38-31-11; 87 pts.	39-32-9; 87 pts.

Season against Anaheim: 1-1-1

So many UFAs, so little time.  Kariya's probably gone.  Sydor, Winchester, Weaver (who better be back), Mason (who probably will be back), Carlo (damn straight he'll be back)... but you know who is the only one that matters tonight, the last home game of the season?

Big Walt.

FoxSportsMidwest is having a Walter-a-thon, with tributes before and after the game, as well as during the intermissions.  Mike Modano got an absurdly unreal tribute last night at the Stars' last home game, and responded with the game tying goal and a shootout goal.  It was storybook perfect.  While the Blues' season has been less than storybook, there's no reason the Ducks can't help a team for the second night in a row send a veteran off in style.  Brad over at GameTime did an excellent write-up on the mixed bag that is Tkachuk's career with the Blues, but ends it with the conclusion that we love Walt because he loves St. Louis as much as we do.  He earned major brownie points when he gave the reason he wanted to go back to the Blues after the Thrashers' 2007 playoff hopes were dashed - St. Louis was his home.  I'm still waiting for Atlanta to trade my re-signing rights back, but Walt got his chance.

Also fun tonight, the Blues have called up Lars "Skeet" Eller and Jonas "No nickname yet" Junland from Peoria to get some experience these last couple of games.  It appears that the Teej is hurt and won't play tonight.  It looks like these two guys'll play a big part in just how offensive the Blues are next season.

That came out wrong... anyway, be sure to take a dip On the Duck Pond tonight and say hi, and without further ado, tonight's starting goalies from DailyFaceOff.com:

EDIT: Here's the end of the game through Walt's speech. I loved, absolutely LOVED the crowd chanting "KEITH TKA-CHUK!" at the top of their lungs. Big sniffle moment.

34-33-13; 81 Pts.	53-15-12; 118 Pts.

Season against Washington: 0-5-0

I'm really not going to lie here.  I'll be watching the first hour of this game which means absolutely nothing to either team and therefore will be boring as crap (except for Ovie's run for the RR Trophy, which is fun), and then I'll be watching all of the Blues game, which while it means nothing to either team involved still carries some emotional value.

Congrats on the Caps' Presidents Trophy win, though a word of warning - it's jinxed.  Ask San Jose, though that could have been karma for them sweeping the Blues that season that we won it.  But still... tread lightly.

No Antropov, no The Todd, no Kubina, possible Kozzie.  Kulda's your call-up to fill in for Chelios, who has been sent back to the Wolves with Stapleton to help them in their playoff run.  I won't mention how I think Kulda should have been the original call up anyway, because that would be dwelling.

Oh.  Anyway, be sure to visit Rock the Red and Capitals Kremlin and say yello, and here're your starting goalies tonight from DailyFaceOff.com:

It's a common argument with Thrashers and Blues fans alike - the other local teams get more/better/exclusive/whatever coverage than does the hockey.  The AJC tends to be very college sports heavy, and now that baseball's started and the Braves show a modicum of promise to soon be dashed, the whole paper is Bravos ga-ga.

I really don't have to explain St. Louis' situation.  The city is Cardinals central.  Every little move the team makes or does not make is put under a microscope that would make Anton von Leeuwenhoek squee with delight.  Why is La Russa putting Schumaker at the 5th spot?  Why is Molina sitting out this game?  Will Albert's elbow be ok?  How close are the owners to securing Pujols for the next century and how much will they pay him?  Signing Matt Holiday was absolute front page news.

The Blues could sign Ilya Kovalchuk and Evgeny Nabokov during the off season, and half the news media in St. Louis would ignore it until it served them well to bitch about it.

The end of the last season saw the Blues swept in four games by the Vancouver Canucks, but it was still a positive time for the Blues, and the Blues sports columnists rightfully were excited.  Might they (and admittedly, the fans) have gotten a little overexcited for this season?  Of course.  It was hard not to, and it's still hard to not be psyched for the next year.  Our youth are growing and still show promise.  Yes, this year's "You're the final piece of the puzzle" ad campaign was very ill advised, because the team's still short a few.  We need a solid #1 goalie. We'd like to have a true sniper to go along with Boyes, who might regain his touch next year, but he might not.  But, like Dan O'Neil said, we're moving in the right direction, right?

Not to hear the other local sports media spin it.

Bad news gets more attention and more money, that's a gimmie.  Sometimes, doom and gloom has to be fabricated to get that attention, or things have to be blown out of proportion to catch someone's eye.  Last season's playoff sweep of the Cardinals was practically apocalyptic in nature - of course, we were still the Division Champions, and probably will be again this season, and a sweep doesn't erase the amazing history of the franchise, but to hear Bernie Miklasz and Joe Strauss and the like tell it, everything was crashing down around our ears.

Right.

Now that the Cardinals season has started and is showing promise, the pundits are shifting their attention to the Blues, whose season is ending a little short of where they'd like to be, although the point totals from this season and last season are about the same.  You know, why look at things like point totals when tearing the team apart for finishing in tenth place (or possibly even ninth) in an absurdly difficult conference is much more fun?  Wouldn't it just be a gas to rip the Blues apart so people will actually listen to KTRS 550?

That's exactly what is happening.  I noticed it the other night on Twitter, when Chris Kerber ripped the press apart for hopping over Jeremy Rutherford of the Post-Dispatch for being mildly positive.

Well, then, Kerbs.  Absolutely true (though as someone in Atlanta, I would kill for the Thrashers to get a tenth of the press that the Blues get in StL).

What prompted this?  You really don't have to look any farther than this op-ed by Dan Caesar of the P-D.  Reading this is what made me write this little op-ed of my own.  What team have these gentlemen been watching?  No, the Blues haven't arrived yet.  But to say that they're at the same point as they were when Checketts purchased them is flat-out ignorant.  That first season they had to bribe people to come to the games with free food and some guy named Brett Hull.  The Blues were abysmal in that 2005-2006 season, and the first thing that John Davidson did was bring in some solid veterans like Legace, McKee, and Weight to help steer the team back to respectability.  Drafting has been absurdly excellent - our young kids are all products of these drafts, and they're some of the top talent in the game.  People who criticize the kids are expecting them to play like ten year vets.  Newsflash: they're not.  They're still learning, and while there's still room for improvement, their output so far has shown nothing but promise.

Which is why Mike Claiborne of KTRS 550 had some comments published that rubbed me the wrong way.

"How about this whole youth movement we've heard about?" Claiborne asked. "The only thing the Blues are going to do is have another shot at being in the (draft) lottery. This is getting old.

"I like John Davidson; he's a nice guy, he goes on everybody's radio show,'' Claiborne said. "He's a very forthright individual. I think everyone would say he's a good man, he's a good face for the organization. But here's the deal — that rhetoric has got to stop. This team isn't much better now than they were when (the current management group) first hit town. No real goal scorer, no leadership, no shut-down goaltender. ... It's the same things this team was lacking when the current regime took over.

"It's unfair to the loyal Blues fans who have found this team has no real direction. They've miscast players and coaches."

I would really love him to successfully compare the teams of the last two seasons to those of 2005-2006, or even better, 2006-2007.  Do it.  I dare you.

We do not have a chance at being in the draft lotto this year - if the season ended today we'd draft 16th.  If my math is correct, that means that there were fifteen teams worse than us this season.  Fact check your stupidity before you vent.

We had a goal scorer in Brad Boyes - no one expected the drop in production that he had this year.  Oshie and Backes will be more than able to be 30 goal scorers on a consistent basis.  Not every team can have a Crosby, Malkin, or Kovalchuk.  Our pockets aren't that deep.  While I agree that we do need an actual #1 goaltender, none were available this past off-season who were an improvement over Mason, so JD got the best backup in the league as insurance.

And no leadership?  I highly doubt some sports reporter from the AM station that no one cares about has serious locker room access enough to see what kind of leadership is going on.

I usually don't go off like this on the media, because any coverage of a team is press, and I do enjoy the Post-Dispatch and Globe Democrat's coverage of the Blues, though I think that Rutherford's the best.  But these complaints recently are ignorant ramblings of people who pay no attention to the team until it serves their publishers' needs.  They need to go back to making up things to wring their hands over regarding the Cards; they have that down to an art form.

I'm playing for the Thrashers this year now? Color me surprised.

Quick mention - the Thrashers are recalling Vishnevskiy Kulda thanks to Kubina's nagging injury, and the fact that they sent Chelios down to help the Wolves out.  Looking forward to seeing how the Stars' former top prospect does.  I loved getting him in return for the Lehtonen trade.  I was shocked that we got THAT much for Kari, frankly. It's exciting, because Kulda should have been called up to begin with.

Speaking of goaltenders, Pavelec will play against the Caps on Friday and Hedberg will get the start at home on Saturday.  Considering that Moose is our #1 this season, the 3 Stars winner, and really should win team MVP for this absurd season, this is appropriate.  That, and Hedberg always seems to like to play against his former team, and he plays well.

Can't believe that this Saturday's it.  Fan appreciation night, the usual STH town hall spin session with free food, grabbing the 10th anniversary yearbook, and clapping for awards.  This season's won't have the vibe of optimism that last season's did, but it should.  We went from a laughingstock (though undeserved) to a team that really contended for the playoffs in spite of our difficulties this season.  I don't consider this season a bust at all.

Actually, Vivlamore has all sorts of interesting things up today.  Antropov and White, as well as Kubina, are out for the rest of the season. Antro has been playing through a hip injury all season, which is why he would take 1 practice a week off.  It's been a well known fact, but it's still yet another injury that a Thrashers' player has played through in the past 3 seasons (Kozlov and Bogosian come to mind, as does Exelby - who had a BROKEN LEG).  Considering the outstanding season Antropov has had, I can't wait to see him healthy.  Also, Anderson intends to play Kozlov the last game of the season, which will probably be his last as a Thrasher.  Kozlov has been nothing but class and a huge asset to not just this organization, but to the NHL, and I appreciate being given the chance to give him a proper send-off.  I wish that this season's circumstances would have been different (though I disagree with him saying anything to the Russian press in Sport Express about the issues w/Anderson, I don't disagree with him), because the powerplay's been a clusterfark without him.

Not a lot of energy or pep for this one, since the Avs had to win last night and knocked the Blues out of the playoffs.  So, enjoy the meaningless game against the Blackhawks and see if Neimi is wondergoalie or implodes.

One thing of note, though - Walt will be on KMOX at the start of the first (audio available on the official site) and with Dan Kelly during the 1st intermission to make an announcement regarding his career.  These last couple games might be Big Walt's final in the NHL.  I saw Chelios' last game last night, and whoop.  But for Walt to be retiring - well, he's done a lot and meant a lot to this franchise, and I appreciate his long time dedication to the Blues.  It's sad, but he deserves it.

Anyway, off to wallow, watch the Cards until the game comes on, and cook some dinner.  Enjoy the last three fluff games of the season, people.  Maybe next year.

Here's Walter announcing his retirement - ignore the goalhorns, please.

Stick a fork in 'em.  They're done.

With the 3-0 loss to the Devils tonight, the Atlanta Thrashers have eliminated themselves from postseason contention.  I am not all doom and gloom, nor am I surprised.  The game didn't end the way that I thought it would - with the GWG coming from Kovalchuk - but the season ended about how I expected.  Lots of fight, not a lot of finish.

Then again, it's hard to fight when you're hiding in a hole that you've dug for yourself.  There's a lot of temptation to sit down and go through the entire season and nitpick where it went wrong - how many 1 goal games we lost, how many of those were in OT or a shootout... how many points did we let slip away?  How many bad goals did we allow?  Turnovers? Inattention?  Rookie mistakes?

That's too narrow.  Too nitpicky.  Would you like to know when we let the season get away from us?  December during that absurd losing stretch.  March's 6 game losing streak drove the nail into the coffin.  We couldn't put together a 5 game winning streak at all this year.  Some games we came out full force, and others we looked like a mite hockey team.  What does all this connect to?  Inconsistency.  Horrible inconsistency and no confidence to step up and maintain our own momentum.

Watching the game tonight with a friend, he noticed something.  There's no confidence to shoot.  The over-passing doesn't just happen on the powerplay.  It happens every time we get a puck near the opposition's net.  I have never seen a team that on paper is so solid be so scared.  So tentative.  Even Max froze and passed when he had a shooting lane open tonight, and that doesn't happen.  We're a bunch of spooked cats out there.

What happened to suck the confidence out of the team?  Where did this dark cloud come from?  What of these bad bounces? Why are we so fragile?  Hint: the itlaic words are a hint.  Another hint: I've been complaining all year.  And there will be a post later on about it.

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45-26-7; 97 Pts.	34-32-13; 81 Pts.

Ok, ok, I kid.  Anssi is scratched tonight.  Some other guy, Ilya something or another is coming back, and there's this big to-do about it.

Frankly, I care more about the points at stake.  If we lose and the Flyers win, we're done.  The way that our luck has been running recently, I'm bracing myself for the worst - especially after we lost a point against the Penguins and then the Flyers managed to beat the Red Wings.  But hey, anything can happen, right?  We're 1-2-0 against the Devils this year, and Brodeur has been atrocious.  And yes, I'm choosing to ignore that 5-4 loss in December at home where we chased Marty and still managed to lose.  Damn.  Stopped ignoring that.

Anywho, Little and Kubina will be game time decisions; the scratches are Koz and White, and of course Army's still out. Praise God, Arty's back.  Hopefully Kubina will be good to go.  Nothing against Chelios, but he looks sluggish out there - Kubina's much more of an asset with Enstrom than Cheli is.

Kovalchuk is ready for the boos when he comes back tonight.  His teammates, though, hope that the fans stay polite.  Johan Hedberg had this to say:

“I hope they’re going to give him the respect that he deserves,” goaltender Johan Hedberg said after the team’s practice this morning in Duluth. Ga. “Hopefully it’s going to be a good night respect-wise and they’ll cheer for him. He did a lot of things for this organization for a lot of years, so he deserves nothing else but credit. Hopefully we’ll be happy (with a win) when the night is over, but it’s going to be a special night for him anyway.”

Honestly, you'd be hard pressed to find Hedberg say a bad word about anyone, but I agree with the Moose on this.  Why bother to boo?  Seriously.  I've never been a booer of former players.  Heatley leaving I understood, and I think that Ottawa and Edmonton have more reasons to boo than we do.  Savard said that the management was a clusterfark - well, no kidding.  Hossa said he liked it here, but he wanted to play on a contender - again, I can understand the Pens' bitterness more than our fans.  Heck, even Garnet Exelby, who still lives here and works out with the guys during the off-seasons, said that it was kind of cool to be in a city where fans show up.  Novel concept.  No one who has left has ever said anything untoward about the fans in Atlanta or the city, and what they've said about the organization has been the truth.

My only caveat with Kovalchuk is his continued statements of "I want to be a Thrasher for life" and things of that vein.  To say that, and then to turn down the massive amount of money that he was offered, does look greedy and obnoxious, especially in a year as positive as this one has been.  But, I view it as this - it's his loss.  We have Little, Enstrom, Kane, Bogosian, and now Bergfors to build on, and Kovalchuk?  Who knows where he'll be next season.  The Devils and Thrashers have basically the same record since the trade (10-8-5 and 10-9-5, respectively), which to me strengthens the argument that he really isn't that much of a game-changer.

Please to be seeing my buddy SpaceWeed's blog North of Hell for tonight's matchup from a Devils' perspective.  Also, there's my fellow Bloguin partner in crime Running With the Devils.  Stop by and wave.

Tonight's goaltenders, from DailyFaceOff.com: