As if Atlanta didn't have enough bad news this season, they were hit with even more Sunday night when Bryan Little limped off the ice—putting all of his weight on his left leg—with what they team called a "rib injury." Who knew his rib was in his right leg?

Without Little, who left in the second period, the Thrashers were left without their most dependable offensive threat and didn't stand a chance against a suddenly inspired Tampa Bay squad.

In addition to the loss of Little, Atlanta had to compete against 6-foot-4, 220-pound Lightning goalie Mike Smith, who gave up few rebounds all game. When he did, there never seemed to be a Thrasher nearby to bang it in.

Atlanta's confidence as a team is so fragile, as soon as Little was injured, they played as...

The Tampa Bay Lightning are no longer a last-place team or winless in Atlanta for nearly two years. Martin St. Louis scored twice, and Mike Smith made 27 saves to help the Lightning move out of the Southeast Division basement with a 4-1 victory over the Thrashers on Sunday night. Tampa Bay (11-18-10) has 32 points, one more than Atlanta (13-22-5).

Eric Christensen might have a handle on why the Thrashers have been perfect in shootouts this season while struggling during regulation. Christensen scored the winner in an extra round of the shootout Friday night, lifting the Thrashers to a 4-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks to snap a four-game skid.

Sergei Samsonov's backhanders kept the Carolina Hurricanes moving forward under new coach Paul Maurice. Samsonov scored two goals with his backhand and added an assist to lead Carolina past the Atlanta Thrashers, 3-1 on Wednesday night. Joe Corvo also scored after Samsonov snapped out of a two-goals-in-10-games slump for the Hurricanes.

Curtis Joseph is happy the long wait for his milestone win is over. Joseph made 29 saves to earn his first win of the season and the 450th victory of his NHL career and the Toronto Maple Leafs rallied to beat the Atlanta Thrashers 4-3 in overtime on Tuesday night. Pavel Kubina scored the winner on a power play 33 seconds into overtime to help the Leafs end a three-game losing streak.

It was business as usual for Michael Ryder and the Boston Bruins. Ryder broke a tie with 6:04 left, and the Bruins beat the Atlanta Thrashers 2-1 on Sunday to extend their wining streak to eight games and tie San Jose for the overall NHL lead with 58 points. Three of the victories during the streak have come against Atlanta and it was a win over the Thrashers back in October that helped turn the...

Ho-hum. Another hat trick for Eric Staal. "A hat trick is fun," Staal said. "It's a little better if you can get it at home." Staal scored three goals in 4:31 span of the third period to overshadow Bryan Little's first career hat trick in the Carolina Hurricanes' 5-4 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers on Friday night.

Atlanta Coach John Anderson thinks it necessary to look beyond the statistics to fully appreciate Ilya Kovalchuk. Kovalchuk assisted on Bryan Little's second goal of the game in the third period for his 500th career point in 500 NHL games, and the Thrashers kept the New York Islanders winless in 10 games with a 4-2 victory Tuesday night.