Continuing on with my recent blogs regarding the NHL, I thought I would bring up another interesting issue posted by, yet again, Greg Wyshynski of yahoo sports, AKA Puck Daddy. When reading his most recent article discussing the challenges facing the Atlanta Thrashers this year, I remembered another article written by him earlier this fall. Both deal with the same issues threatening the Atlanta franchise, mainly being the lack of fans. 
Currently sitting in 28th (of 30) in ticket sales, the Atlanta Thrashers are struggling to bring fans to games, and as a result, much speculation is being put forth with the idea of moving the Atlanta franchise to Canada, mainly Winnipeg. Granted, Winnipeg would be a great spot for an NHL team, but with the owners in Atlanta believing they can turn it around, the team will undoubtedly remain in Atlanta for the foreseeable future.
The key to success for every team in any professional sporting league is pretty simple: try to assemble the best group of athletes (while being compliant to any rules or regulations regarding salaries, etc.) who give the franchise/team a chance to win. In my opinion, that is pretty straightforward, however in the October 27th article, puck daddy addressed the issue of fans emailing in about the “Atlanta Thrashers’ multi-cultural roster.” 
The fact that the Atlanta Thrashers roster currently has 4 Afro-American players, with 3 more training in the minor leagues, should not surprise anyone, because all the players are GOOD PLAYERS. Coincidentally, Atlanta is home to more than 50% Afro-American people, but that is completely beside the point. For example, there is not one NHL team who would not want to have Dustin Byfuglien on their team. At 6’4 and 257 pounds, Byfuglien was a prize catch for Atlanta who traded for him from the Stanley Cup winning Chicago Blackhawks. So far, Byfuglien has 21 points, good for 4th in the NHL among defensemen, and as I write this article, has 4 points (1 goal, 3 assists), in today’s game against the Bruins! This is just one example of why he is an extremely valuable player, and for people to believe that this was somehow a “marketing” strategy by the Atlanta Thrashers to bring in Afro-American players is completely ludicrous. As I said before, the players mentioned in the article DESERVE to be on that team because they give the Atlanta Thrashers a good chance of winning night after night. If I was an NHL general manager, color/race would be the last thing I look at, as long as the team has good chemistry, is winning games, and is giving the franchise a chance to win the Stanley Cup! Atlanta fans shouldn’t be criticizing the team management for who they have traded for/drafted, but should rather be praising them for putting together a good, solid hockey team.
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