Thanks for the TV coverage.

You know, I would post the video of Tkachuk's 1,000th point. I'd LOVE to. But unfortunately I can't, because the Blues/Thrashers game wasn't on tv. Anywhere. Heck, I'm sure that people in St. Louis would be content with a shadow puppet play right now... only pictures exist to prove that it happened. That, and the fact that I was front row on the ice to see it. I swear to GOD, it happened. Promise.

It's a prime example of what a hockey vacuum Atlanta is that this was one of the 12 (!) non-televised games in our market. Thanks, SportSouth! I guess KPLR didn't have it in their budget to fly down here for the game, so Walt's 1000th has no film to commemorate it... they couldn't even show clips on On the Fly last night. What a complete and total travesty. I know the Thrashers don't get ratings. I know the AJC could give a rip. I know it's because it's the south, and Atlanta is a market notorious for not caring about you unless you're winning (which is why I really don't care about any teams from here save for the Thrash - fair weather fans annoy me). But come on. Outside of Philips no one has a clue that the Thrashers exist. It could be marketing. It could be the product on the ice. It could be all of the transplants who prefer their original home team (like me). But where else can you be sitting at the post-game show in the sports bar connected to Philips and have the GM come up to your table and ask how you're doing? Maybe he was moonlighting, I don't know. We're a tiny market in a really large city. Something's gotta give.

I love the Thrashers. I'm a season ticket holder. I had high hopes for this season... Anderson has never had a losing season as a coach, and we looked SO good on paper. Well, welcome to Atlanta, JA. The Thrashers' defense imploded for 47 SOG allowed by the Blues, which is a team high for the year on both sides. I don't know what evil Pavelec committed to be rewarded with that, but it better have been super evil, like eating kittens. Or designing the 3rd jersey. Anderson threatened the team publicly in the AJC with roster shake-ups. He's sat Christensen for 2 games straight because the kid can't produce. Anderson stated that the next time we see the guys on December 10th, it might be a totally different team - he's come to the conclusion it's not the system, it's the players. Well, DUH. When they play well, they play good hockey. When people don't play well, it just sucks. You can tell the potential is there, but frankly I'm getting sick of seeing Kovy get pissed off every night, and I'm getting sick of having to rely on our 2nd line to get anything done.

Enough bitching about the Thrashers. I enjoyed myself immensely at the game last night, and that is because the Blues won. Our little injury maligned team who despite all odds is playing serviceable hockey stomped a team that is falling apart. Mason looked sharp again despite allowing a weak goal in the 1st from Armstrong. Steen started on the 1st line, and then promptly made it to the 3rd... stop trying to make us feel better about the trade. It's not working.

The Blues were still 2/4 on the PP, which is awesome but still not saying much when you consider that Atlanta has the worst PK in the league. Because they have one of the worst defenses in the league.

I enjoyed myself, and class act by the Thrashers fans to celebrate Walt's 1000th goal - I think it's because a lot of them wax poetic about that time that Kovy had a decent center who wasn't Marc Savard (*sniff*). But frankly I was a bit displeased with the fans who tried to heckle me at the game and on the concourse. I didn't say a word to provoke it, but when some dipshit yells "Blues suck" at me, and you're losing and your team has a worse record than ours... well... here's hoping you're just a casual fan from a dry county who didn't have much else to do on a Sunday afternoon but get loaded and yell unintelligible things at the other team and their fans.

I hate where my season tickets are.

BTW, thanks a bunch to St. Louis Game Time for the shout-out on the main page. They're the only Blues blog that I really bother to read - it's so hard to keep up with the team when I'm down here, so thanks for that sarcastic slice of home on a daily basis.

EDIT: Thanks to a tip from a commenter on STLGT, yes, video does exist. As per the Blues site, "Since it wasn't broadcast on TV because the Thrashers home network doesn't care, we have the bootleg video from the jumbotron to show you. Sorry."

Well, ok, it doesn't say that per se, but you know the guy who posted that THOUGHT it really loudly.

Here's Walt's goal. You can actually see me being all excited and banging on the glass in the front. I feel special.