I used to bleed green now I bleed Blue

First and foremost I am and always will be a Hockey Fan,this blog in part will be about hockey,and whatever other ramblings I see fit to argue. I grew up in Connecticut and yes I was a Hartford Whaler fan(always will be), I still wear my Whaler Jersey with Number ten on the back on ST Patricks Day, and on occasion you can find me whistling Brass Bonanza. I was there on April 13th, 1997 and remembered the pain I felt and the emptiness that still remains as Kevin Dineen said goodbye to all of us who bleed green. For years I went without a hockey team to follow and cheer for,so I followed Local players like Chris Drury and supported whatever team he played for, but alas ... it wasn't the same. Those of you reading this outside Connecticut would say why don't you just follow the ...gulp! Carolina ...oh man I can't even say it it makes me want to vomit in my mouth a little bit. That will never happen. Ever! I have since left the nutmeg state for warmer pastures and found myself on a warm night in January inside the Phillips Arena. I bought myself the best ticket possible and watched the Atlanta Thrashers beat the snot out of the Buffalo Sabers.I couldn't believe it there was this Guy Kovalchuk and Hossa and even some former Whalers on the team and in the organization(more on that later).I fell in love with Blueland and what a perfect match for a Whaler fan. Horrible ownership,rumors of the team leaving town, and players who don't want to be here. I suddenly felt right at home and it leads me to my blog here today. Since I was little and my dad first taught me to lace my skates up and control a puck with wooden stick Hockey has been a passion. I am no where near an expert on the game,but I am a fan and I will use this blog to call out players who aren't doing well,don't want to be here and are in it more for the paycheck ...and less for the game. Which leads me to the first topic of Discussion..... Ilya Kovalchuk. I will start off by saying this Ilya,you are the reason I got back into hockey restored my faith in a captain of a team,you remind me of my all time favorite player Ronnie Franchise,loves the city, his team and wants to bring a Stanley Cup to Atlanta, and for all of your faults;lack of defensive play,cherry picker you still are one of the most natural goal scorers I have ever seen and the most exciting player to watch when you feel like playing. I said when you feel like playing I never took you for being a Hossa or Brendan Shannahan type but it was clear last night against the Lighting at times you were incredible and Nitti monkey shut you down at other times you looked like guys I played with on my roller hockey team,that being said even they had more spirit then you. Clearly if what John Kincaid said was true you aren't in for the money, and yes the ownership and DW are terrible but if you expect the same anonymity somewhere else like you have here you can forget about it. I hope you go to Toronto or New York or Montreal these fans will rip you a new one the second you don't produce.Thrashers fans for the most part are fickle and most of them are more worried about what the Fuckhead Betty next to them is wearing than what your doing on the ice.So I say go Ilya Go you will always be favorite of mine and I hope you do well but I want someone who wants to be here...Like Ronnie Franchise....