In past years the trend was for the Thrashers to sign veterans via free agency, relying on players 30 and older to come in and supplement existing youth.

That changed today with the signing of 27-year-old Ron Hainsey (6' 3", 210 lbs) whose best years should still be ahead of him. The Connecticut native blossomed in the last two seasons while playing under defensively-minded coach Ken Hitchcock in Columbus. The smooth skater put up nine goals and 34 points two seasons ago and eight goals and 32 assists this past season. All eight of his goals came on the power play, but don't expect that to be a concern here in Atlanta where the eight defensmen who saw action in more than 10 games apiece scored a combined 13 goals.

"We didn't get a lot of points from our defensemen last year" said Don Waddell. "We're looking to try to add some defensemen that have offensive instincts to contribute to our goal scoring."

Mission accomplished. Waddell sees Hainsey's greatest assets as his skating and his puck-carrying ability. Earlier this week head coach John Anderson said that he gives all of his defensemen the green light to jump into the play when they see a potential scoring opportunity. If Hainsey could score eight and nine goals under Hitchcock's defensive system he'll certainly get the chance to score more than that under Anderson.

Hainsey's passing ability will also be a welcome addition to a team that struggled to get the puck to the forwards. As Waddell pointed out today, the more time you spend attacking the less time you spend in your own zone. Hainsey has the ability to make crisp outlet passes to the forwards and that's the first step to gaining the zone. He won't be a cure-all for the Thrashers but he should be a valuable addition at a reasonable price relative to the deals that were signed on Tuesday. Few teams are earning praise for the contracts they signed on the first day of free agency when upwards of $300 million was given out to players and at the moment the Hainsey contract looks like a reasonable one, especially if he continues to improve as expected.

As Don Waddell said, "We think his upside is still in front of him. He's had two very strong years in Columbus and each year he continues to get better. He's still got room to grow and he will continue to get even better."

 As for where he'll fit on this team, that will be up to John Anderson and his staff. Waddell pointed out that your top two defensemen don't always play together because often it makes more sense to split them up to give your team two good pairs. Waddell did say that he expects Hainsey to fit on one of those pairs though.

"You always want to have a strong top four and with Enstrom and Havelid and Ron now and the other guys that we've got I think we can find a good top four guys and then still have a good five and six."

Don't take that to mean that Waddell is finished shopping though. When asked if he is still speaking to players and agents he said that the team is in talks with several players and that the trade route is another very realistic option for improving the team, especially as some teams are getting themselves into cap trouble by signing players to big contracts. With five NHL defensemen now under contract as well as third overall pick Zach Bogosian and farmhands like Boris Valabik ready to fight for spots in camp it's entirely possible that a defenseman could be shopped.

On top of that, Waddell hasn't ruled out bringing in more blueline help.

"If we can continue to add both defensemen and forwards we'll continue to do so to strengthen our club."

The signing of Hainsey is a good start to the Thrashers' off-season acquisitions and based on Waddell's comments that what it was- a start.