Thrashers Sign Forwards Jaime Sifers And Jared Ross

Blueland Blog reports:

The Thrashers have added some more depth to the organization, signing forwards Jaime Sifers and Jared Ross.

Sifers is a 27-year-old University of Vermont product who spent three seasons in the Leafs organization before playing for the Wild and Houston Aeros last season where he scored three goals and five assists to go with 58 PIMs in 54 AHL games.

Jared Ross’s name will be familiar to some fans. Like Sifers he’s 27 but smaller at 5-9, 165 lbs (Sifers is 5-11, 210 lbs) but he has more of a scoring touch, picking up 12 goals and 34 assists in 73 AHL games last season with the Adirondack Phantoms. He also suited up for three games with the Flyers, all of them against the Bruins in the playoffs.

Stay tuned to Bird Watchers Anonymous throughout free agency for scouting reports and news.

Pavel Kubina To Return To Tampa Bay

Pavel Kubina returned to the Tampa Bay Lightning, where he won the Stanley Cup in 2004. The allure of Steve Yzerman was too much, with him signing with the Bolts. Kubina’s contract is for two years at $7.7 million. He was paid at about $5 million for last season alone with the Thrashers.

Andrew Ladd Acquired For A Pick And A Prospect

The Thrashers now have four members of the Stanley Cup Champion Blackhawks after acquiring Andrew Ladd in exchange for a fourth round pick in the 2011 NHL entry draft and Ivan Vishnevskiy. Vishnevskiy came over as the return for goaltender Kari Lehtonen when the goalie was traded to the Dallas Stars.

Ladd has the potential to be the 20-goal scorer that Dudley wanted to acquire. He averaged just under half a point a game last season (17 goals and 21 assists in 82 games played). Keep in mind that he is just 24 years old, so there’s a lot of room to grow for Ladd.

Ladd is also a restricted free agent and will need to be tendered a QO and signed before he can become a part of next season’s Thrashers squad.

For those keeping track, this means that the Thrashers have acquired Ladd, Chris Mason, Dustin Byfuglien, Brent Sopel, and Ben Eager. The only roster player lost has been Marty Reasoner.

Colby Armstrong signed a 3-year, $9 million contract today with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Johan Hedberg moved on to New Jersey for a $1.5 million contract with a no-movement clause. Considering that he’ll be playing behind Martin Brodeur, that should boil down to about $500,000 a game. Best of luck to both of the former Thrashers.

Thrashers Sign Goaltender Chris Mason

Marking the end of the Johan Hedberg era in Atlanta, the Thrashers have signed UFA goaltender Chris Mason, late of the St. Louis Blues. Mason has a two-year contract worth $1.6 million and $2.1 million each year.

Player profile to be posted on Birdwatchers later – I have family business to attend to right now, but I will have full details. Word also is that Andrew Ladd has been acquired by the Thrashers pending trade call.

Unrestricted Free Agency Day: What Do The Thrashers Need To Do On July 1st?

With around seventeen players getting ready to test the unrestricted free agency market tomorrow, the Atlanta Thrashers are going to have some space to fill. First off, who is probably going to leave?

Most disappointing to a good many Thrashers fans is the fact that journeyman back-up goaltender Johan Hedberg might test the market tomorrow. He's reportedly less than thrilled at the contract that's been offered him by the team. Do keep in mind that he shares an agent with Ilya Kovalchuk -- Jay Grossman -- and Grossman's been known for driving a hard deal.

The difference here though is that it is Hedberg himself who admitted that there is an issue with the contract, though what that issue is remains to be seen. Moose has been called upon to play unofficial goaltending coach during his tenure here. He also was relied upon last season to take the reigns when Pavelec faltered, and he did an outstanding job. He would not be unjustified in asking for a raise. If the team's unwilling to give him that, they're going to have to look to the UFA market for a goalie of the same reliability.

The issue with that is, do they get another backup, or do they get a 1-A kind of type? What happens if Pavelec is not ready next season? What if there's another mid-season shaky streak going on? Hedberg could step it up. The Thrashers will need someone who can do the same thing and someone who has experience as a number one. Tops of the team's list should be pending UFA Chris Mason, late of the St. Louis Blues. Mason had a save percentage of .913 and a goals against average of 2.53. Little high on the GAA, but he's still a workhorse. Once fans adjust to the fact that he tends to allow a soft goal a game, they'd be happy with him.

Maxim Afinogenov is reportedly going to test the free-agency waters, possibly even the frozen waters of the KHL. Eric Boulton also might not be back, though he has been offered a contract. Evgeny Artyukhin will probably head the same route as Afinogenov. Colby Armstrong is as good as gone, but he's already been replaced by Dustin Byfuglien. This leaves a big hole at the wing. Dudley wants a 15-20 goal scorer, though it is iffy whether that will come from a trade or free agency.

If it comes from free agency, Alexei Ponikarovsky is an option. He floundered (or some would say flopped) in Pittsburgh, but he played minutes with Nik Antropov when the two of them were in Toronto. A chance of scenery could do him some good.

Pavel Kubina's future with the team is a question mark. He seems to want to come back, and even over at Puck Daddy they expect to see him back in Atlanta. He and Tobias Enstrom were an outstanding first defensive pairing last season, and even though some seem to feel that the Thrashers have a replacement in Sopel, it remains to be seen if he and Enstrom would have that same kind of chemistry. Kubina was one of the team leaders with 32 assists for the season, seems to like the Ramsay hiring, and might take a hometown discount. There's no need to directly replace him with another defenseman should he walk, so the big question'll be if will he be walking.

I don't fully expect the Thrashers to be gonzo over the first few days of free agency, but any Thrashers signings will be posted here ASAP. Please subscribe to the StoryStream feed for the quickest possible updates. Between SB Nation and the always reliable TSN.ca, you're covered on all the happenings. Have fun keeping your eye on the frenzy.