Pre-Season Report: Atlanta Thrashers

The post-Kovalchuk era has begun in Atlanta, leaving us looking to a group of youngsters to pick up the slack. The Thrashers have now turned the page on a decade that saw the likes of Dany Heatley, Marian Hossa, and now Kovalchuk come and go. Armed with some new acquisitions and rookies waiting in the wings, the rebuild is officially underway in Atlanta. Now the Thrashers, with a new GM and coach, can focus on building and developing from within. This, of course, means that it might be another tough year for fans in Atlanta.

The Forwards
The Atlanta Thrashers have an impressive group of young forwards. After some wheeling and dealing this off season, GM Rick Dudley brought in some Stanley Cup winners in forwards, Dustin Byfuglien, Andrew Ladd, Ben Eager, and defenseman Brent Sopel. These are all good players in their own right, but are merely role players. They add experience, toughness, and solid work ethic to a team that sorely lacks those attributes. They wont however, replace Kovalchuk's ability to dominate offensively.

Along with the new additions, the Thrashers have a good young cast of forwards. Centreman, Nik Antropov has been a reliable 60 point producer, who at age 30 still has some good years ahead, while Rich Peverley has shown that he can score 15-20 goals. On the wings, the Thrashers have some scoring potential with Niclas Bergfors and Bryan Little. Bergfors was acquired by Atlanta in the trade that sent Kovalchuk to New Jersey and played well for the Thrashers, scoring 17 points in 27 games as a Thrasher.

Bryan Little had a bit of a rough 2009-2010 season, but at 22 is still developing. He is more than capable of getting back to the 30 goal plateau that he hit in the 2008-2009 season. Then there's Evander Kane, the 19 year old who showed the league what he is capable of scoring wise and physically (just ask Matt Cooke of the Penguins). At six-feet, 2 inches and 190 pounds, Kane utilizes his size in driving to the net. He is capable of reaching the 40-50 point range, but can also dominate on the ice with his toughness and tenacity. With prospect Patrice Cormier moving up in the depth chart as well, the Thrashers have some solid players in which to build around.

The Defense

Despite having lost Pavel Kubina to free agency, Atlanta's defense is one that has the potential to surprise people. With Sopel the only player over 30, the defense is young, but also quite experienced. Zach Bogosian and Tobias Enstrom have shown that they have some serious talent, but their offensive output slowed after the Kovalchuk trade. However, these two are talented and greatly improve the Thrashers ability to move the puck.

Johnny Oduya, who was also acquired by the Thrashers in the Kovalchuk trade, is a solid defenseman that can be used in many situations. He was a solid acquisition by the Thrashers management. Ron Hainsey and Freddy Meyer round out a pretty solid top six.

The Goalies

Now that Kari Lehtonen and Johan Hedberg have moved on, the Thrashers hope that Ondrej Pavelec can continue to develop and grow into a number one goaltender. Pavelec has shown that he has the ability to be Atlanta's starter, but he will be eased into the position, especially now that Chris Mason has been added. To me this was a great move by Thrashers management. They not only have signed a solid goaltender, but they have signed someone who is willing to work with Pavelec. At 34 years old, Mason will share the goaltending duties, until Pavelec is ready to take the job full-time.

The Scoop
On paper the Thrashers aren't the greatest team to look at, but in all honesty, I believe that they have a pretty solid club. Their defense and goaltending are strong, but their forwards will need some more time to grow. Now that Kovalchuk is gone, the team will put more focus on defense and their all around game. This is the type of team that will have a few players in the 40-60 point range, but lack that game breaking forward. As this team grows, they will rise up the standings.

My Prediction: 11th in the East. I would love to put them higher, but I think the East is going to be so tight that the Thrashers will simply be pushed down.