Thrash Talk

In Friday's post, we posed the question to Thrashers bloggers: Should Don Waddell be fired/why does he have a job? Okay, thats two questions. But luckily, three Thrashers bloggers were lucky enough not to immediately delete our email as spam. Here are their responses:

TimmyF is bullish on leaving Waddell in his current post, and even gets into more detail on his own blog:

"Waddell stays. Here's why:

The situation with ownership leaves Waddell little room to do much of anything. He's been working on a constrained budget; you can only do so much when you're trying to hang at the salary cap floor. His trades have gotten better (the Hossa deal especially, but even the smaller trades: picking up Salmela, moving Williams, Schneider, and Christensen), he's been picking up great players in free agency and waivers (Hainsey, Peverley), and his drafting has gotten better the past few years as well (Little and Bogosian were "easy" picks, but look at late rounders like Enstrom and Postma). The most important thing he's done is to bring in players who play our coach's system and it's already paying dividends.

We had the wrong strategy ("make the playoffs") before, but now we're on the right track ("build a young, talented team"). The question isn't whether we should hold Don responsible for our past crimes, but who the best person is to build our team in the future."

I'm not sure "make the playoffs" should ever be considered "the wrong strategy," but Sean G seems to agree Waddell should stick around:

"I don't think Waddell is the problem although has not proven to be an outstanding GM. The problem is the Atlanta Spirit. They are well versed at only one thing - litigation. This group was thrown together and have never seen eye to eye. Take the obvious pain in the ass out of the way, Belkin, and they still have no clue collectively.

I think we'll find out some day that Waddell was very limited financially to do much. He has been hamstrung by the Atlanta Stooges. Don has made some good moves like picking up Rich Peverley for almost nothing. Also, people forget that the moves, (Zhitnik, Keith T, Dupuis,) he made in 2006 resulted in a playoff birth for the Thrashers. In the long term they hurt the team but....

So, my dream is that someone like Ted Turner or Arthur Blank will buy the team and run it correctly. Waddell is not the main problem."

So basically, Waddell is getting the benefit of the doubt due to the Atlanta Spirit's ineptitude? If Billy Knight wasn't afforded similar leeway, why should Waddell? When you run a team for ten years, you're going to make some "good moves." When the poor moves significantly outnumber the good moves, you have a problem.

The Atlanta Spirit purchased the Thashers in 2004. By that time, Waddell had been in charge for five seasons. Both the Nashville Predators and Minnesota Wild, who entered the NHL around the same time had seen playoff berths before 2004, and both have seen multiple appearances since then.

The NHL salary cap was implemented two seasons ago. If I understand it correctly, it is a hard cap that has leveled the playing field for all teams, regardless of mizer-ish ownership (exhibit A: the Boston Bruins). Most all hockey teams are hemmorrhaging scrilla. Lack of resources shouldn't be a Don Waddell-exclusive excuse.

Finally, the Falconer tends to agree with the consensus at Sue's:

Don Waddell is a great guy and he works very hard at his job. Having said that, you don't get extra credit for effort in the NHL, pro sports is a bottom line league and the results simply are not there. Even if you make adjustments for the Thrashers having less money to spend, if you look at points won divided by dollars spent the Thrashers still rank below the league average--if I were an owner I would insist on a better return on my investment. Finally, Waddell's continued presence at the top has hurt the Thrashers efforts to land free agents and to sell tickets. If you're going to sell "youth" and "rebuilding" it just doesn't make any sense to have the same pitchman who sold that to you the last time.

Yeah...by no means am I a "FIRE THIS MAN" kind of guy. Hell, the amount of job turnover behind NHL benches makes a job at Applebees' look stable by comparison, but I can't fathom a situation where a general manager has survived ten seasons with zero playoff wins, expansion team or not.

Thanks to the Thrashers bloggers who got back at us. One day we'll understand this hock-key thing.

QUICK, HIT THIS...

Steam of consciousness yo...

*I know it was a meaningless contest, but did anyone see that abortion of a final possession by Miami during Tuesday night's Hawks game? I mean, as someone with no discernible basketball talent above a high school (OKAY MIDDLE SCHOOL) level, I always figured most NBA players were interchangeable, and given the right opportunity (i.e. all scrubs on the floor), anyone can look good out there. Not so. Those Joel Anthony-Mario West missed opportunities were like watching a world class actor on stage in broadway. It might pique your interest, tho it's ultimately a waste of time. Either way, you ain't re-creating that shit, so if you missed it, it's over.

*Kenshin Kawakami: 6ip, 3er; 6ip, 4er. That's what you're getting all year, Braves fans...dude is a fourth starter. You do not want this guy starting in the postseason for you. All things being equal, if the Braves are in the race mid-July, GET HALLADAY. Quit rubbin your nuts over the Braves signing some Japaneese dude with nice stats in 150ip seasons.

(UPDATE: After re-reading this post made late last night, I don't know what I was thinking. With the rotation and prospects the Braves currently have, they are the one team that probably shouldn't pursue Halladay. Call it wishful thinking on my part.)

*You know who shouldn't be in jail anymore? MICHAEL VICK.

*G-Day? Aye yi. I loved Groo's excellent post about the idiocy that plays into preseason hype, but fuck it...I want to see Logan Gray get some snaps behind Cox and switch it up scheme wise in '09. Cox ain't Shockley, he's not as talented. He's not JoeT either, he doesn't suck. He's a good QB in this system with limitations, so there is room for mixing it up...and knowing Richt's tendencies when he doesn't have a future #1 overall pick behind center, I think two QBs will see playing time.

*If Aaron Murray ends up playing, the season is a rebuilding year anyhow (ala Stafford's frosh year), so they may as well let him get his if the season quickly deteriorates early on. But I think Richt goes with a Cox/Gray platoon to start out the season. I only see Murray playing once the SEC East race is decided. Murray's skillset is duplicated by Gray, so no need to burn his redshirt unless you're building for the future. No matter what, it's going to be one interesting/scary Qb controversy all year.

*Good God that running game scares me. Folks thought that all them years of building up the running backs made the OL look good....I have a feeling it might be the other way around this year.

*Larry has been saying all year that the Hawks are better with Marvin off the bench and MoE in the starting lineup (more shots for the other starters, a legit #1 off the bench, etc). Ain't gonna lie, he's got me convinvced. Not that I think Marvin is better suited off the bench rest of his career, but when you're running iso plays on every critical possession anyways, maybe having a stopper in there on the opponent's best swing doesn't suck. Plus, if Marvin's playing with second units, as witnessed in Tuesday's Heat game, he is so immensely talented he owns the court during that time. Is it what the 2005 #2 overall pick envisioned five years down the road? Hell no. But he got that work for the time being.

*I wanna bet the Heat and make some money. But fuck it, I'd never bet against my team (UGA against a Troy State-ish team aside). I'm pumped for these games. I want to see what kind of a weird dichtonomy it is where holy shit I have no idea what I'm saying, just go Hawks. I can't wait for Sunday night. Drop us a line if you're heading to the game. We'll be walking from the Blimpie's to the Gorin's to the Gyro Wrap for a solid two hours before tipoff doing our part to stimulate the economy. And by stimulate the economy, I mean drinking beers.

*Speaking of those three CNN Center posts, what's with the cheap beer arms race? First the Gorins starts offering an excellent post-game $4, 24oz. option, then Gyro Wrap not only follows suit, but ups the ante' by pulling out a $7, 44oz BEAST of a beverage. When did these guys start following the Quiktrip business model? And can they please apply the same pricing methods to their overpriced food?

And one more bit of news on the fucking Thrashers of all teams:

*Seriously, HOW IS THEIR GM NOT FUCKING FIRED??!!??!? As a quasi-Atlanta blog, I think it's time to reach out to the Thrasher blogs and see how the fuck one could possibly justify Don Waddell keeping his job, and just start the movement. Now if this were just another ATL Spirit be-cheap case that would be one thing, but do hockey people actually think this guy is a good GM? As a casual Thrashers observer, Waddell was recently a Team USA hockey GM, no? I mean, this guy gets Top 10 picks every year and fucks them up. Even the Clippers almost made the WCF a couple years ago. I'd rather have the Thashers hire Gordon Bombay than have Waddell throw his ass behind the bench again. Can't say I blame Kovalchuk for wanting to see how shit plays out before signing an extension

*Tomorrow, Sue's embarks on a project that only a mother could appreciate. Casual Thrasher fans are gonna find out if and why Don Waddell still has a job.

Be easy.

List! Top 10 Atlanta Pro Athletes

What's a sports blog without a nice, arbitrary, completely subjective list apropos of nothing? Well, it's probably a good one actually.  

So without further adieu, here's one man's opinion on the Top 10 Professional Athletes in Atlanta.  Criteria?  No thanks.  Let's get it:

1. Ilya Kovalchuk - I first came up with the idea to do this list while writing the one and only hockey post you'll ever find on this here blawg.  Ilya has slipped quite a bit this season under Coach Anderson's new system (apparantly, as I haven't watched a second of regular season action. I can't lie), but are their any other Atlanta athletes that have been one of the truly elite players in their sport over the last few years?  Dude has been among the Top 10 goal scorers every year since his rookie season and he's only 25.  Hopefully, this current slide is just an early season slump.  

2.  Chipper Jones -  Wins a batting title at age 36.  Still among the game's most feared hitters, even if his power has slipped a bit with age.  Sure, injuries have taken a toll, and and it speaks to the current crop of pro athletes in this city when the 2nd best athlete is a 36 year old that misses 15-20% of each season, but Chipper remains an elite talent at the hot corner and at the plate.  

3.  Brian McCann -  In terms of pure plate discipline and ability to turn a crap pitch into a solid single or hard-hit ball, few young players in baseball remind me of a young Chipper in the batter's box the way McCann does.  Add in the fact he's a catcher and that makes his bat even more valuable.  At age 24 he's already a three-time All-Star and could have ten appearances in the midsummer classic before all is said and done.  Using Baseball References "similar batters through age X" stat, here are some of the guys McCann compares to at this point in his career:  Joe Torre, Ernie Banks, Tony Lazzeri, Yogi Berra, Hanley Ramirez, Joe Mauer, Scott Rolen.  You're talking Hall-of-Fame capabilities here, brother.  

4.  Joe Johnson -  He's probably one of the few Hawks that has reached his ceiling in terms of development (well, assuming these players don't spend their whole careers under Mike Woodson), and thats fine.  Hell, it probably already makes him the best shooting guard in Hawks history.  That said, he's a 2nd tier star (think Paul Pierce, Carlos Boozer, TMac five years ago or Elton Brand) and you're probably not winning a championship with him as your #1 option.  

(Aside:  Anyone thinking Paul Pierce doesn't belong on that list needs a reality check.  Those Celtics teams where he was the clear cut go-to-guy were usually awful, and a conference finalist at best.  I'm not saying he didn't deserve the Finals MVP last year, but he had two great games, two good ones, and two really shitty games.  And he doesn't even sniff that stage without KG and RayRay.)

5.  Michael Turner -  How insane is it that Turner could actually go ahead of LDT in next year's fantasy drafts?  Not in mine of course, as I'll probably be picking LDT in the Top Five until 2015, but in most normal people's that don't discount the facts of life regarding aging and the pounding that 200+ carries for 5+ NFL seasons can put on a player.  Anyways, anyone who had Turner on a fantasy team in years past and was hoping for an LDT injury saw the potential in this guy, and now he's the best back the Falcons have had since Jamal Anderson's fluke season ----errr---- prime.  Turner, not Matt Ryan, is the Falcons MVP this season.  

6.  Josh Smith -  When his contract is up in five seasons, I could see him at #1 or #2 on this list, or completely absent from the list.  Neither would surprise me.  Whatever.  I'm so ready for him to come back that I'd be happy with the Hawks bringing in Randolph Morris and Solomon Jones to just clothesline folks as they continuously penetrate the baseline and take it to the rim, flagrants and suspensions be damned.  Say what you will about Smith's defense, but opposing players feared taking it to the rim with JSmoove shadowing them.  That isn't the case when he's not in there.  

7.  Roddy White -  Looks like a Pro Bowler.  If only he was this effective when MV7 was under center.  Not bitter or anything.  Moving on...did anyone else read this article and get blown away by White's revelation that it was Joe Horn and Bobby Petrino who had the greatest influence on White's transformation into the player he is now?  What the hell were the odds of that happening?  Glad they were able to earn at least part of the millions they essentially stole from this organization.  

8.  Al Horford -  Yeah, he's definitely gotten off to a slow and injury-riddled start this season, but if he develops as his talent warrants (insert Woodson caveat), he could shoot to the top of this list in the next few seasons.  My one concern is that, unlike Dwight Howard, he probably doesn't have the size to excel at the center position; and yet, he doesn't have the "game" of a power forward.  Still...the talent is there for multiple all-star appearances in his future.  

9.  John Abraham -  Talk about frustrating.  When this guy is on, he is on.  Hell, earlier this season, the talking heads were calling him the best since Lawrence Taylor at getting to and sacking the QB...now, that's obviously insane, but you can understand how good the guy looks when fully healthy and doing his thing.  Unfortunately, he hasn't been able to stay healthy for prolonged periods throughout his career, so you take what you can get.  

10.  Slava Kozlov -  Token Thrasher #2...but if Marvin Williams shows that his improvement is for real and sustainable, he could get on this list shortly.  I'm sure he'll be thrilled.  

One thing I thought when making this list was how devoid it was of elite superstars, so off the top of my head, I decided to go through some other cities with four teams and see what players would have made their lists, in comparison to Atlanta's.  

Again, off the top of my head...

Denver - Cutler, Brandon Marshall, CHAMP, generic Rockie hitters, Melo...eh...

Phoenix - Warner, Fitzgerald, Bolden, Nash, Amare, B-Webb...nice...

Dallas - Romo, TO, Barber, Dirk, JoHo, Hamilton, Kinsler...is Mike Modono still playing?

Philly - McNabb (kinda), Westbrook, Samuel, Utley, Howard, Hamels, Rollins, Brand, Iggy...wow

Boston - This will be fun...Brady, Moss, KG, Pierce, RayRay, YOOK, Papi, etc. etc. etc.  Shit, Wes Welker probably would have been #7 on the Atlanta list.  

Maybe Atlanta doesn't have it too bad...after all, there is a lot of young talent on the above list (7/10 players are 28 or younger), but then again, when you pick in the Top 10 as often as the Hawks and Thrashers have, that is going to happen.  Hopefully in two weeks I can edit this list with Jake Peavy in the top slot.  We keep it optimistic here at Sue's.  

Puck Off

The best athlete in Atlanta is a hockey player. Hm.

Last night, I attended my first hockey game since the 2000-2001 season. I won't even pretend to know what I'm talking about in regard to the actual Xs and Os of hockey, but the Thrashers blew a 4-2 3rd period lead and lost 6-4 to the Nashville, a franchise that entered the NHL a year before the Thrashers and yet has seen substantially more success. So please, consider this list of 10 observations from last night's Thrashers-Predators preseaon game to be likely the first, last and only hockey post of this here blauwg.

1. Most importantly, it appears that beer prices in Philips Arena are staying at the low, low price of $6.75 for a 20oz beer. That remains the local golden standard of sports-venue alcohol purchasing, narrowly edging out the Turner Field's $6.75/16oz beers and soundly defeating Sanford Stadium's N/A.

They just go well together.

2. I had never been to an exhibition game of any sort before this one (not even a G-Day game). There's something really weird about watching a game that means nothing at all whatsoever, and watching diehard fans from both teams (quite a bit of Pred fans in the group of, oh, 800 or so total attendees) still overly cheering on the players, screaming at the refs and just getting really excited or dejected at every turn. I couldn't figure out whether or not to pity or envy those guys.

3. "Hockey is the best sport to watch in person!" is a sentiment that seems to be shared by people who say things like "Sports Night really was a great TV show." Don't get me wrong. I used to love going to Atlanta Knights games in the 90s as well as Thrashers games when they came around. I was also a teenager. I enjoyed the hell out of going to Atlanta Fireants games as well, so let's just say it didn't take much to impress me at a sporting event. Regardless, last night confirmed that hockey/live sentiment again. I didn't really care who won the game. I didn't know the names of more than five players out there. We sat in the nosebleeds (for the first period at least, before moving down to first row rinkside seats against the glass....I'm telling you...800 might be an overestimate). And yet, the game went by fast as hell and I was glued to the action the entire time. I don't know if its the ice, the skating, the flow of the game or what, but watching a hockey game in person is absolutely mesmerizing. Plus I was high, so that might have helped.

Yeah, I dunno...it was cool when you're 12 years old.

4. Don Waddell is one lucky, lucky man. He has been the Thrashers GM since Day 1, and is the beginning of his 9th season. They have won zero playoff games while the Predators and Minnesota Wild, both of whom came into the league around the same time as the Thrashers, have multiple appearances. Luckily he works for an inept ownership group that doesn't fire anyone unless public pressure gets to be too much. However, he is GM of a hockey team in Atlanta, so there is no public pressure for him to do, well, anything. If this was Toronto or Denver or Detroit, he would have been long gone. Still though, I'm surprised he's still around. Coaches and GM's in the NHL have VanGorder-esque shelf lives.

5. Again, I am by no means a hockey expert, but is it just me or does the Thrasher's roster look painstakingly thin? These guys pick in the Top 10 every year?!?! I counted five first round picks on their roster. NBA teams have more first rounders on their roster than that! When you're hitting at or below the Mendoza line on Top 10 draft picks, it might be time to find another career. Ask Matt Millen.

Office is upstairs, yo.

6. Just one more note on Waddell...did you know he was the GM of the US Olympic Team in 2006? What the hell? That was the best the US can do? "Hey here's a guy that built an expansion team from scratch into a marginally talented team that keeps missing the playoffs....sign him up!"

7. Let's say you were the CEO of a successful business that catered to a unique clientele. Let's say you wanted to expand your business to a new region that was rapidly growing. Would you just throw your product out there and hope that it catches on among the locals or would you do some marketing and find a way to help your product succeed. Obviously the latter.

So I don't understand why the NHL decided to just set up shop along the Sun Belt in hopes that everyone who lives in a region where the temperature is consistently above 70 degrees would just fall in love with this niche sport. Sure you have the northern transplants, some of whom are diehard hockey fans, and that's nice...but it's not enough to sustain the growth of the league over a long period of time. The same people that are going to Thrashers games now were going to games back in 2002. And I'm sure it's a similar situation in Nashville, Raleigh, Tampa, Miami, Dallas and Phoenix....I mean, you're talking about almost 1/4 of the league now.

So what could the NHL do? Front the package, as some might say. Go into these southern cities and build recreational hockey rinks in the suburbs of those cities (and in reality, those cities, like Atlanta, are essentially just a collection of suburbs). Let kids play for cheap. Sponsor youth hockey camps out the ass so that the kids have things to do year-round. Is it expensive? Yeah. Will it be awhile before you see a return on your investment? Sure. But I'd bet that those kids might show some more interest in going to a Thrashers game than a kid that has never put on a pair of skates before. In 20 years, you have a generation of fans that have an interest in hockey that wouldn't have if they never played or followed the sport. Maybe then you won't have a TV deal that Conference USA would laugh at. Seems like Marketing 101 to me, but what do I know?

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Sidebar: This solution also works (more realistically and cost-effective too, might I add) with baseball and their never-ending quest to have more black baseball players. Build baseball fields in the inner-cities. Buy land. Throw down grass. Get community organizers and local Boys and Girls Clubs to run leagues. Provide the equipment and umpires, lights, etc. Let kids register for these leagues for cheap. Get young kids playing the game. They'll be more likely to try out for, play and succeed in that sport in high school and maybe beyond. Isn't that essentially what baseball has done in Latin America and the Pacific Rim? Why can't they just apply the same logic when it comes to blacks in America?

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So that's it: Went to a Hockey game, had a great time, don't expect much from Thrashers this year, NHL needs to build it and they will come. That about sums up all my thoughts on hockey of the last 7 years.