What, Really, Is The Thrashers 7th Man?

Do you consider yourself the Thrashers 7th Man? Is it how long you've been a fan? Is it how much money you spend? How many road trips you go on to see the Thrashers play? Is it how many home games you've attended? What, exactly, is the Thrashers 7th Man? How is one fan, really, better than any other? Is it the fact you know every single stat about every single player that has ever played on the team? Is the 7th Man someone who is on "the inside" with the team?

No, it's not about the fact you've been a fan since day one, spent thousands and thousands of dollars on luxury seats; it's not about the stats you know; it's not about how much money you have spent on seats or on road trips...really, that is not what 7th Man is about.

It's about what is inside you. It is about how much the Thrashers and NHL hockey here in Atlanta has had an effect on your life. No matter where you go, what you do, are you always talking about hockey and the Thrashers? Do you feel Atlanta Spirit should be giving YOU a paycheck because you recruit so many people to go to games? Do you wear something with the Thrashers on it no matter where you are or what you are doing? The 7th Man is not about money, seats, or the elite status you think you have but don't. It's about heart. It's about pride. It's about always believing. It's about being there for the guys down on the ice when the times are down and when the times are good. It's about being proud of being an Atlanta Thrashers fan. I'm not talking about the "fan" who comes to games that is from another city and lives here now and has adopted us as their "team" but still roots for their hometown team....no sir, that doesn't count in my book. We are the ATLANTA Thrashers. Being born, raised and one of the seemingly few natives left in this city, the Thrashers are MY team. Philips Arena is MY home away form home....well, ok it's just my home.... I am there so much, I feel that way. If I could, I'd buy two or three suites, have them connected to make a decent sized living space, and move up in there so I would never miss a game. The Thrashers are MY team. They are ATLANTA's team. There is a special connection between the team and the city. I am damn proud to have an NHL team in our city.

Sure, this has been a tough season. For a while, with so many losses, I became numb. Before this season, to me, every win was a high, like I had just won the lottery, and every loss was an earth-shattering disaster. This season, it got to the point where I just became numb. No matter how much I always believed, it was beyond my own control to feel this way. There was simply nothing I could do. But towards the end of the season, the Thrashers have turned things around and can play with the very best of opponents. Sure, it's too little too late now, but that old feeling is back. That old feeling of an awesome high with a win and a end-of-the-world downer when we lose. I missed that feeling, and now, it's back. Of course, with the season drawing to a close soon, it won't last for too long, but the good thing is that we'll end the season on a good note and with all the hopes in the world, it will carry over to next season. Playoffs, here we come...next season. I believe that. I really do. I can see it in this team now and I can see us perhaps (insert sarcasm here) actually winning a playoff game...or two...or three...or more.

I don't care what the hockey "experts" say about us. I don't care how DW is ranked among GMs. I don't care if there are some out there that want us off the NHL hockey map. The Thrashers are here, here to stay, like it or not, so they can whine, carry on and wish that hockey was not in the South...but they can can it because the Thrashers are here to stay.

Hockey and the Thrashers have had a very close place in my heart, well, before the team was here. It all started when I went to that first Knights game...and from that moment on, I knew hockey would play a special part in my life. I have so many countless, fond memories from many Thrashers games. With those memories comes people that have come and gone, yet I remain. People change and "move on" and stop coming, stop being a fan. No sir. I will always love hockey. I will always be there. Until I can no longer access Philips Arena...say, when I'm about 90-something and on my deathbed, then maybe, just maybe, then it will be time for me to stop coming. But then again, I will always be there in spirit when that day comes. But until that day, there really is just nothing better than attending Thrashers games. I could go to the bech, to Israel, to Austrilia, to Japan, to the furthest reaches of the globe, travel and see the world...or I could go to Thrashers games...and I'd take hockey in a second....I've just been dedicated for so long and the Thrashers and hockey have become such a huge part of my life that never will that change.

In a perfect world, I'd be able to attend every game. That was my reality last season. I wish I could say the same about this season. While I haven't missed THAT many games, I have missed a lot more than I would ever have liked. But, with the economy going down the drain, my life was effected and I just have had no choice sometimes but to miss out on games, and of course, I do have a wonderful, awesome, hot and sexy new lady in my life, and I will admit that, yeah, I have missed a few games now that she is part of my life...but that's OK. She knows I'm a hockey nerd, and when there's a game on, well, that's it, the game will be watched...hell our first kiss was at a hockey game...OK, it was at a Gladiators game, I didn't plan it, it just happened, I wish it had been at a Thrashers, but that's where it happened...anyway, my job last year allowed me to attend every game...working within a 5 min walk to Philips surely was a huge help, but now my job does not allow me to attend every single game. Hopefully by next season that will change so that I can get back to my normal going-to-every-game habbit. There are so many other places I could spend my money and time, but really, what's better than an NHL game? There's just nothing better than Thrashers hockey.

So it seems I've gone off on a huge tangent, I seem to be pretty good at that. But let me get back to the point of this article...the Thrashers 7th Man. It really is, well, should be, something that is awarded to the fan who really is the biggest Thrashers fan at heart. Do you live, eat, sleep and breathe around hockey? Do you attend games even if no one else can go? I am always pimping the Thrashers wherever I am. They are always on my mind. The next game is always something I can't wait for. I have a closet full of Thrashers jerseys, clothes, t-shirts, stuff...and then there is the rest of my clothes. All my Thrashers stuff get's it's own, special spot...and everything else has another. But it's not about material goods or the money you spend on tickets. I don't care if you spent $35,000 on tickets or, like me, $400-something for upper level season tickets....or even if you don't have season tickets. It doesn't matter. It's not about that. There are more important things in life than material goods and money and things, and yes, even Thrashers hockey...or is there? It's about what's in your heart. It's about how much you feel for this team. It's about the passion you have, the drive you have, the emotions you have toward this team. It's not about if you have 1,000 hockey friends and feel well connected or if you have just one friend at games and don't know anyone else. It's not about if you have close connections to the team or how many autographs you got or any of those things. It's about what is inside you. How dedicated you truly are. How passionate you truly are. How much you just love the game so fregin much that you somehow, someway always bring of hockey and the Thrashers in your conversation, no matter how much it has nothing to do with hockey or the Thrashers. It's about, really, who loves this team so much that if you cut yourself, it would bleed Thrashers blue. Yes, your blood would actually be that color.

Have I spent the most money? Not even close. Have I been able to attend every single game this season? No. Have I gone on a ton of road trips, do I have an "in" with the team, am I connected to the extent some people are? No. But do they have the passion, the drive, the love, the obession that I do? They don't...even...come...close. They might say they do, they may display that they do, they may claim it, but they can do that all they want. They don't know what is inside of my heart, my soul, my mind....and there is just nothing they can do, nothing they can say, no emotions they can feel, to get anywhere close to what I feel about this team. As I said, it's not about material possesions, money or your connectedness...it's about what is in your gut, your heart, your soul...your hockey soul...and no, no one else even comes close to matching what I got inside.

That being said, I can't wait until next season starts to gear up... I am looking forward to the Stanley Cup Playoff this season, don't get me wrong, but I am truly psyched about next season and the potential we have to be a contending team again. I want another banner hanging from the rafters more than anyone else.

I know in my heart I am the 7th Man. And that's all that really matters to me.

GO THRASHERS!!