Thrashers HABS-olutely Dominate 2nd Period for PRICE-less Win

Somewhat rare in these parts is the extended winning streak, especially that of the homestand variety. What's even more rare in this hockey humble town of Thrasherville are homestand winning streaks that feature the following: 1) lopsided shot margins, 2) dominating goaltending performances and 3) full, 60-minutes of consistent effort. Well, that's exactly what the Thrashers' faithful have been treated to at Philips Arena over this recent 4-game winning tear on home ice. During this span of success, the Thrashers have outscored their opponents by a combined margin of 15 to 2 and staked claim to a dominant edge on the shots-on-goal clock with a compelling margin of +40 (156 to 116). Did I just type that? And last nite's dominating 2nd period performance against a Carey Price-less Montreal team left Ondrej Pavelec with lots of uninterrupted time for deep, introspective thought about just how amazing his play has been over the last couple of weeks. In a word -- from the mind of his twitterring agent, Allan Walsh -- Ondrej has been PAV-ELECTRIC!!

Last nite's 2nd period was a well-deserved reward for Pavelec's magnificent play over the previous 13 periods of action in which Pavelec had stopped 134 of 138 shots that found a way to his equipment. But in last nite's game, his inspired teammates decided to give him a respite of sorts by controlling just about every second of the middle frame with a relentless barrage of 23 shots on goal and two timely, if not a bit lucky, goals. Of course, Pavelec's outstanding twine-tending would have made a 1-goal margin stand up for the win. The Thrashers tried their darnedest to riddle back-up goalie Alex Auld with shots, but could only penetrate his paraphenelia 3 times in 47 attempts. Center Rich Peverley was finally the beneficiary of some good puck luck in this game when he knocked home a loose puck amidst a scramble in front of the Habs' net that somehow eluded Auld's arm and right pad. Later, Peverley's patience and perserverance would be rewarded with time and space on the power play, and he would exploit the situation by firing a wicked wrister from the left face-off dot that pinged off the far post behind a helpless Auld.

Alas, goal-scoring heroics and sensational, hi-lite reel goals were not the order of the evening. Instead, the most memorable aspect of last nite's performance was the way in which the team supported each other in consummate team fashion. The picture to the left -- apologies for the crappy resolution, but what do you want from a Blackberry cell phone?! -- featuring Nik Antropov and Alexander Burmistrov illustrates just how far the Thrashers have come when the right-wing is dropping down to the goal line to support the center in the defensive end. Coach Ramsay must be grinning from ear to ear as his teachings and instruction have been paying off in the form of a concerted, nearly seamless team effort FOR ALMOST AN ENTIRE 6O MINUTES in which every player is playing the same way. No longer is it unusual to see the 5-man team playing as one cohesive unit in which they support one another on the puck and along the boards without fail.

On top of that, we are seeing this team take extra care and pride in executing all of the little plays that add up over the course of 60 minutes. Plays like getting a puck on net to force a face-off when your blueline is struggling to complete a change during the 2nd period; racing down the ice to negate a potential icing of the puck in the late 3rd period so the opponent doesn't get the all-important offensive zone face-off; and chipping the puck along the boards to allow a teammate to get to the wall for support instead of trying to force a "willy-nilly" pass to a "hot zone" near your own blueline. For once, we are seeing the emergence of a team that does not resort to the selfish, extra-fancy play at the expense of the overall gameplan and team philosophy. While this team may know they have enough skill to convert chances and pull off the titillating hi-lite play, they also realize they are not talented enough to stray from the blueprint laid out by Coach Ramsay. Even Ondrej Pavelec, who's sterling .946 save percentage and miniscule 1.68 GAA is worthy of a little self-praise, keeps insisting that it isn't about him and that the recent success is only the by-product of a full team effort: "I said so many times, you're winning as a team and losing as a team. I said it five times in the last five games it was a team effort. I don't know what you guys want me to say."

Okay Ondrej, we get it, we'll stop asking you. Just don't hesitate in reminding your teammates of this mantra of "win as a team, lose as a team" the minute any of them start to resort to some of their old, all-too-familiar bad habits. But don't you just get the feeling that something is different this year and the word "team" isn't just a trite descriptor for a collection of 20 individuals wearing the same uniform? I know it's still early, but I'm seeing a collective team pride that has not been a consistent characteristic of the many previous collections of players in this team's frustrating 10-year history. That pride seems to be the result of a firm belief in knowing that team success is in the individual execution of little details; and now that belief is being manifested in the form of a thorough execution of the gameplan as well as dominance on home ice. And isn't THAT a refreshing sight to behold?