tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48563687447433654842024-03-05T00:54:14.949-05:00Thrashers Prospects AnnexNews about Atlanta Thrashers prospects in addition to my stories at Hockey's Future, with a broader outlook on prospects generally.Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.comBlogger474125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-73294038483535224752010-05-03T00:03:00.003-04:002010-05-03T00:10:14.296-04:00Thrashers scout on LarssonSwedes in the first round two years in a row is likely impossible to happen on the Thrashers, but I ran across this quote that was mildly interesting, out of what I think is the Gotland, Sweden newspaper. Talks about Johan Larsson, who made a big run up some draft lists with his performance at the U18 World Championships in Minsk.Google translation of the section:[quote] Fredrik Jax, Atlanta Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-10427424880338376582010-04-24T20:32:00.003-04:002010-04-24T20:35:38.288-04:00Hockey looking better than Goldman Sachs?According to his LinkedIn profile, former Thrashers prospect Colin FitzRandolph is still employed at Goldman Sachs.The news coming out of the investigation of that company just gets worse and worse.I wonder if he is thinking he should have pursued hockey instead of jumping straight from Saint Lawrence to Wall Street..Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-42173230935121029942010-02-15T22:52:00.004-05:002010-02-15T22:55:40.495-05:00Glads as KnightsGlads as Knights...Gladys Knights...get it?Anyway, here's some pictures I took before chasing Brady Calla around the building, no thanks to Malcolm Cameron.Michael Forney.Chad Denny.Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-88063405434289953162010-01-05T19:15:00.004-05:002010-01-06T07:47:40.428-05:00Kaip and Kozek at UND gameI went to the Sears Centre in Chicago last weekend for the Shillelagh Tournament featuring Notre Dame and North Dakota. In the championship game, I looked to the left of the press box, and who's sitting there but Rylan Kaip, drinking a beer, and Andrew Kozek. They were there to see their alma mater of course. Kozek was interviewed on the UND broadcast during the second intermission. Tilt your Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-23128819218684157782009-10-17T14:04:00.004-04:002009-10-17T14:10:29.756-04:00Where are they now? Jimmy SharrowI went to Wheeling Nailers pre-game skate today to talk to one of the prospects that Pittsburgh sent down. Jimmy Sharrow is there now, having signed a contract just last week. Wheeling, though it has some very good Penguins prospects come through there, is the place that Thrasher prospects go to die. Both Mike Vannelli and Lane Manson retired after playing just a few games for Wheeling. We'll Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-47340744752297155192009-09-16T23:57:00.003-04:002009-09-17T00:00:38.017-04:00Schell invited to Rockford campFormer prospect Brad Schell is an invitee at AHL Rockford IceHogs camp. The IceHogs obviously would have seen him play last year in Gwinnett. Click here for the press release.I'm a little surprised he didn't head to Europe this year..Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-21725875663606105342009-09-11T18:13:00.007-04:002009-09-11T23:14:56.839-04:002009 Traverse City Prospects Tournament reviewI attended the Traverse City Tournament this year and was able to catch most of all four Thrasher games. If one had traveled all that way just to see the Thrashers, there wouldn't have been much reward, as the team had just spotty talent. They finished seventh out of eight, but had to go to a shootout to do it.Let's start with the two best players: Evander Kane and Eric O'Dell. O'Dell doesn't getHolly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-78843285649981451792009-08-27T06:29:00.004-04:002009-08-27T06:44:31.774-04:00Unice invited to Traverse City tourney by ThrashersFrom the Windsor Star:If the Holland, Ohio native was looking for a confidence boost with camp opening Wednesday he got it Tuesday night when the Atlanta Thrashers invited him to attend their rookie camp in Traverse City.Unice is a goaltender perhaps best known for his play for Team USA. He is an unsigned draft pick of the Chicago Blackhawks.Teams don't usually have three on the roster, so that Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-71495681983051640112009-08-23T18:08:00.004-04:002009-08-23T18:26:39.963-04:00Gladiators to affiliate with Blue Jackets as wellFrom the Columbus Dispatch:The Blue Jackets will have a new ECHL affiliation this season, the Dispatch has learned. The franchise will send two or three players to the Gwinnette [sic] Gladiators of the American Conference's South Division.They are the second team to pull out of Johnstown this summer. Colorado was the other. More evidence that Johnstown is on shaky ground. Financial stability is Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-31422966044367568982009-08-21T17:47:00.003-04:002009-08-21T17:55:07.948-04:00Dudley discovered Mitch Korn back in the dayThis summer I worked on a long feature on the very successful goaltending coach Mitch Korn, who has worked in the NHL for 18 seasons. Interestingly, it was Rick Dudley who first gave Korn his big break into the NHL. If there's something Dudley can do, it's spot talent.In 1990, Korn was breaking down some video at a camp held at the Buffalo Sabres practice facility. Rick Dudley, then the head Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-26063106859752675912009-08-16T19:06:00.005-04:002009-08-16T19:17:47.324-04:00Alabama-Huntsville hockey on shaky ground after CCHA snubThe closest college hockey to Atlanta, University of Alabama-Huntsville, was looking to join a new conference this summer due to the demise of College Hockey America. They applied for entrance to the CCHA, but were denied, in what was a surprise to most watchers.This raises the specter that UAH could shut down its hockey program altogether. Yes, the team can play as an independent, but for how Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-4153761534436371922009-07-07T23:09:00.003-04:002009-07-07T23:15:50.346-04:00Rookie games against Nashville will be Sept. 15 and 16Per the Predators' press release:NASHVILLE PREDATORS 2009 PRESEASON SCHEDULE Date Opponent Site Time (CT) Mon, Sept. 14 @ Atlanta Thrashers (Rookie Game) Duluth IceForum 6 pm Tue, Sept. 15 @ Atlanta Thrashers (Rookie Game)Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-16946227543946565702009-07-01T21:27:00.004-04:002009-07-02T22:29:49.455-04:00Alumni who are free agents nowThe free agent list came out today and there are lots of Thrashers prospect alumni on it, and some alumni of affiliates too. I'll list them alphabetically by former team. These players are free to sign anywhere now. Some might end up in Europe like Mark Popovic did last year.Chad Painchaud (ANA) -- he was a throw-in to the Mathieu Schneider trade last fall.Dan Turple (ATL)Colton Fretter (BUF)Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-39330062238980454132009-06-23T18:12:00.002-04:002009-06-23T18:15:52.450-04:002009 Traverse City tourney Sept. 6-10According to RedWingsCentral, the dates for the annual Traverse City Prospects tournament will be Sept. 6-10. The usual teams will be there, including the Thrashers. .Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-68235773516330720572009-06-03T21:55:00.004-04:002009-06-03T22:02:49.924-04:00Rookie games with Nashville would be in ATL this yearAssuming both teams are still agreeable as the summer passes, those two "rookie" games that were played at Nashville last year will be moved to Atlanta this year. From the Nashville City Paper:In its first few seasons, Nashville participated in a prospects tournament in Traverse City, Mich., with several other franchises. Last season, two rookie games with Atlanta were held during the first week Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-23290740290702319882009-05-18T19:17:00.004-04:002009-05-18T19:39:27.580-04:00Levenson rants on the AJCEntertaining, if nothing else. From Sports Business Journal, Thrashers co-owner Bruce Levenson:Yet, from the IT department, to former sports editor Ron Ramos to Swartz, the AJC squandered precious dwindling resources chasing a meaningless dead-end story; one it sought to manufacture from one of a thousand sentences Whammer wrote in an e-mail the AJC should never have traced. In these tough times,Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-66469170693912358292009-05-03T21:21:00.004-04:002009-05-03T21:29:36.054-04:00Kevin Doell on Oliver Ekman-LarssonI was writing a story on draft-eligible Oliver Ekman-Larsson, one of Kevin Doell's teammates from Leksand this year, so I decided to contact him for his input. Doell went above and beyond in helping, which has always seemed to be his approach on everything.Here's the finished product, which should be interesting to Thrasher fans primarily because OEL is someone the Thrashers are looking at Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-73915127997640014012009-04-18T19:25:00.002-04:002009-04-18T19:36:40.686-04:00How you know you have a good GMAnswer: He will only sign year-to-year contracts. This is the sign of someone who knows he can get another job in the NHL and doesn't want to be tied down to a bad situation. He doesn't ask for a long-term deal when he's on a crest. From the Tennessean:Predators General Manager David Poile said Friday he's agreed to a new one-year contract through June of 2010.Last summer, Poile decided to signHolly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-70532292018251568552009-04-12T11:50:00.002-04:002009-04-12T11:56:12.220-04:00Prospects the Thrashers have and haven't talked to for the 2009 draftI'm at the U18 World Championships, and when I interview players, I generally ask which NHL teams they've talked to. It's not always a good gauge of which teams are the most interested, since some wait to talk to a guy so as not to tip their hand, but it is a good gauge of how much general interest there is in a player. So that's why I ask.But in the process, I've been able to come up with a listHolly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-50947075232699907032009-04-05T15:15:00.004-04:002009-04-05T15:37:47.578-04:00Gladiators, start your mustachesLast night in Charlotte, the Gladiators clinched a playoff spot. The players had already decided more than a week ago that they would all have mustaches for the playoffs after Matt Siddall brought one back from Chicago. Adam Berti got a jump on things last weekend, and has been showing off his plentiful lip hair:Kaleniecki has his going, as do Southern, Youngclaus and Turner. Mason has a beard Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-13857005788807344282009-03-25T19:08:00.002-04:002009-03-25T19:35:05.060-04:00Dr. Stuart fixed knee of top prospectDr. Michael Stuart, father of Colin and Mark Stuart, performed knee surgery on one of the top prospects for the 2009 draft, Jared Cowen. Dr. Stuart works at the Mayo Clinic Rochester, Minneapolis, and was previously the team doctor for the US national junior team.“Our team has its own surgeon, but my agent recommended Dr. Stuart because he has a lot of experience performing the surgery," Cowen Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-43068583064313818332009-03-23T18:50:00.005-04:002009-03-26T21:37:09.707-04:00Marks to Blades as assistant coachJohn Marks, who lost his coaching job when the ECHL Augusta Lynx went under, has a new gig. He's going to assist Malcolm Cameron coaching the league-leading Florida Everblades (who the Gwinnett Gladiators will likely meet in the first round of the playoffs).From the press release:“I wanted to look at the possibility of having an assistant coach for this year’s playoff run,” Cameron said. “Once Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-42296393186074426702009-03-22T12:16:00.003-04:002009-03-22T12:29:38.660-04:00Vannelli's comebackWell, this could have been predicted. Mike Vannelli, who quit hockey after being assigned to the ECHL Wheeling Nailers at the beginning of the 2007-08 season, has developed the itch to play again. He's over in Germany right now as an insurance player for the Dusseldorf EG Metro Stars in the DEL. I was reading an article about how the Las Vegas Wranglers could be sold, and it mentioned that theyHolly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-58069765877137358272009-03-12T13:06:00.002-04:002009-03-12T13:12:05.124-04:00HF on Atlanta-trained Landon FerraroFormer Thrasher Ray Ferraro's son Landon is eligible for the 2009 draft, and quite highly rated in fact. Hockey's Future did a feature on Landon, and I made sure we asked him about the time he spent playing travel hockey in Atlanta while his dad was playing here. Those were his formative years...."In Atlanta I was a bit older so I could actually figure some stuff out. Just seeing where my Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4856368744743365484.post-80588529297893034362009-02-24T17:54:00.004-05:002009-02-24T18:33:48.436-05:00Desbiens a hot commodityFrom the Winnipeg Free PressMILWAUKEE -- Last week there was Oscar buzz, but this week in the hockey world there is Dezzy buzz. Dezzy, as the Manitoba Moose refer to right-winger Guillaume Desbiens, is hot among NHL scouts these days and likely the next in a growing line of Craig Heisinger reclamation projects. Desbiens was cut adrift by the Atlanta Thrashers last summer and was unsure if his Holly Gunninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09380514635466420919noreply@blogger.com1