Monday Roundup and POTG Radio Tonight

On tonight's PredsOnTheGlass Radio, we will have something a little different. We have never had anyone from the equipment side of the game but that will change tonight.

We will have Steve Wilson of Blackstone Sports who will discuss Blackstone’s revolutionary Flat Bottom V skate sharpening technique, which is used by the Nashville Predators. Steve is Vice President and co-founder of Blackstone Sports so this will be a chance for us to learn about new technology that is changing the ways skates are sharpened and allows more precise moves on the ice.

We will also have another guest that will be on once he is re-confirmed and we will discuss where things stand after the initial flurry of free-agent signings. We can now reveal that Jamie Shalley of XM 204 NHL Home Ice will be the other guest. I met Jamie at the NHL Awards show in Las Vegas after knowing him on the radio and internet for four years since XM hockey coverage began. I'm really looking forward to it, so please join us.



In Pred Nation...

We have definitely hit the quiet part of the off-season where updates will become more limited as the free agent signings have slowed and less real "news" is actually happening.

The highlight of the next few days will be the gathering of prospects in Nashville for the Predators annual Developmental Camp which starts tomorrow and runs through Saturday.

On ice workouts will be open to the public at Centennial Sportsplex at the following times:
Wednesday, July 8 10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
Thursday, July 9 10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m.
Saturday, July 11 9:45 a.m.-10:45 a.m.

John Glennon has an article about Steve Sullivan's back being uninsurable which was widely known when he was on the free agent market briefly. The end of the article has a note about former Pred Coach Paul Gardner who is in Germany coaching.

Mark at the View from 111 found some information on the total fan experience across all four major league sports. The Preds fare well in some areas and not so well in others. Mark covers the information well with insightful commentary.

Around the NHL...

Twenty NHL players filed for salary arbitration before Sunday's deadline. No Predator players were included in the filings. Hearings will be held in Toronto between July 20 and August 4.

In what should be a non-issue (but it is a slow news time) the Chicago Blackhawks did not properly deliver the qualifying offers to their six RFA's as laid out in the CBA. They did get the offers to the NHL office but none of the players or agents have physically received the offers. We will see if anything actually comes of it.

Michelle Kenneth throws in her two cents on the plight of her Devils and has a funny slant on resigning Brendan Shanahan.

Our friend Chasta at Love the Game has a story on sports using Social Media with a focus on her Caps.

The Oilers are looking at placing their AHL team in Oklahoma City for 2010-11. I have been to OC's minor league baseball facility and it is first rate. It's good to see another non-traditional market getting a shot at high level hockey.

NHL Digest started a permanent feature in something we experimented with during the first two days of free agency with tweets being posted on their site. It combines the best use of 140 blogging with the traditional blog.

More later...

Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass

Additions...

@FlyersOnTheFly "Chris Pronger press conference at noon today, will be streamed live on philadelphiaflyers.com."

Mirtle takes a look at what's left on the FA market for forwards. There's still plenty of good players left for the picking.

Sam McCaig at The Hockey News looks at a few "value signings" during the frenzy.

Forechecker has an update today with links to a story about why Jordan Schroeder fell to the 22nd pick. After reading this, I can see why the Preds (and others) passed. This type of attitude would not fit Barry Trotz's "Band of Brothers" type team.

Good advice on landing a internship from Christy Hammond who has been with the Wings for a couple of years.

John Glennon takes a look at what wingers the Preds my be able to afford that are remaining in the free agent pool.

The Atlanta Thrashers released their pre-season schedule which includes a game vs the Preds at the Sommet on 9/17. The Preds also play in Atlanta on 9/23. The Preds rookies will play the Thrashers rookies twice in Atlanta which is the return from last year's games here.

Forchecker gives us a more usable roster of players taking part in the Developmental camp this week. He also has a list of the coaches and staff that plan to be on hand.