it John Anderson, or things that they learned while playing under a minor league or previous NHL coach. Ramsay's intent is to be a teacher and to show the players the correct way of doing things, not to set them loose to run and gun however they feel like it. Some lines and some players (most notably the fourth line and center Alex Burmistrov) are going to catch on to the new ideas quickly. Others might take some time to adapt. Getting the little starts and fits out of the way now and playing solid hockey for the rest of the season is far more important than starting 4-1.

Because that team that started 4-1 last season had some hellacious losing streaks when it mattered, thanks to tuning out the coach and not being taught the proper way to maintain momentum. Don't judge until you see the full picture. There've been a lot of positives to take away from the season thus far, and the Thrashers are already playing a new and grittier style of hockey. Just wait until it takes hold.

Two goals in six seconds is pretty damn good - thank you very much, David Backes and Andy McDonald. But do you know what's even more awesome? Taking advantage of the Ducks' frustration at losing another game and going winless at the start of the season. I'm sure that it's annoying when you face 143 shots in three games (around fifty last night - though technically 83 counting attempted and blocked) because you have no defense, but when Brad Boyes tries to throw down with you and you run away, that's an issue.

From the BND:

So when the anticipated rough stuff began, the Blues turned to players like Barret Jackman, Brad Winchester and Eric Brewer.

It's a 1:00/2:00 Eastern start for the Blues and Ducks game today, so get that Gamecenter Live geared up and hide from your boss.

CamSmash won't be out there though - Brad Winchester's check on his own teammate took him out for two weeks with a concussion. He'll be out for two weeks; the Blues called up Ryan Reeves. Jaroslav Halak'll be in goal again, and here's hoping for a little more than a 2-1 overtime win.

One other thing - I understand the dislike of Brewer and Jackman (kind of), but booing them during introductions wasn't cool. It was obvious on TV, and it looks bad. These guys are playing for you. Give them a chance - Brewer actually had a fairly solid game on Saturday.

Go on over to On The Duck Pond and politely harass the Anaheim fans. They expect no less.

It's gotta be opening night!  I've decided to not do the in-depth previews this season because I'm sure no one reads them and because you really need to just go to St. Louis Game Time and read theirs. The randomness of having the Flyers start the season isn't as odd as having to play the Thrashers to start off the year, admittedly, but to try to encourage people to care about Philly and their calvacade of rag tag goaltending replacements is a tough task. Yes, we used to have a rivalry with them in the 60s and 70s, when the Plager Brothers inspired them to assemble their own team of bullies - which the Plagers still pounded. But the Plagers aren't here, and neither's Bobby Clarke (at least not on the ice), so all the Blues fans can do is watch Chris Pronger skate around and steal pucks, and then look at Eric Brewer to compare his play to Pronger's, and cry.

The tears won't last long, though, because it's yet another Brett Hull night!  Hullie gets a statue out in front of Scottrade to go with Bernie and MacInnis' statues. For someone who doesn't work for the team, he certainly gets honored by the Blues quite a bit. It could be that whole "he defined a decade/played the best years of his career here" thing. I'm not bothered by it like some are. Hull made the Blues a draw again in St. Louis, and I grew up watching him play. I'm pretty ok with building him a shrine outside of the arena. Hell, if lighting candles before the Three Wise Men of Blues hockey gets us a playoff series win, I'll fly home and light a hundred of them in front of those statues.

I'm looking forward to seeing Perron-Backes-Boyes as the top line. Fast, scoring, and playmakig - deal with that, Flyers. Line two? McDonald-Berglund-Oshie. The third line is Steen-Silent Jay-Crombeen, and the fourth line will be Winchester-Dags-Cam. Defense will be Jackman-Johnson, Brewer-Polak, and Cola-Petro, with Halak in net. I don't like to predict things, but I'm sensing a good game tonight from the boys in blue.

Just a quickie since I'm late for an appointment, but awesome game last night from the Thrashers. Anyone who was wondering if Evander Kane was going to go through a sophomore slump had those doubts knocked out of their minds last night with his two goal, first star of the game performance. After losing goalie Ondrej Pavelec (who is apparently fine, though no word on his condition yet), and allowing a soft goal thanks to the distraction, the Thrashers ran roughshod over the Caps, who couldn't handle the checking and knocking about that the new guys brought to the team.

Hi, Washington, this is what it's like when you play against a team who focuses it on being a team effort as well as who know how to crash the net. I honestly can't see the Bolts fairing much better tonight. There's no one on the team who can tolerate the intensity that the Thrashers brought last night. Dan Ellis is familiar with a lot of our new players, but apparently his latest problem isn't his paycheck - it'll be Evander Kane.

Well wishes for Pavs can be sent to him via the Atlanta Thrashers Fan Club.