Your Friday Latest: Atlanta-To-Winnipeg, "Five Percent" Survival Rate In Atlanta...

((HT: HockeyBuzz.com))

Eklund is relaying that the two sides are meeting in some description of the word- conference call or otherwise... but nothing will be made public, in the terms of a deal, until the deal is done...

And, by that, the HQ means "done..."
I's dotted, T's crossed... all that... and not a moment before...

Eklund reminds us of the Doug MacLean announcement that his group had the Lightning before the 2007 season... we all know how that turned out with Barrie and Koules...


Since, once a deal is agreed to, there has to be a special expedition to fast-track the whole sale. There is talk that the schedule-makers already have three schedules drawn- one withdrawn and thrown into the wastebasket involving Phoenix in Winnipeg, one with Atlanta at home, and one with a team in Winnipeg. Those schedules need to be in place no later than the NHL Draft...

The Thrashers, on their website, are trying to draw in fans to a "select-a-seat" event next Saturday the 21st.

With all the class the Spirit ownership group has shown the city, they'll announce the sale after the non-refundable portion of the season tickets are gathered- which the HQ thinks will be the 23rd- that following Monday...

The AJC's Chris Vivlamore was a guest on Sportsnet Radio's "Hockey Central" and he gave survival of pro hockey in Atlanta at "five percent" and he thinks any decision will come in the next week or so...

The entire interview with Millard, MacLean, and Kypreos is hyah...We would have posted it, but the Internet cops at the border stopped that kind of stuff...

What Not To Say On Television...

((HT: Rogers Sportsnet))

One of the dangers of television is the idea of shot-sheeting your tape, so when you send your elements back to headquarters, the guy editing your stuff edits everything in sequence- without error.

You call home, dictate your segment in sequence, it's edited, and television magic happens.

This, obviously, had something lost in translation.
Sportsnet's Roger Millions is the current example...


We figure there was an irate phone call from the home office in Toronto to Millions cell phone in Chicago after the taped segment ran...

Hey, Did You Know The Steelers Won...?

And this is a picture of a man in deep trouble...

FOSG Jim "Clubber" Lang of Rogers Sportsnet was under express instructions not to come back to the T-Dot with anything resembling a tan...

The outfit isn't helping... no hat...

His work for the week can be found over in the margin or here in black...

There's a rumor floating around that a laundry room will be requiring his services upon his return... but he does have pictures of the halftime show...

Waddell Discusses Kovalchuk's Future

Atlanta Thrashers General Manager Don Waddell was a guest on Rogers Sportsnet's HockeyCentral at Noon with Nick Kypreos on Sportsnet and the Fan Radio Network.

Waddell obviously wants to keep Kovy around by the time his contract is up at the end of next season. He says all the right things...

For now...

This is all of us holding our collective breath for the next year as Kovy plays out the string in Atlanta and the franchise then moves to another city altogether.

You can listen to the interview with Kipper and Sportsnet's Daren Milliard by clicking in the black...

((HT: Fan590.com))

UPDATE: Bruce Garrioch from the Sun Newspapers north of the border is reporting the possibility of a Kovalchuk-Marian Gaborik blockbuster swap with the Minnesota Wild.

The principles would be Gaborik and Kim Johnsson for Kovalchuk and Colby Armstrong.

The issues: Gaborik's injury history and his desire to be locked in for a long-term deal.

The numbers: Gaborik makes US$6.5-million and US$7.5-million for the next two seasons. He then becomes an unrestricted free agent. Johnsson will make US$4.8-million, US$5.2-million, and US$5.3-million the next three seasons. He becomes a UFA after the 2009-2010 season.

Kovalchuk will make US$7.5-million this year and next.
Armstrong is the bargain for the whole deal- US$1.2-million this season, and then he becomes a restricted free agent.

The decision: Does Don Waddell trade his signature franchise player and alienate the remainder of a dwindling fan base knowing he won't be able to re-sign Kovalchuk for major dollars after the end of next season...? And does Waddell take a flyer on Gaborik with his injury history next season and try to re-sign him knowing Gaborik may not want to stay after his southern experience...?

The other decision: How quickly can Wild GM Doug Risebrough get Waddell to pull the trigger...? Risebrough gets a sniper and an up and coming forward in the deal. Waddell gets a wonky, moody ((at times)) star-quality player and a solid defenseman.

Alfie Out Two Weeks

Ian Mendes of Rogers Sportsnet is reporting that Ottawa Senators captain Daniel Alfreddson will undergo knee surgery and is scheduled to be out of action for ten to fourteen days.

The right knee of the captain will be scoped in Ottawa later Friday, and he will miss the team's home opener against the Stanley Cup Champion Detroit Red Wings Saturday night. The surgery is supposed to take care of a bone chip that became dislodged in Sunday's game against Pittsburgh. The team said it had nothing to do with the hit ((and subsequent knee injury)) from the Leafs' Mark Bell that ended his season last year.

Alfredsson ((pictured, thanks NHL/Getty Images)) could, in reality, only miss one game- the game in Phoenix against the Coyotes on the 17th.

"We were told he could go forward with this for some time, but that at some point, it (bone chips) should be removed," said Senators General Manager Bryan Murray. "We thought and he thought that this was the best time to do that."

"Certainly we're going to miss Alfie, because we're a better team when he's in our lineup," head coach Craig Hartsburg added on Friday. "But it's a great opportunity The player who will get the opportunity to step into Alfredsson's spot on top line is Jarkko Ruutu, who skated with Jason Spezza and Dany Heatley in practice on Friday.

"It's going to be fun. I'm just going to play my game and the other guys are going to have the puck more," Ruutu said. "It's a simple game and we know the team system."

SIDENOTE ALERT: Sens owner Eugene Melnyk told Mats Sundin face-to-face last week that he wants him to be a member of the team according to the Thursday Ottawa Sun edition. The former Leaf, debating his own existence at the moment, was told that the team would make room for him on the roster.

The Senators, currently have a little less than US$3-million left under the salary cap ceiling. But it would also mean, probably, moving either the recently-healthy Mike Fisher, Antoine Vermette, or Chris Kelly. One of those three leaving would make more financial sense that either Jesse Winchester or Cody Bass who are still on their rookie deals...