Oct 29, 2009

NHL's Thrashers Lose Kovalchuk For At Least One Month

Atlanta's Top Scorer Suffers Broken Foot During Game Against Sharks

The Atlanta Thrashers announced Monday that a CT scan revealed that their star forward and top scorer, Llya Kovalchuk , had a broken bone in his right foot. Kovalchuk was injured in the first period of Saturday's game against the San Jose Sharks when he was struck by a puck. Thrashers general manger Don Waddell told the media on Monday that the injury would likely keep Kovalchuk off of the ice for at least the next three to five weeks.

Currently, Atlanta is in second place of the Southeast division, but that could certainly change in a hurry with the loss of their best player. Kovalchuk was the first overall pick in thew 2001 NHL draft and has scored 306 goals and made 261 assists in his eight year career with the Thrashers. Prior to his injury, he was tied for second in the NHL with nine goals scored already this season. Atlanta plans on replacing him with the fourth overall pick in this year's draft, 18 year old Evander Kane. Although Kane shows tremendous potential and possesses the ability to have a great NHL career, the betting odds of him being as affective as Kovalchuk at this stage in his career are extremely low. Kane is a great talent, but it certainly will take him some time and experience in the NHL to develop into the player that he is capable of becoming. Atlanta just can't lose a caliber of player like Kovalchuk without being adversely affected in his absence.

By Bryan Jackson
Staff Writer
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