Fun fact about Michael Nylander - his last NHL goal was assisted by Brooks Laich. His son William Nylander's first NHL goal was also assisted by Laich. Laich father, Laich son.
Yea right they had some good young talent over their years. Kovalchuk, kozlov, heatley, hedberg,kane,byfluein just to name a few..they could have been good. As you said with competent ownership,good coaching staff, quality drafting and development and a mix of good veterans they had real potential but it was all squandered away..too bad but they're doing pretty good in Winnipeg,consistently playoff team. Although they're still having problems with their stars..Dubois, roslivic,laine..
The Thrashers were a straight-up tragedy. It wasn’t the fans’ fault that they moved away; that was entirely on ownership’s ineptitude. The fanbase deserved so much better. And my god, this Rangers team was absolutely LOADED. Kinda crazy how they finished third in the Atlantic with all that talent. Also worth mentioning that this was a battle of brothers, Marcel vs Marion Hossa.
It was an interesting year for the Atlantic in general with the Flyers being the only team to not make it into the playoffs. At one point the Islanders were even in first place and the Rangers were sitting outside the playoff picture before the Devils eventually grabbed hold of the top spot and didn’t let go, plus the Penguins finally came into their own and began their 16 year playoff streak that season
Watching this series back is like watching a loved one die. I just felt a sense of dread in the air every game. It hits even harder knowing the outcome of the Thrashers franchise. It really sucks knowing that, if the Thrashers could just have had that miracle run this playoff series, or even just won this series and kept the next series competitive, hockey would probably still be in Atlanta.
This makes me even sadder at the prospect of the Coyotes possibly moving out of Arizona. Even if they haven’t been good in years, they’re still a team with a lot of fans, a lot of history, and some pretty decent runs in the playoffs, even making it to the conference finals in 2012. Im not even a Coyotes fan, nor was I ever a Thrashers fan, but I cant help but feel for those fanbases all the same. I hope one day we’ll see the Thrashers return or another team to ATL.
As someone who remembers the darkest days of Sabres bankruptcy and the very real threat of the team leaving, the people on the MB I frequent delighting in Arizona's possible move annoy me to no end. No fanbase deserves to lose their team. Period.
I’m a huge Rangers fan, and this playoff series was a little before I started following the sport. I applaud you for choosing the one series where I’d feel the most guilty by the end
I see your point but if you ever did get an opportunity and binged this series, you'd most likely despise their actual team as it was a very tough, high spirited series with alot of nastiness. They were a GOOD team and we barely beat them that year.. In fact, I blame them for being part of the reason why we ran outta gas that Playoffs. Of course, you feel terrible afterwards in the off season because you almost never want to see that as an Hockey Fan and especially, for a club that was finally showing some promise with the team and the fans.
@@Shawn6751 We in the Atlanta area do have the Atlanta Gladiators of the ECHL. They are in the same league with the Savannah Ghost Pirates. That said, Atlanta is too big to not have an NHL team, and no other city in the ECHL even comes close to the size of Atlanta. Orlando is the closest in size, and Atlanta is slightly over double the population of the second most populated metropolitan area in the ECHL.
I could care less about the Jets. Winnipeg is too small for an NHL team, by and large. Atlanta is over EIGHT TIMES LARGER, and yet they have a team? I'm pissed that Nashville and Raleigh both have teams, when Atlanta is about/over three times bigger than each of them.
Also it's cool to hear Shane Hnidy have his name called as a player in this video. Shane does an outstanding job in my local market as a color guy for the VGK game broadcasts.
the '03 mighty ducks will forever be one of the greatest cinderella stories ever, and the fact that lingering pieces of that team were in this series warms my heart.
Indeed and they put up a better fight vs jersey than Florida is vs Vegas in the finals but I’m not ignoring what Florida accomplished in the first 3 rounds.
@The Luci florida did amazing but they didnt sweep a defending cup champion, steamrole a one seed, and only lose 6 games an entire postseason and not win the cup. crazy how similar those teams are tho. both had crazy good captains (barkov and kariya), slept on players (montour and osolinš), old guys who people thought they were out of their prime that had their careers revived (oates and eric staal), and goalies who played out of their minds (giguere and bobrovsky)
@@adgxgaming2826 the 2002 wings beat my Canucks 4 straight after losing the first 2 games and going on to win the cup. Crazy that the ducks swept them, beat Dallas in 6, then swept the wild who’d just retired Patric Roy winning the series from 3-1 deficit then breaking a record by beating my Canucks the very next series overcoming another 3-1 deficit. No team had ever overcome 2 3-1 deficits back to back series till the wild did it. They seemed so iron man after that and the ducks just swept them and not only that but Minnie couldn’t even score prettymuch any goals in that series. The ducks had as good a chance as jersey it coulda gone either way.
@The Luci plus that stanley cup final went the distance with insane moments like off the floor on the board. i didnt really see that defining moment this year sadly. it really wasnt even close. refering back to an old video by pinhole, i wouldnt be shocked if this years cup final was one of if not the worst cup final statistically this century so far.
@@adgxgaming2826 another fun fact about that series is neither team was able to win a single road game outta the 7. That Paul kariya moment was just amazing
Your channel genuinely deserves 100X more views and subs. I like that you take your time and produce quality content, instead of just pumping out quantity. (Although I could watch these everyday) Hope you stick with it, this quality is rare.
Shout out Michael Nylander. And young Callahan. I have lived in the south for 5 years now, the hole left by the thrashers in hockey fans is very noticeable. I’ll say it, these people DESERVE a hockey team. And I’m very happy to learn that there is a project in Alpharetta to get that started.
@@theramplocal yes some migrated. Most became Preds fans, a lot have bandwagoned on the canes since they’ve gotten consistently good (I met one holdover Jets fan). But I would say the majority have dropped the sport all together. College sports and the NFL have their grip
@@theramplocal Georgia resident here, most don't follow hockey at all anymore, but the ones that do are mostly Preds fans, though there are some Canes, Lightning, and Jets fans.
There's definitely a void here for those who loved the Thrashers. A sadness when you think too much about it. Anger at Atlanta Spirit's sabotage. Ridiculousness that little cities, comparatively like Nashville, Raleigh, and Columbus have teams and Atlanta does not. It's unreal. Atlanta has three times the population of Nashville, has far more youth hockey leagues, and has more transplants, yet Nashville got to keep their team, even when the Thrashers outsold them the majority of years? The league DID NOT VET ATLANTA SPIRIT. There is no reason for both teams (Hawks and Thrashers) to ever have been bundled by Ted Turner when he sold them to Time Warner in 1999. This resulted in Time Warner bundling them when they sold to Atlanta Spirit. I'm hopeful with the Gathering at South Forsyth that the NHL will return by 2027, but this absence of the Thrashers and the NHL has really sucked. These are the years my children could be attending a Thrashers game with me, but, no, we have to settle for the Gladiators, which are still fun, but the atmosphere is just not the same.
@@theramplocal Most did not become Predators fans. Only a few became Predators fans. Only a few stayed "Jets" fans. Most refuse to watch the NHL until it returns to Atlanta. Most are Gladiators fans, though there isn't quite the appeal of the Gladiators that the Thrashers had. Until the Thrashers' return, we wait. And the team SHOULD ABSOLUTELY BE CALLED THE THRASHERS with the same blue uniforms.
My partner's cousin is a Winnipeg native who adores the new Jets. I'm a long time fan of the original Jets/Coyotes (she calls me the Olden jet) and we try to meet up for Coyotes-Jets matchups. A few years back we went to the outdoor Jets-Flames game. I quipped "Arh, the battle of Atlanta." 😋 She was not amused. 😊 That fluke on Hedberg showed the poor old Thrashers had no puck luck. Especially when the guy at the other end is King Henrik. 🤕
Thinking back I think I attended an Avalanche game at Pepsi center against the Atlanta Thrashers, and we proceeded to get curbstomped and lost that game. Obviously it's never fun being in attendance to a loss, but this vid helps put in perspective for me that I am still fortunate enough to have a Hockey team to watch and root for. Great vid PHG.
Went to game 2 with my dad. Even though the franchise was a mess, that game and other thrashers games we went too were some of my favorite childhood moments. Thank you for making this video, you’ve earned a new fan for sure.
The video and chapter titles are on point here. Ouch. I was just reading about the Oakland A's situation this morning, feeling awful for those fans, and now this. It sucks that the ultimate goal of modern sport is to make money. I'm sure it's been that way in some regard since the dawn of time, but, man. At least they didn't have Bally Sports or "Green Week brought to you by Lockheed Martin" in ancient Greece. great video as always.
Love watching these playoff past videos, I’m interested to see an analysis of the 2001 ECSF Penguins vs Sabres matchup, 3 straight OT’s to end a 7 game series
Might be the best video yet. The storytelling of Thrashers fans in between this series. I love it. Hopefully this fanbase gets another chance to house an NHL team, and hopefully the outcome is a lot better. Sadly, it might take decades before that happens. If it ever happens.
I grew up a huge NYR fan because of my dad and this was the first playoff series I remember watching very cool to see it covered! Great content as always
Thank you very much for the Rangers content. Looking forward to digesting this asap. Was really hoping for the 2015 Caps series but I understand if that's still a tough one to revisit.
I saw this video in my recommended feed tonight, and even though I knew that reminiscing about the Thrashers would make me cry again, I watched to the very end. Growing up in Atlanta in the 2000s, I was raised on the Thrashers because my dad loved the Flames (and the Knights!), and he was absolutely elated when the news broke that Atlanta was getting another NHL team. I vividly remember how he'd take me to see the games at Philips Arena, how cool it was to see both the team and all of those fans wearing their one-of-a-kind jerseys, and even how scared I was of those fire-breathing Thrasher heads when they scored a goal. By the time their lone playoff series against the Rangers was over, I had picked up other interests and didn't spend as much time on hockey. Nevertheless, my dad would still ask about going to see the Thrashers at Philips Arena, and only after the relocation have I realized that he felt the team wasn't going to last much longer than that. One of my biggest regrets was not enjoying the Thrashers with my dad one last time while I still could. Nowadays, I've rekindled my interest in hockey, but as a fan of the Seattle Kraken. I invite my dad to sit down and watch some of the games with me, but I can tell it's not the same thing for him. Nothing will replace the pride of a hometown team for my dad, and while I may have moved on to another team, I still miss the Thrashers, too. Thank you for using your video to talk about the importance of the fans. While the Thrashers may be gone, we're still here, keeping those cherished memories with us. And I hope that one day, as unlikely as it is, the city of Atlanta might get a third chance. Maybe then, I can take my dad to a game, like he used to do for me. I don't want it to be at Arizona or even Winnipeg's expense, though. No fanbase deserves that heartbreak.
@@fantasticvoyage262 Yeah, the league knows that the Thrashers departure was not on account of the market or fans, but rather a crappy ownership group who sabotaged the team and kicked them out of their arena with no place to play. They also probably realize that they did not Vet Atlanta Spirit properly and are probably hoping to rectify this situation and do Atlanta some justice.
@@willp.8120 Every fan always blames ownership when their team leaves. The league never has enough money, so they likely care more about the expansion fee and market size than any goodwill due to Atlanta losing 2 other teams. The only question is will expansion be 2 or 4 teams?
@@willp.8120 We know, we know. It's "public record" because you are always in every Thrashers/expansion video predictably blaming the owners to fit your narrative.
You've said it best, Pinholes. Even though we all poke fun at terrible teams, at least they exist and have their respective fanbase. My heart goes out to fans of these teams of yesteryear, showing that their legacy still lives on in the hearts of people who followed them. And maybe someday, these former markets can get a second chance to redeem the hearts of fans. It's already happened to Minnesota and Winnipeg, so hopefully, Quebec City will follow suit.
Brilliant video. For some reason, I thought about the Rangers series and found this. This town did support this team. Ownership didn't reciprocate. It still torches my ass to this day. I was at game 2 and that barn was rocking. Too bad it only happened 2 nights over 11 seasons. Thanks for the video.
"Don't say goodbye. I hate goodbyes." I really hope this doesn't sound like trolling given our record against them, but I really miss the Thrashers. When they were around, my Canes had two southern friends (exclusively southern that is, Florida and Texas are kinda their own thing) in them and the Preds, but now it's just us and Nashville. Apart from 2021 the Preds aren't even in our conference. The Thrashers were in our division. They were the coolest team that never got the love they deserved. The year before this one here, in 05/06, they had *three* 90+ point players In Kovulchuk (*52*g, 46a, 98p), Marc Savard (28g, NICEa, 97p), and Hossa (39g, 53a, 92p). For reference, it is a factually true statement that those Thrashers had the exact same number of 90+ point players as the goddam 84/85 Edmonton Oilers. The Thrashers also got 71 points out of Kozlov and .906 goaltending out of Lehtonen when the league average SV% was .899 that season. Then those uniforms were so slick too, at least before the Reebok jerseys. I even loved the powder blue ones. Those fans deserved better than the ownership they got. I'm glad Winnipeg got their team back, but damn I miss the Thrashers.
Good point at the very end. No matter how bad we think we may have it as fans, there is always someone else that is less fortunate. Being a Whalers and Thrashers fan is cruel and unusual punishment.
When I think of Hossa, that's where I see him. I never thought of him as a Wings, Pens, Hawks or Sens player. To me, him and Kovy were the big two down in Atlanta, they were the faces of that team especially Kovy.
@@SamuelDuplessis12 Kovalchuk is the face of the franchise. Hossa, Savard, Koslov, and Heatley are also big time names who played for the Thrashers. Even Keith Tkatchuk played for the Thrashers for a fraction of a season. Lehtonen, Enstrom, Kapanen, Trembley, and Kane were also notable names.
The Thrashers never had a chance after they were sold to Atlanta Spirit Group. 7 different owners spent more time focusing on the Hawks and battling each other in court buyouts rather than the team itself.
I gotta say, as a Calgarian, I always laughed at the Thrashers story and celebrated their sale to Winnipeg. Especially since we got the Flames in 1980. Whenever I’m watching a video about the sale of the team, I never see the fan side of it. Hell, it’s hard for me to even find clips of this series, as if the team’s entire history completely vanished. I love how that was covered here in addition to the series itself. I can’t imagine losing my team. And they lost theirs, twice. I hope the NHL leaves Atlanta alone for a bit, especially considering they have their hands full with the Coyotes (at the least the Thrashers weren’t left on life support way too long like that). But maybe down the road, the third time will be the charm. There’s just something about hockey that brings a city together, it’s amazing. And so is your video, well done.
This is my first time seeing your channel, and man you're someone the hockey community (at least on youtube) needed. SB nation, or secret base, does some one off hockey documentaries, but nothing as true as this. Appreciate the work that went into this, and hoping for many more to come my man.
Watching this amazing video makes me think of 1 thing. The 2015 series between the Rangers and Capitals. What is in my opinion one of if not the greatest goalie duel ever. I can say I'm on behalf of everyone when I say a video on that would be a spectacle
Great installment as always! Funny to think the other one Franchise death knell similar to this was the Nordiques which also a happened to be quarter final against the Rangers. Future ep I hope 🤞
Pinholes graham I didn’t realize this was your video. I subbed a few months back after watching your 2003 ducks vs stars playoff review. That was a great series and you covered it great keep it up.
Man it's a bit heartbreaking to watch this. When this series happened i was a teenager and i was just absolutely excited that we made it through the first round. That was my first ever playoff round victory the previous year being my first qualifications for playoffs. But now my happy memory is almost like a war memory, the thrashers died whilst my rangers took another step to thriving. Feels bad man. Also i love these videos please keep them coming! Youve absolutely got a talent for this type of series breakdown thing youre doing, feel like im watching a 30 for 30
Suggestion for a future series to possibly recap: 1994 Canadiens/Bruins It marked the last time a team from Canada went into the playoffs as defending Stanley Cup champion, the end of a run in which MTL/BOS faced off 10 times in 11 years in the playoffs, and the final time these teams met in a playoff series at the Montreal Forum/Boston Garden It was the end of a golden era for an iconic rivalry
@@ericksheldon3870 thrashers story is sad especially when it’s told this way, Hank’s story is just upsetting. The same story of having loved and lost than never having loved at all.
Oh fuck yeah. The 06-07 season was my favorite NHL season and the playoffs were great. Also I love seeing the Thrashers being involved. It would be cool to see the Thrashers in other playoffs past serieses.
Thank you for this video. I was 1 of 18,000+ yelling fans at game 1 in 2007. Hockey is the greatest sport in the world and I miss it in Atlanta as do many I know. I would do anything to relive that experience.
I think there was a playoff round in the late 80s or early 90s between the Nordiques and the Whalers. I don’t know anything about it, but I feel like that would be a really interesting series to cover just because of the fate of both teams
It’s interesting how many relatives of modern players played back then, Tkachuk and Nylander in this case, but I’m sure there were others, I guess it has been 17 or so years but it doesn’t seem that way
The Oilers potential move being included in this is always something I like think about, That happened around the time I was born and the 2006 Cup run is the only reason I ever played and fell in love with hockey. Sharing the memories game in and game out is a privilege, decade of darkness be damned!
I finally got the time to watch this. Not the series I was expecting but an excellent choice. If u can find any footage from the 80s oilers runs I think that would be a fun one too
As of 2023, Atlanta is now the 6th largest metropolitan area in the United States, by population. Just in the past three years, metro Atlanta has leapfrogged over Miami (2021), Philadelphia (2022), and Washington (2023) in population. There is no reason not to have a team here, or in Houston.
Strangely enough, the Atlanta Flames' last playoff appearance before they moved to Calgary in 1980, and the Atlanta Thrashers' only playoff appearance ended with the same result.....and opening-round loss vs the New York Rangers.
One of my fav videos, Pinholes. If I may: Coming here after the announcement of the Arizona Coyotes and the move to Utah in 2024. Anyways, I think a video about them similar to this one would be cool. Even have a series picked out: the first series victory in Coyotes history. 2012, Round one, Coyotes vs Blackhawks
Thrashers had a future penguins 2 time cup winner in dupius. The rangers had a past back to back penguins cup winner with jagr and a future back to back cup winner in matt cullen.....these guys spanned all 5 rings
I so miss this team. Let's hope that Atlanta gets its team back within the next five years. There is promise as of this year, something we haven't had in twelve years.
Feels so weird to me that it was 2007 when the Thrashers stopped existing. Seems both much earlier and much later than that. Also 30:45 come on man why are we catching strays right now lmao
As a long time ranger fan.....this was so satisfying as the 70/80s atlanta flames owned us badly. Watching jagr play was incredible....better than messier. And that says ALOT
There was some decent talent on that team. Going into the series I wouldn't have been surprised if someone said the Rangers would win but I wouldn't have thought they would sweep the Thrashers.
This wasn’t the fault of the on-ice product. Yes; the Thrashers weren’t good, but the ownership didn’t help matters. I bet Thrashers fans are seething with the recent success that Don Waddell has had with the Hurricanes, that he didn’t have when was with Atlanta.
I think in his own kid, the owner saw every kid who loved and idolized the Thrashers players. That’s why he was so sad. I’m not even from Atlanta and I feel bad for them that this happened. Hockey needs to return to Atlanta and Atlanta Spirit needs to be FAR away from the team.
In 2006-07, the Thrashers finished first in their division and drew 16,240 per game at home, 21st in the NHL. For comparison, the Kings finished 28th in the league and drew 16,859 per game. In their inaugural season, the Thrashers were 11th in the NHL in attendance. They finished in the bottom third every other season in their history. Make of that what you will.
Fun fact about Michael Nylander - his last NHL goal was assisted by Brooks Laich. His son William Nylander's first NHL goal was also assisted by Laich.
Laich father, Laich son.
Jesus Christ that’s amazing
@@ericksheldon3870 Dont kno whats more amazing; the fact itself or the fact that AvsJoe topped it all off with an amazingly perfect pun 😂
@@jaboy8603 I was referring to both
I will go on record to say that this comment is the best comment I have ever seen on TH-cam. So good dude!
Brooks Laich, heart and soul Capital
If only the Thrashers had competent ownership that didn't spend more time fighting with each other and screwing people over.......
Atlanta Spirit ruined so much potential it’s an unreal shame
@@spenceranderson2072 hockey isn't a thing.. it never will be
Nobody in a mean south city cares about flabby white boys who can barely do pull ups
Yea right they had some good young talent over their years. Kovalchuk, kozlov, heatley, hedberg,kane,byfluein just to name a few..they could have been good. As you said with competent ownership,good coaching staff, quality drafting and development and a mix of good veterans they had real potential but it was all squandered away..too bad but they're doing pretty good in Winnipeg,consistently playoff team. Although they're still having problems with their stars..Dubois, roslivic,laine..
@@spenceranderson2072 Honestly, with the outright sabotage, I think they should have faced jail time for what they did. It's almost criminal.
The Thrashers were a straight-up tragedy. It wasn’t the fans’ fault that they moved away; that was entirely on ownership’s ineptitude. The fanbase deserved so much better.
And my god, this Rangers team was absolutely LOADED. Kinda crazy how they finished third in the Atlantic with all that talent.
Also worth mentioning that this was a battle of brothers, Marcel vs Marion Hossa.
It was an interesting year for the Atlantic in general with the Flyers being the only team to not make it into the playoffs. At one point the Islanders were even in first place and the Rangers were sitting outside the playoff picture before the Devils eventually grabbed hold of the top spot and didn’t let go, plus the Penguins finally came into their own and began their 16 year playoff streak that season
Marion a far superior player to Marcel, yet leave it to Rangers fans to start chanting. Marcels better Marcels better. Pretty damm funny.
It was outright sabotage and malice, in my opinion.
Fans deserve a small portion of the blame too for not supporting them as much.
Watching this series back is like watching a loved one die. I just felt a sense of dread in the air every game. It hits even harder knowing the outcome of the Thrashers franchise. It really sucks knowing that, if the Thrashers could just have had that miracle run this playoff series, or even just won this series and kept the next series competitive, hockey would probably still be in Atlanta.
*cries in Edgar Martinez double*
Watching this after what’s happened in Arizona makes it even more potent and heartfelt
This makes me even sadder at the prospect of the Coyotes possibly moving out of Arizona. Even if they haven’t been good in years, they’re still a team with a lot of fans, a lot of history, and some pretty decent runs in the playoffs, even making it to the conference finals in 2012. Im not even a Coyotes fan, nor was I ever a Thrashers fan, but I cant help but feel for those fanbases all the same. I hope one day we’ll see the Thrashers return or another team to ATL.
As someone who remembers the darkest days of Sabres bankruptcy and the very real threat of the team leaving, the people on the MB I frequent delighting in Arizona's possible move annoy me to no end.
No fanbase deserves to lose their team. Period.
They need to go back to America West Arena/Talking Stick
Yikes
15:58 I'd never heard any of these stories about the Thrashers; the pain those kids must have felt is probably indescribable
I was 15 when the Thrashers left Atlanta, it stung for a long time. I’ve been a Predators fan ever since.
I’m a huge Rangers fan, and this playoff series was a little before I started following the sport. I applaud you for choosing the one series where I’d feel the most guilty by the end
Don't feel guilty. Hockey is coming back to the State of Georgia. If hockey can thrive in Savannah out of all cities, it can thrive in Atlanta.
I see your point but if you ever did get an opportunity and binged this series, you'd most likely despise their actual team as it was a very tough, high spirited series with alot of nastiness. They were a GOOD team and we barely beat them that year.. In fact, I blame them for being part of the reason why we ran outta gas that Playoffs.
Of course, you feel terrible afterwards in the off season because you almost never want to see that as an Hockey Fan and especially, for a club that was finally showing some promise with the team and the fans.
@@Shawn6751 We in the Atlanta area do have the Atlanta Gladiators of the ECHL. They are in the same league with the Savannah Ghost Pirates. That said, Atlanta is too big to not have an NHL team, and no other city in the ECHL even comes close to the size of Atlanta. Orlando is the closest in size, and Atlanta is slightly over double the population of the second most populated metropolitan area in the ECHL.
Miss the Thrashers so much, such great jerseys. Hopefully the jets reverse retro jersey is a throwback to these ones
I could care less about the Jets. Winnipeg is too small for an NHL team, by and large. Atlanta is over EIGHT TIMES LARGER, and yet they have a team?
I'm pissed that Nashville and Raleigh both have teams, when Atlanta is about/over three times bigger than each of them.
@@willp.8120 Atlanta is going to get another team, just watch.
Also it's cool to hear Shane Hnidy have his name called as a player in this video. Shane does an outstanding job in my local market as a color guy for the VGK game broadcasts.
I really like your wording: EC quarterfinal lol this has to be the most flattering way of saying first round of the playoffs...
the '03 mighty ducks will forever be one of the greatest cinderella stories ever, and the fact that lingering pieces of that team were in this series warms my heart.
Indeed and they put up a better fight vs jersey than Florida is vs Vegas in the finals but I’m not ignoring what Florida accomplished in the first 3 rounds.
@The Luci florida did amazing but they didnt sweep a defending cup champion, steamrole a one seed, and only lose 6 games an entire postseason and not win the cup. crazy how similar those teams are tho. both had crazy good captains (barkov and kariya), slept on players (montour and osolinš), old guys who people thought they were out of their prime that had their careers revived (oates and eric staal), and goalies who played out of their minds (giguere and bobrovsky)
@@adgxgaming2826 the 2002 wings beat my Canucks 4 straight after losing the first 2 games and going on to win the cup. Crazy that the ducks swept them, beat Dallas in 6, then swept the wild who’d just retired Patric Roy winning the series from 3-1 deficit then breaking a record by beating my Canucks the very next series overcoming another 3-1 deficit. No team had ever overcome 2 3-1 deficits back to back series till the wild did it. They seemed so iron man after that and the ducks just swept them and not only that but Minnie couldn’t even score prettymuch any goals in that series.
The ducks had as good a chance as jersey it coulda gone either way.
@The Luci plus that stanley cup final went the distance with insane moments like off the floor on the board. i didnt really see that defining moment this year sadly. it really wasnt even close. refering back to an old video by pinhole, i wouldnt be shocked if this years cup final was one of if not the worst cup final statistically this century so far.
@@adgxgaming2826 another fun fact about that series is neither team was able to win a single road game outta the 7. That Paul kariya moment was just amazing
Your channel genuinely deserves 100X more views and subs. I like that you take your time and produce quality content, instead of just pumping out quantity. (Although I could watch these everyday) Hope you stick with it, this quality is rare.
Thanks so much for the kind words! I really hope I can get there soon :)
Shout out Michael Nylander. And young Callahan.
I have lived in the south for 5 years now, the hole left by the thrashers in hockey fans is very noticeable. I’ll say it, these people DESERVE a hockey team. And I’m very happy to learn that there is a project in Alpharetta to get that started.
What did all of the thrashers fans do? Did they migrate to a different Fandom? Drop hockey altogether?
@@theramplocal yes some migrated. Most became Preds fans, a lot have bandwagoned on the canes since they’ve gotten consistently good (I met one holdover Jets fan). But I would say the majority have dropped the sport all together. College sports and the NFL have their grip
@@theramplocal Georgia resident here, most don't follow hockey at all anymore, but the ones that do are mostly Preds fans, though there are some Canes, Lightning, and Jets fans.
There's definitely a void here for those who loved the Thrashers. A sadness when you think too much about it. Anger at Atlanta Spirit's sabotage. Ridiculousness that little cities, comparatively like Nashville, Raleigh, and Columbus have teams and Atlanta does not. It's unreal. Atlanta has three times the population of Nashville, has far more youth hockey leagues, and has more transplants, yet Nashville got to keep their team, even when the Thrashers outsold them the majority of years? The league DID NOT VET ATLANTA SPIRIT. There is no reason for both teams (Hawks and Thrashers) to ever have been bundled by Ted Turner when he sold them to Time Warner in 1999. This resulted in Time Warner bundling them when they sold to Atlanta Spirit.
I'm hopeful with the Gathering at South Forsyth that the NHL will return by 2027, but this absence of the Thrashers and the NHL has really sucked. These are the years my children could be attending a Thrashers game with me, but, no, we have to settle for the Gladiators, which are still fun, but the atmosphere is just not the same.
@@theramplocal Most did not become Predators fans. Only a few became Predators fans. Only a few stayed "Jets" fans.
Most refuse to watch the NHL until it returns to Atlanta. Most are Gladiators fans, though there isn't quite the appeal of the Gladiators that the Thrashers had. Until the Thrashers' return, we wait. And the team SHOULD ABSOLUTELY BE CALLED THE THRASHERS with the same blue uniforms.
My partner's cousin is a Winnipeg native who adores the new Jets. I'm a long time fan of the original Jets/Coyotes (she calls me the Olden jet) and we try to meet up for Coyotes-Jets matchups. A few years back we went to the outdoor Jets-Flames game. I quipped "Arh, the battle of Atlanta." 😋 She was not amused. 😊
That fluke on Hedberg showed the poor old Thrashers had no puck luck. Especially when the guy at the other end is King Henrik. 🤕
It's a shame that fluke goal was the difference.
Thinking back I think I attended an Avalanche game at Pepsi center against the Atlanta Thrashers, and we proceeded to get curbstomped and lost that game. Obviously it's never fun being in attendance to a loss, but this vid helps put in perspective for me that I am still fortunate enough to have a Hockey team to watch and root for. Great vid PHG.
Such a timely video given the uncertain future of NHL hockey in Arizona
Went to game 2 with my dad. Even though the franchise was a mess, that game and other thrashers games we went too were some of my favorite childhood moments. Thank you for making this video, you’ve earned a new fan for sure.
Thanks for watching John! Glad you enjoyed it :)
Keep it up! Another series with Johan hedberg. As a sabres fan it hurts, but the 2001 eastern conference semifinals sabres vs penguins.
The video and chapter titles are on point here. Ouch. I was just reading about the Oakland A's situation this morning, feeling awful for those fans, and now this. It sucks that the ultimate goal of modern sport is to make money. I'm sure it's been that way in some regard since the dawn of time, but, man. At least they didn't have Bally Sports or "Green Week brought to you by Lockheed Martin" in ancient Greece.
great video as always.
Love watching these playoff past videos, I’m interested to see an analysis of the 2001 ECSF Penguins vs Sabres matchup, 3 straight OT’s to end a 7 game series
Might be the best video yet. The storytelling of Thrashers fans in between this series. I love it. Hopefully this fanbase gets another chance to house an NHL team, and hopefully the outcome is a lot better. Sadly, it might take decades before that happens. If it ever happens.
I grew up a huge NYR fan because of my dad and this was the first playoff series I remember watching very cool to see it covered! Great content as always
Honestly, I think this video was the one that made me really feel for the fans of the Thrashers. Hopefully someday they get a team
It's looking like we might. An arena is set to break ground next year.
Thank you very much for the Rangers content. Looking forward to digesting this asap.
Was really hoping for the 2015 Caps series but I understand if that's still a tough one to revisit.
I actually am really looking forward to making that ome! And it WILL be made... >:)
@@PinholesGraham this is among the reasons why you're the best hockey channel on this platform
That Stepan goal haunts me still.
I saw this video in my recommended feed tonight, and even though I knew that reminiscing about the Thrashers would make me cry again, I watched to the very end.
Growing up in Atlanta in the 2000s, I was raised on the Thrashers because my dad loved the Flames (and the Knights!), and he was absolutely elated when the news broke that Atlanta was getting another NHL team. I vividly remember how he'd take me to see the games at Philips Arena, how cool it was to see both the team and all of those fans wearing their one-of-a-kind jerseys, and even how scared I was of those fire-breathing Thrasher heads when they scored a goal. By the time their lone playoff series against the Rangers was over, I had picked up other interests and didn't spend as much time on hockey. Nevertheless, my dad would still ask about going to see the Thrashers at Philips Arena, and only after the relocation have I realized that he felt the team wasn't going to last much longer than that. One of my biggest regrets was not enjoying the Thrashers with my dad one last time while I still could.
Nowadays, I've rekindled my interest in hockey, but as a fan of the Seattle Kraken. I invite my dad to sit down and watch some of the games with me, but I can tell it's not the same thing for him. Nothing will replace the pride of a hometown team for my dad, and while I may have moved on to another team, I still miss the Thrashers, too.
Thank you for using your video to talk about the importance of the fans. While the Thrashers may be gone, we're still here, keeping those cherished memories with us.
And I hope that one day, as unlikely as it is, the city of Atlanta might get a third chance. Maybe then, I can take my dad to a game, like he used to do for me.
I don't want it to be at Arizona or even Winnipeg's expense, though. No fanbase deserves that heartbreak.
Atlanta probably gets an expansion team sometime in the near future.
@@fantasticvoyage262 Yeah, the league knows that the Thrashers departure was not on account of the market or fans, but rather a crappy ownership group who sabotaged the team and kicked them out of their arena with no place to play. They also probably realize that they did not Vet Atlanta Spirit properly and are probably hoping to rectify this situation and do Atlanta some justice.
@@willp.8120 Every fan always blames ownership when their team leaves. The league never has enough money, so they likely care more about the expansion fee and market size than any goodwill due to Atlanta losing 2 other teams. The only question is will expansion be 2 or 4 teams?
@@fantasticvoyage262 It was ownership. It is public record, for crying out loud.
@@willp.8120 We know, we know. It's "public record" because you are always in every Thrashers/expansion video predictably blaming the owners to fit your narrative.
As sad as this story is. I really love learning more about hockey history as a newish ice hockey fan. Keep up the great work 👌🏻
You've said it best, Pinholes. Even though we all poke fun at terrible teams, at least they exist and have their respective fanbase. My heart goes out to fans of these teams of yesteryear, showing that their legacy still lives on in the hearts of people who followed them. And maybe someday, these former markets can get a second chance to redeem the hearts of fans. It's already happened to Minnesota and Winnipeg, so hopefully, Quebec City will follow suit.
Hartford and Atlanta too
Brilliant video. For some reason, I thought about the Rangers series and found this. This town did support this team. Ownership didn't reciprocate. It still torches my ass to this day. I was at game 2 and that barn was rocking. Too bad it only happened 2 nights over 11 seasons. Thanks for the video.
very cool series to cover. I feel like the only time people talk about the Thrashers is when they move to Winnipeg
Graham as always you never miss and your videos are always wonderful to watch
A Pinholes Graham upload after 2 weeks?! We're blessed again!
"Don't say goodbye. I hate goodbyes."
I really hope this doesn't sound like trolling given our record against them, but I really miss the Thrashers. When they were around, my Canes had two southern friends (exclusively southern that is, Florida and Texas are kinda their own thing) in them and the Preds, but now it's just us and Nashville. Apart from 2021 the Preds aren't even in our conference. The Thrashers were in our division.
They were the coolest team that never got the love they deserved. The year before this one here, in 05/06, they had *three* 90+ point players In Kovulchuk (*52*g, 46a, 98p), Marc Savard (28g, NICEa, 97p), and Hossa (39g, 53a, 92p). For reference, it is a factually true statement that those Thrashers had the exact same number of 90+ point players as the goddam 84/85 Edmonton Oilers. The Thrashers also got 71 points out of Kozlov and .906 goaltending out of Lehtonen when the league average SV% was .899 that season. Then those uniforms were so slick too, at least before the Reebok jerseys. I even loved the powder blue ones.
Those fans deserved better than the ownership they got. I'm glad Winnipeg got their team back, but damn I miss the Thrashers.
Me too
back in 2006 when the canes retired Francis jersey i was at that game and the canes played the Thrashers and won 4-1
How about move the Hurricanes or Predators to Atlanta. Bigger city. Winnipeg got the Thrashers. They didn't get their team back.
Good point at the very end. No matter how bad we think we may have it as fans, there is always someone else that is less fortunate. Being a Whalers and Thrashers fan is cruel and unusual punishment.
It’s always a shock to the system to remember Hossa was a Thrasher
When I think of Hossa, that's where I see him. I never thought of him as a Wings, Pens, Hawks or Sens player.
To me, him and Kovy were the big two down in Atlanta, they were the faces of that team especially Kovy.
@@SamuelDuplessis12 Kovalchuk is the face of the franchise. Hossa, Savard, Koslov, and Heatley are also big time names who played for the Thrashers. Even Keith Tkatchuk played for the Thrashers for a fraction of a season.
Lehtonen, Enstrom, Kapanen, Trembley, and Kane were also notable names.
The Thrashers never had a chance after they were sold to Atlanta Spirit Group. 7 different owners spent more time focusing on the Hawks and battling each other in court buyouts rather than the team itself.
I gotta say, as a Calgarian, I always laughed at the Thrashers story and celebrated their sale to Winnipeg. Especially since we got the Flames in 1980. Whenever I’m watching a video about the sale of the team, I never see the fan side of it. Hell, it’s hard for me to even find clips of this series, as if the team’s entire history completely vanished. I love how that was covered here in addition to the series itself. I can’t imagine losing my team. And they lost theirs, twice. I hope the NHL leaves Atlanta alone for a bit, especially considering they have their hands full with the Coyotes (at the least the Thrashers weren’t left on life support way too long like that). But maybe down the road, the third time will be the charm. There’s just something about hockey that brings a city together, it’s amazing. And so is your video, well done.
This is my first time seeing your channel, and man you're someone the hockey community (at least on youtube) needed. SB nation, or secret base, does some one off hockey documentaries, but nothing as true as this. Appreciate the work that went into this, and hoping for many more to come my man.
Thanks so much man! Welcome aboard :)
Watching this amazing video makes me think of 1 thing. The 2015 series between the Rangers and Capitals. What is in my opinion one of if not the greatest goalie duel ever. I can say I'm on behalf of everyone when I say a video on that would be a spectacle
Great installment as always! Funny to think the other one Franchise death knell similar to this was the Nordiques which also a happened to be quarter final against the Rangers. Future ep I hope 🤞
The suspense of waiting on your breakdown of the 2012 Penguins-Flyers series is killing me
28:00 good to know sam rosen isnt just messing up names now due to his age, some things never change
Shout out Frank Vatrano Vinny Trocheck
Pinholes graham I didn’t realize this was your video. I subbed a few months back after watching your 2003 ducks vs stars playoff review. That was a great series and you covered it great keep it up.
Beautifully intertwined with the demise of the Thrashers in 2011. Well done, Sir.
New subscriber for sure!
Man it's a bit heartbreaking to watch this. When this series happened i was a teenager and i was just absolutely excited that we made it through the first round. That was my first ever playoff round victory the previous year being my first qualifications for playoffs. But now my happy memory is almost like a war memory, the thrashers died whilst my rangers took another step to thriving. Feels bad man. Also i love these videos please keep them coming! Youve absolutely got a talent for this type of series breakdown thing youre doing, feel like im watching a 30 for 30
Suggestion for a future series to possibly recap:
1994 Canadiens/Bruins
It marked the last time a team from Canada went into the playoffs as defending Stanley Cup champion, the end of a run in which MTL/BOS faced off 10 times in 11 years in the playoffs, and the final time these teams met in a playoff series at the Montreal Forum/Boston Garden
It was the end of a golden era for an iconic rivalry
These in-depth videos about obscure playoff series juxtaposed with a side story about one or both teams are great. Please keep doing them.
Well, this is easily the most depressing video you’ve ever made. Fantastic stuff as usual, pinholes.
Na the Hank video is more depressing
@@Mike_Poppe brother you still have a team
@@ericksheldon3870 thrashers story is sad especially when it’s told this way, Hank’s story is just upsetting. The same story of having loved and lost than never having loved at all.
The Atlanta Flames was such a badass team, very brutally honest in terms of the name
Oh fuck yeah. The 06-07 season was my favorite NHL season and the playoffs were great. Also I love seeing the Thrashers being involved. It would be cool to see the Thrashers in other playoffs past serieses.
I would love to cover them more. Unfortunately, this is the only playoff series they had. :(
@@PinholesGraham lol ik I was making a joke about it
Thank you for this video. I was 1 of 18,000+ yelling fans at game 1 in 2007. Hockey is the greatest sport in the world and I miss it in Atlanta as do many I know. I would do anything to relive that experience.
I think there was a playoff round in the late 80s or early 90s between the Nordiques and the Whalers. I don’t know anything about it, but I feel like that would be a really interesting series to cover just because of the fate of both teams
The legend is back. I love this content.
Thrashers' jerseys are sharp as heck
Absolutely!
Just so you know, you're my new favorite Hockey channel. Keep up the great work man ❤
Thanks d b! Really appreciate it! :)
It’s interesting how many relatives of modern players played back then, Tkachuk and Nylander in this case, but I’m sure there were others, I guess it has been 17 or so years but it doesn’t seem that way
I'm a Panthers fan living in Atlanta. I love my cats but I wish we had a pro hockey team in ATL so bad :(
Amazing content! As someone commented earlier, u deserve 100x the amount of likes and views. Subbed and looking forward to more videos!
Another top-shelf interesting well done video.
Hossa, Kovalchuk, Savard was an insane line.
Dude. Your channel has become a favorite of mine. Keep it up, and please give us some Sharks content.✌️🇺🇲
This video made me wish the Thrashers were still around, great video!
Love your vids, I’ve been hooked since you made the ducks Vs Stars series keep it up 👍
The Oilers potential move being included in this is always something I like think about, That happened around the time I was born and the 2006 Cup run is the only reason I ever played and fell in love with hockey. Sharing the memories game in and game out is a privilege, decade of darkness be damned!
Great vid and format ❤
was so hyped up for Thrashers🏒finally making the playoffs and then that happened what a feeling ha😅
I finally got the time to watch this. Not the series I was expecting but an excellent choice. If u can find any footage from the 80s oilers runs I think that would be a fun one too
As of 2023, Atlanta is now the 6th largest metropolitan area in the United States, by population. Just in the past three years, metro Atlanta has leapfrogged over Miami (2021), Philadelphia (2022), and Washington (2023) in population. There is no reason not to have a team here, or in Houston.
Your vids are awesome. Can’t believe the channel is as small as it is.
6:23 taking a slap shot from the top of the circle on a 2 on 1 is wild
30:19 I'm from the same hometown as Dan Snyder, that was a tough time
Man what a bummer. 13 seasons in Atlanta and not a single playoff game win!
Whoops 11 seasons. My point still stands though -- a real shame.
@@LetsPlayPC and the thing is if they had made a deep playoff run there still probably a team in Atlanta today. It sucks, but it’s probably true.
Fantastic as always graham
The only thing I hate about this channel is the fact that is has very few videos and I’ve already watched every single one
As a Stars fan, we don't talk about Kari Lehtonen.......I still have horrible memories of that Game 7 in 2016.....😢
Dude! the nostalgia I got when he started talking about him!!
I have very fond memories of that game.
@@fantasticvoyage262 Please don't.....
This was so damn sad! Great Video!
God, hearing those thrashers names agin brings back childhood memories. I wish i had my team back.
Wow this one was actually sad.
F's in the chat for the Trashers
F
Strangely enough, the Atlanta Flames' last playoff appearance before they moved to Calgary in 1980, and the Atlanta Thrashers' only playoff appearance ended with the same result.....and opening-round loss vs the New York Rangers.
Wow, where did you get the footage at 3:59? I’ve never seen that before
Pregame footage of the Game 1 broadcast.
Ima rangers fan but atlanta is such a tragedy the rangers put the nail in the coffin
One of my fav videos, Pinholes. If I may:
Coming here after the announcement of the Arizona Coyotes and the move to Utah in 2024. Anyways, I think a video about them similar to this one would be cool. Even have a series picked out: the first series victory in Coyotes history.
2012, Round one, Coyotes vs Blackhawks
Babe wake up, new Pinholes Graham dropped
Thrashers had a future penguins 2 time cup winner in dupius. The rangers had a past back to back penguins cup winner with jagr and a future back to back cup winner in matt cullen.....these guys spanned all 5 rings
Another heartbreaking one is the 2009 ECQF between Pittsburgh and Washington
My bad I meant the ECSF not the ECQF
I want to see one about all those Caps losses. 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017 all would make great videos
Oh for sure for sure
I so miss this team. Let's hope that Atlanta gets its team back within the next five years. There is promise as of this year, something we haven't had in twelve years.
Feels so weird to me that it was 2007 when the Thrashers stopped existing. Seems both much earlier and much later than that.
Also 30:45 come on man why are we catching strays right now lmao
They left in 2011.
i love this guy , posted my rangers too 🙏
Only time the Rangers swept a team in the Lundqvist era.
His stats: 4W-0L, .939SV% (93/99), 6GA (3 of those in G1).
This just further proves how amazing Henrik was
30:02 how 2010 ticket?
Some of the footage was taken from 2011 when the team left.
As a long time ranger fan.....this was so satisfying as the 70/80s atlanta flames owned us badly.
Watching jagr play was incredible....better than messier. And that says ALOT
There was some decent talent on that team. Going into the series I wouldn't have been surprised if someone said the Rangers would win but I wouldn't have thought they would sweep the Thrashers.
As much as the end result pains me, I’d have to recommend the Ottawa Pittsburg conference final for this series
This wasn’t the fault of the on-ice product. Yes; the Thrashers weren’t good, but the ownership didn’t help matters. I bet Thrashers fans are seething with the recent success that Don Waddell has had with the Hurricanes, that he didn’t have when was with Atlanta.
I think in his own kid, the owner saw every kid who loved and idolized the Thrashers players. That’s why he was so sad. I’m not even from Atlanta and I feel bad for them that this happened. Hockey needs to return to Atlanta and Atlanta Spirit needs to be FAR away from the team.
In 2006-07, the Thrashers finished first in their division and drew 16,240 per game at home, 21st in the NHL.
For comparison, the Kings finished 28th in the league and drew 16,859 per game.
In their inaugural season, the Thrashers were 11th in the NHL in attendance. They finished in the bottom third every other season in their history. Make of that what you will.
Interestingly, they were never, ever last place in attendance.
Betts was a 4th line center, Cullen-Prucha-Callahan was the 3rd line all season. Tyutin-Girardi were 2nd D pairing as well. Other then that great job!
5:09 I get what you’re saying but, “jagr might have been ovetchkin in another life” is such a wild statement 😂 it’s jagr.