Thrashers at a glance
	Camp schedule: Sept. 11: Ice Forum (Duluth, Ga.) Coach: Curt Fraser (3rd season, 37-106-19-6) General manager: Don Waddell (3rd season)

If you want to see the model of how to run an expansion team, NHL experts will tell you to look at Nashville. If you want to see how to stay competitive on a $19 million budget, experts say look at Columbus and Minnesota.

Nobody, however, is suggesting anyone use the Atlanta Thrashers as a model for anything.

That's the challenge this year for the Thrashers, to prove they're better than people think. After shaving 16 losses last season (from 14-61-7-4 to 23-45-12-2), Atlanta appears headed in the right direction.

Judging youth: While he still could turn out to be a keeper, injury-prone winger Patrik Stefan has been a significant disappointment as the first overall pick out of the 1999 draft. When you consider the Thrashers could have had one of the Sedin brothers or Pavel Brendl or Tim Connolly, you can question their scouting staff. That will put all the more pressure on rookies Dany Heatley (2nd overall in 2000) and Ilya Kovalchuk (first overall in 2001) to perform quickly.

Judging veterans: Atlanta has been able to squeeze strong performances out of the castaways it has picked up, including solid seasons last year from Donald Audette, Ray Ferraro and Andrew Brunette. While only Ferraro remains this season, you wonder what offseason pickups Tony Hrkac and Bob Corkum will be able to do when given big minutes beside young snipers.

Somebody, please, stop the puck: Thrashers goalies faced 32.3 shots per game last season -- more than any netminders in the NHL -- so you have to cut them a little slack. Still, this is a group without a clear No. 1 (at age 32, Damian Rhodes is not the future). GM Don Waddell has made finding a goaltender a priority, but that's not an easy thing to do in this league. Watch to see if the Thrashers pit Milan Hnilicka and newcomer Pasi Nurminen early in the exhibition season and think about moving Rhodes out.

Thrashers 2001-02 preseason schedule
Date	Opponent	Time
Sat., Sept. 15	Nashville	Canceled*
Mon., Sept. 17	Nashville	7:30 p.m.
Tue., Sept. 18	Pittsburgh	7:30 p.m.
Sat., Sept. 22	at Carolina	7 p.m.
Mon., Sept. 24	at Pittsburgh	7:30 p.m.
Tue., Sept. 25	at Nashville	11:30 a.m.
Wed., Sept. 26	Carolina	11 a.m.
Sat., Sept. 29	N.Y. Islanders	7 p.m.
*Rescheduled for Sept. 17