The Nashville Predators may have lost more than a game on Saturday night as fans are still waiting to hear a prognosis for Ryan Suter's "upper body injury".
Officially he is "day to day" and that came from Gerry Helper as opposed to the usual announcement from Barry Trotz after the game.
The Predators were 4-6-1 when Suter was out of the line-up earlier this year as the team never seemed to be in sync without the defenseman on the ice.
While most consider Weber to be the star of the team, Suter seems to be the glue that keeps the pairing defensively solid. Weber is indeed a different player when Suter is out of the lineup.
Offensively, Shea Weber had only one goal and one assist in the eleven games that Suter missed. Defensively, the Preds gave up three or more goals in seven of the games.
The loss to Phoenix evened up the season series at two games apiece as the Preds and Yotes will not meet again until a possible playoff match.
The Predators will hit the ice at the Bridgestone Arena for practice this morning and then head to Columbus for tomorrow night's meeting with the Blue Jackets. The Predators are still clinging to fifth place but are only two points out of tenth so Tuesday's game is a must win to stay in the top eight.
I imagine that we will hear of an all clear on Suterthis morning or a callup from Milwaukee as the Preds have been carrying only six defensemen. Probable callups would be Aaron Johnson or Teemu Laakso who have played at the NHL level before. Long shots would be Jon Blum or Roman Josi who are the top prospects in Milwaukee but are less solid defensively.
Predators-Coyotes Round-Up...
Here was our game story from Saturday night with post game video.
Bryan Mullen had his game story, notes column, and something like the postgame ponderings.
David Boclair has his story at The City Paper.
From the blog world reports come from Ryan Porth, Amanda DiPaolo, Mark Willoughby, Sam Page (with his advances stats), Jeremy Gover, and Hockey Night in Nashville.
For the view of the game from the other side check out Arizona Vibe, Five for Howling, Coyotes Examiner, the Arizona Republic, and the Coyotes Aggregator.
In Pred Nation...
Rebecca Dobrinski has a great look back at the Origins of Hockey in Nashville.
David Boclair has a theory of how the Predators may get a first round pick back in this year's entry draft.
Matt Reitz at PHT and Jeremy Gover at Section 303 take a look at Ryan Suter's injury. The extent will not be known until the Preds hit the ice at the Bridgestone this morning.
Amanda DiPaolo is giving away two lower bowl tickets for next Sunday's game with Columbus in a contest at Predlines. She also caught up with Scottie Upshall and Vern Fiddler on Saturday.
Dirk Hoag crunches the numbers on strength of schedule to see who has the toughest last part of the season. He also comments on the Suter injury situation.
During his brief cameo appearance in Nashville we saw this happy group of guys from @dexshow: Me, Toots, and Bro going out to lunch after the ice time. Lookin good!
Mark Dekanich went back to Milwaukee as quickly as he arrived.
Chris Burton takes a look at the Predators' possible interest in Ladislav Smid.
The Milwaukee Admirals played three games in three nights over the weekend and went 2-1 with the highlight being Jeremy Smith's 3-0 shut out on Peoria on Saturday. Admiral's Roundtable has all the stories.
Mark Willoughby has his weekly "My View" where he is pleased that he is no longer a suspect in the cat killing. Go ahead and click it to find out what that means.
Jas Faulkner has her weekly Preds round-up at The Hockey Writers.
Around the NHL...
With the trading activity hearing up on Friday, the best places to check on all the trades is TSN's Trade Centre or NHL.com's Trade Tracker.
Marion Gaborik is the latest to join the concussion parade.
Patrick Hoffman puts forth an All-American team to celebrate Hockey Day in America.
Jeff Z. Klein has an interesting look at where youth hockey is growing. Hint - it is in "non-traditional" markets. Mark Willoughby has a discusiion about the article at The View from 111.
Ryan Porth has an odd statistical ranking of team's strength of victories which tells who is feasting on bad teams. He also has a look back at the 2006 trade deadline in his continuing series.
Emptynetters has the breakdown of who has been stepping up for the Penguins while Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have been out.
Kevin Allen has ten reasons the Pens should go get Alex Kovalev.
Odds and Ends...
If Bleacher report is indeed the "new media hope" then it's already over.
If you are a CEO, a new study says don't stutter on CNBC or you may cause your stock to drop. Laughing has the opposite effect.
Twitter has suspended Uber Twitter and other programs for changing Tweets. I'm glad I got rid of my Blackberry.
I Am Android looks to be a bit like BBM is for the Blackberry.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Showing posts with label nashville predators phoenix coyotes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nashville predators phoenix coyotes. Show all posts
Monday, February 21, 2011
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Predators Lose to Coyotes 3-2, Suter Injured
The Nashville Predators lost the game to the Phoenix Coyotes 3-2 and lost Ryan Suter to an "upper body" injury in the process at the Bridgestone Arena on Saturday night.
The Coyotes got goals from Keith Yandle, Taylor Pyatt, and Lauri Korpikoski while the Predators countered with markers from Sergei Kostitsyn and Shea Weber.
The Predators had an opportunity to tie the game in the closing seconds with Cody Franson and Mike Fisher both having quality chances at three and one seconds remaining, respectively.
Ilya Bryzgalov took the win stopping 30 of 32 Predator shots while Pekka Rinne was the hard luck loser stopping 23 of 26 Coyote shots.
Officially, Suter was listed as "day to day" after the game. Should the injury be of the longer term variety, that may prove to be the bigger loss of the evening. The injury occurred on a play in the corner away from the puck on a hit from Shane Doan. No penalty was called other than an unsportsmanlike conduct to Suter for his complaints to the official.
Barry Trotz was upset with the play. "I had an issue on the hit on Suter. I think we are trying to get those out of the game. The puck is in the corner and he's battling with one guy and he turns and the tuck is four or five feet from from and there was no play on the puck. It was a straight play on Suter."
The opening period was typical of what recent Preds-Coyotes games have been with plenty of defense and tenuous play on offense. The Preds first shot on goal came 13:30 in to the period. For the period, the Coyotes out shot the Predators 5-4 but the Preds led the Corsi 14-13.
The second period had an inauspicious start with Shane Doan being awarded a penalty shot ten seconds after the puck drop after he was taken down by Ryan Suter on a breakaway. He missed the shot with a very vanilla effort.
The Coyotes then scored a couple of quick goals at 3:51 and 4:49 in the period by Yandle and Pyatt to quickly dampen the spirit of the Predators tenth sell out crowd of the season.
The Predators responded at 6:37 on the power play when Kostitsyn corralled a rebound off a Mike Fisher shot and flipped it high above Bryzgalov to bring the Preds within one at 2-1.
Phoenix extended their lead at 7:32 in the third period when Korpikoski fired a slap shot from near the blue line the found the net to make it 3-1.
Then at 12:28, the Predators thought they had pulled within one when Fisher scored on a beautiful shot that was negated by a Shane O'Brien high sticking call a split second before the puck entered the net.
Nashville called a time out with 1:09 left in the game to plan the final attack. The Predators sent six skaters on to the ice and at with 50 seconds left, Weber connected to bring the Preds within one.
The Predators made a gallant effort as the clock ticked down but could not land the game-tying goal.
O'Brien was not happy after the game and called out Derek Morris for his reaction to the high stick call that nullified the Fisher goal. "This is a man's game, men playing against men. I think I grazed maybe the side of his face and he sold it like I cross checked and took his whole row out."
Jordin Tootoo returned to the ice after missing the last 23 games while receiving treatment from the Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health Program of the NHLPA and the NHL. He skated 11 shifts, logging 10:03 in ice time. He received a rousing reception from the crowd each time he entered the ice.
"The fans have been tremendous with me since day one. It's great to see the support they've given to me," Tootoo related. "I want to give a round of applause to them."
The loss dropped Nashville into fifth place as San Jose moved into fourth with a win over Colorado.
The Predators will take Sunday off and practice at the Bridgestone Arena on Monday before traveling to Columbus for Tuesday's match with the Blue Jackets.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Predators-Coyotes Square Off in the Desert in Battle for Fourth Place and Tuesday Tidbits
Tonight's game between the Nashville Predators (24-15-6) and the Phoenix Coyotes (23-14-9) will be a battle for fourth place in the tightly bunched Western Conference. Phoenix currently holds down the four spot with 55 points, but the Preds are one behind with 54.
It is always a great game when the Predators and Coyotes hook up as the two fan bases are connected by having suffered through similar ownership issues. The Preds are a strong franchise at this point and the Yotes are hoping to follow the Preds' lead under soon to new owner Matthew Hulsizer.
The Preds and Yotes have met twice this year. In their first meeting this year on November 3 in Phoenix, Ed Jovanovski's hat trick led the Coyotes to a 4-3 win, in a higher scoring contest than usual between the two teams.
Then on November 30, the Preds broke a four game losing streak by beating Phoenix 3-0 as Pekka Rinne got the shutout in a game that was not as pretty as it looked like on paper.
Both teams are coming off stinging losses. The Coyotes lost to San Jose 4-2 on Monday afternoon, snapping their four game win streak. The Predators are coming off a 6-3 loss to Chicago on Sunday.
Both teams have played well lately with Nashville going 7-3 in their last ten game and Phoenix going 6-2-2.
Pekka Rinne (14-11-4, 2.13, .927) will get the start for Nashville while it is not clear if the Coyotes will come back with Ilya Bryzgalov (17-9-6, 2.58, .918), who took the loss yesterday or go with Jason LaBarbera (6-5-3, 3.02, .914).
Shea Weber has a nine game point streak on the line after picking up an assist in Sunday's game and logging 29:40 minutes. Ryan Suter played 32:43 in Sunday's game, breaking his old franchise record for time on ice in a game which was 32:14.
The extraordinary minutes were due to an early injury to Francis Bouillon who returned to Nashville yesterday to have his upper body injury looked at by team physicians. The Preds are hopeful for a return later this week.
Shane O'Brien will be back in the line-up after serving a two game suspension for a high sticking violation against Florida.
Marek Svatos missed the last two games but flew to Phoenix yesterday. He will be a game time decision based on how he reacts in the morning skate today.
After the game, the Predators will travel to Colorado where they will play the Avalanche on Thursday.
Other previews come from Amanda DiPaolo, Chris Burton, David Boclair, Josh Cooper, and Predators.com.
For a look at the Coyote side of the game check out Arizona Vibe, Five for Howling, Coyotes Examiner, the Arizona Republic, and the Coyotes Aggregator.
Programming Note...
I will be a guest host on Ryan Porth's RLD Hockey Radio today at Noon Central. Guest will include Tampa Bay Lightning play-by-play announcer Rick Peckham and Dennis Bernstein of The Fourth Period will talk about the Kings, Ducks and Sharks.
In Pred Nation...
Dirk Hoag has an excellent analysis of David Legwand's value to the Predators. He also has the audio of Peter Horachek on the Thom Abraham show from yesterday.
Admirals Roundtable claims Teemu Laakso is the Predators only choice to replace Francis Bouillon if he doesn't return quickly. Sounds good to me.
If you are in Milwaukee, the Admirals are giving away a pair of tickets to the Bears-Packers NFC Championship game at the Ad's game against San Antonio on Friday night.
Around the NHL...
The NHL Three Stars of the Week included Jussi Jokinen, Patrice Bergeron, and Ilya Bryzgalov.
Steve Lepore reports that the Comcast-NBC merger is likely to be approved today which could have a major effect on the NHL TV package in the states.
It looks like Sidney Crosby will be out until after the All-Star game. I'm sure the Pens won't take any chances on bringing him back too soon.
Last night, David Shoalts came up with another take saying that Crosby won't play in in the All-Star game in protest over the NHL not doing enough about head shots.
Even with Crosby and several Wings on the sidelines, tonight's Wings-Pens game will be a good one.
Ryan Porth looks at the top five trade targets at the deadline. I must say that this year's crop is underwhelming but I'm sure stupid trades will go on.
Try as they might, the Columbus Blue Jackets can't get anyone to take Mike Commodore, even at half price on waivers.
It's hard to believe that the Detroit Red Wings have gotten bit by the injury bug again this season.
Adam Proteau has the five worst free agent signings of 2008. Ouch! What were they smoking?
Rob Higgins has his second half fantasy values that includes Colin Wilson.
Pred killer Patrick Marleau played his 1,000th career game yesterday against Phoenix and celebrated with a goal. He is the first player to do so exclusively in a Sharks uniform.
Restaurateurs in St Louis are rejoicing as the Blues signed Kyle Wellwood as has been rumored for a while. Will someone steal him off waivers? We'll know about 11 a.m. today.
The CHL/NHL top prospects are in Toronto for skills competition today and a game tomorrow.
Odds and Ends...
Here is a great story from Florida Today about a friend who is one of the smartest people that I know. Dennis Chamberland is a NASA scientist that is headed to an undersea colony in a few years and this is his story.
Here is an interesting look at the Venice Beach skate bowl and the kids that skate there.
You can take a survey on Roller Derby with a chance to win one of ten prizes.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes
It is always a great game when the Predators and Coyotes hook up as the two fan bases are connected by having suffered through similar ownership issues. The Preds are a strong franchise at this point and the Yotes are hoping to follow the Preds' lead under soon to new owner Matthew Hulsizer.
The Preds and Yotes have met twice this year. In their first meeting this year on November 3 in Phoenix, Ed Jovanovski's hat trick led the Coyotes to a 4-3 win, in a higher scoring contest than usual between the two teams.
Then on November 30, the Preds broke a four game losing streak by beating Phoenix 3-0 as Pekka Rinne got the shutout in a game that was not as pretty as it looked like on paper.
Both teams are coming off stinging losses. The Coyotes lost to San Jose 4-2 on Monday afternoon, snapping their four game win streak. The Predators are coming off a 6-3 loss to Chicago on Sunday.
Both teams have played well lately with Nashville going 7-3 in their last ten game and Phoenix going 6-2-2.
Pekka Rinne (14-11-4, 2.13, .927) will get the start for Nashville while it is not clear if the Coyotes will come back with Ilya Bryzgalov (17-9-6, 2.58, .918), who took the loss yesterday or go with Jason LaBarbera (6-5-3, 3.02, .914).
Shea Weber has a nine game point streak on the line after picking up an assist in Sunday's game and logging 29:40 minutes. Ryan Suter played 32:43 in Sunday's game, breaking his old franchise record for time on ice in a game which was 32:14.
The extraordinary minutes were due to an early injury to Francis Bouillon who returned to Nashville yesterday to have his upper body injury looked at by team physicians. The Preds are hopeful for a return later this week.
Shane O'Brien will be back in the line-up after serving a two game suspension for a high sticking violation against Florida.
Marek Svatos missed the last two games but flew to Phoenix yesterday. He will be a game time decision based on how he reacts in the morning skate today.
After the game, the Predators will travel to Colorado where they will play the Avalanche on Thursday.
Other previews come from Amanda DiPaolo, Chris Burton, David Boclair, Josh Cooper, and Predators.com.
For a look at the Coyote side of the game check out Arizona Vibe, Five for Howling, Coyotes Examiner, the Arizona Republic, and the Coyotes Aggregator.
Programming Note...
I will be a guest host on Ryan Porth's RLD Hockey Radio today at Noon Central. Guest will include Tampa Bay Lightning play-by-play announcer Rick Peckham and Dennis Bernstein of The Fourth Period will talk about the Kings, Ducks and Sharks.
In Pred Nation...
Dirk Hoag has an excellent analysis of David Legwand's value to the Predators. He also has the audio of Peter Horachek on the Thom Abraham show from yesterday.
Admirals Roundtable claims Teemu Laakso is the Predators only choice to replace Francis Bouillon if he doesn't return quickly. Sounds good to me.
If you are in Milwaukee, the Admirals are giving away a pair of tickets to the Bears-Packers NFC Championship game at the Ad's game against San Antonio on Friday night.
Around the NHL...
The NHL Three Stars of the Week included Jussi Jokinen, Patrice Bergeron, and Ilya Bryzgalov.
Steve Lepore reports that the Comcast-NBC merger is likely to be approved today which could have a major effect on the NHL TV package in the states.
It looks like Sidney Crosby will be out until after the All-Star game. I'm sure the Pens won't take any chances on bringing him back too soon.
Last night, David Shoalts came up with another take saying that Crosby won't play in in the All-Star game in protest over the NHL not doing enough about head shots.
Even with Crosby and several Wings on the sidelines, tonight's Wings-Pens game will be a good one.
Ryan Porth looks at the top five trade targets at the deadline. I must say that this year's crop is underwhelming but I'm sure stupid trades will go on.
Try as they might, the Columbus Blue Jackets can't get anyone to take Mike Commodore, even at half price on waivers.
It's hard to believe that the Detroit Red Wings have gotten bit by the injury bug again this season.
Adam Proteau has the five worst free agent signings of 2008. Ouch! What were they smoking?
Rob Higgins has his second half fantasy values that includes Colin Wilson.
Pred killer Patrick Marleau played his 1,000th career game yesterday against Phoenix and celebrated with a goal. He is the first player to do so exclusively in a Sharks uniform.
Restaurateurs in St Louis are rejoicing as the Blues signed Kyle Wellwood as has been rumored for a while. Will someone steal him off waivers? We'll know about 11 a.m. today.
The CHL/NHL top prospects are in Toronto for skills competition today and a game tomorrow.
Odds and Ends...
Here is a great story from Florida Today about a friend who is one of the smartest people that I know. Dennis Chamberland is a NASA scientist that is headed to an undersea colony in a few years and this is his story.
Here is an interesting look at the Venice Beach skate bowl and the kids that skate there.
You can take a survey on Roller Derby with a chance to win one of ten prizes.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Predators Shutout Coyotes 3-0 to End Streak
The Nashville Predators ended their four game losing streak with a 3-0 win over the Phoenix Coyotes at the Bridgestone Arena on Tuesday night.
The win looks better on paper than it did in the arena. Since there was no television feed available anywhere, the rest of the world was spared what could be described as tentative play, that was highlighted by a couple of backdoor power play goals.
The Predators' first goal came at 3:36 in the opening period when the team was on the power play working the puck toward the net. Steve Sullivan passed the puck from the right side across the blue ice to Shea Weber who tried to feed it to Patrick Hornqvist who was in front of the net. The puck came back to Weber a second time and he was able to nail his third goal of the season to put the Preds ahead 1-0.
In the second period, Phoenix was called for a series of three penalties in a 3:01 minute stretch which produced 50 second of five on three man advantage in the middle of the infractions. The Preds scored with three seconds left on the two man advantage when Sullivan threw a perfect pass to Cal O'Reilly who was to the left of Ilya Bryzgalov and was able to snap the puck into the net to make it 2-0 Predators.
"Sully made two great passes on the power play and they clicked tonight. It was good to get a goal early which was good," a happier Barry Trotz related. "I thought early we were moving the puck well, getting looks and creating angles. We got the first goal and then the five on three goal which could be a momentum changer."
Trotz wasn't pleased with the other power plays as the game progressed, "I didn't like the power plays the last few times when they were pressuring pretty hard up ice. We just stopped working with the intensity we need to in supporting the puck, there fore it was a schmozzle. That's the best word I could come up with."
To the average fan, much of the game appeared to look like a game of keep away, especially in the third period. The Predators got their first empty net goal of the year on a shot by Jordin Tootoo with 25 seconds remaining in the contest. Moments earlier, Tootoo had failed to get a shot into the open net and was pleased to have had a second chance at it.
Pekka Rinne was easily the first star of the night as he picked up his third shutout of the season. He stopped all 33 Phoenix shots and did not appear to struggle at all.
Rinne seemed relieved after the game, "It was a solid game. We scored a couple of goals tonight and that was the difference. Defensibly we played solid. We had a few breakdowns but that happens every game and I was able to make those saves. I feel very good right now."
Coming in to the game Rinne had given up only eight goals in his last six starts but the team had only managed four goals during the four game losing streak. His goalkeeping has not been the team's problem.
"I've been feeling really good for a while now. I obviously haven't been getting the results you want but you have to respect this league and the other teams. It's so hard to win these games and you have to be on top of you game every night to get two points."
Trotz was asked if Rinne had gotten past being snake-bit on wins, "I will let you know tomorrow. Peks was really good but we need to tighten some things up. I think we were just OK and had some good fortune and we had a good goalie tonight. We're going to have to tighten some things up against Columbus and we're going to need an even better effort to beat Columbus."
The team will play Columbus at Nationwide Arena for the second time in ten days on Wednesday at 6 p.m. Central.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Predators Head to the Desert to Meet Phoenix and Wednesday Wrap-Up
The Nashville Predators (5-2-3) return to action tonight in Phoenix against the Coyotes (3-4-3) at 9 p.m. Central at Jobbing.com Arena.
Last year, the four games between the Preds and Yotes were competitive and played very close to the vest. The Predators were 1-2-1 against Phoenix and were tight defensive battles with excellent goaltending. Two of the games went to a shootout where the Preds were 1-1.
Barry Trotz and Dave Tippett are very similar in their coaching style and play team oriented games to get the most out of talent available. Tippett won the Jack Adams Award for coach of the year last season while Trotz was the runner up.
While the Predators have struggled in the last two games, the Coyotes have been inconsistent all year, never stinging together two victories in a row. This will be a pivotal game for both teams as the Preds hope to end their two-game side and the Yotes see a wounded team and would like to take advantage of the situation.
Pekka Rinne (2-2-2, 2.41 GAA, .928) will start in goal for the Predators while Ilya Bryzgalov (3-2-3, 2.61, .922) will be in net for the Coyotes.
The Coyotes are almost at full strength with the return of Martin Hanzal who has missed six games.
Matthew Lonbardi was supposed to face his old team for the first time tonight but is weeks away from a return. Ryan Suter and Martin Erat also did not make the three game trip west with the team. Jordin Tootoo, Marcel Goc, and Francis Bouillon are with the team but their health is uncertain at this point.
Neither team has been impressive on special teams with the Predators scoring at a 12.8% clip on the man advantage while the Coyotes are at 9.1%. On the penalty kill, Phoenix has had a 83,3% success rate while the Preds are at 81.6%.
In all probability, with such a close match, the game will be won by the team that plays with the most jump and is able to minimize mistakes.
Other previews from the Predator world come from the Tennessean, Amanda DiPaolo, Chris Burton, and Hockey Night in Nashville.
Previews from the Desert come from Five for Howling, Arizona Vibe, Coyotes Examiner, the Arizona Republic, and the Coyotes Aggregator.
In Pred Nation...
The launch of Pekka Rinne's Jersey aboard the space shuttle has been delayed once again. NASA will decide today whether to try to go tomorrow or wait until December.
Jim Diamond has the sad story of Zach Budish needing ACL surgery on his good knee as a result of a moped accident. This is a real setback for a prospect that once was regarded as top ten in his draft class.
Jim also met with Predators' coach Peter Horachek and discussed his surgery last week for prostate cancer and his return to the ice on Tuesday. The timing coincides with the Preds' Movember campaign to raise awareness of men's health issues, especially prostate cancer.
Jim continued with a hat trick of articles with a five questions piece with Coyotes Examiner Anthony Perez.
Ryan Porth caught up with Joel Ward for a ten game check-up before he headed west. Joel is great talking about Pekka's mo.
Colin Wilson blogs at Inside Predators about the road trip. Funny that he doesn't mention anything about getting lost at the hotel.
Indications are that Segei Kostitsyn may be moving up to a higher line in a post by Josh Cooper. Josh also tells the story of how the Preds found Anders Lindback and has a notes column.
Hockey's Future looks at the increased role of Prospect Taylor Beck this season. They also finished up their Fall Organization Rankings and the Predators maintained the number one slot.
Barry Trotz is pleased with Jerred Smithson's faceoff work but not with a few others.
Amanda Dipaolo has her weekly Central Division Shakedown at Predlines. All five teams would be in the playoffs if they started today.
After hearing lat week that the Pred-Kings game had been added to the kings schedule, we were optimistic that it would be on the Center Ice package. The latest schedule (as of 11/2) does not show it. It would be a real shame if it is not added as this is a matchup that deserves national exposure.
Pekka Rinne was named a top 10 rising star for November by Brand Affinity. It the jersey going into space the driving force here?
Mike MacDonald has a post at Bleacher Report on the Preds' road trip.
Around the NHL...
Steven Stamkos, Tim Thomas and Chris Stewart were named as the NHL Three Stars of the month for October. This is highway robbery for Tim Thomas. There is no way that Stamkos had a better month than Thomas. Michal Neuvirth was named Rookie of the month which was no surprise to anyone.
As usual, Jason Arnott is baffled, this time over his lack of ice time in the Devils' 3-0 loss to Vancouver on Monday.
In more serious news from New Jersey, Zach Parise will miss three months after his successful knee surgery. The only good news is that the Devils should get some cap relief by placing Parise on LTIR.
James O'Brien looks at the numbers behind the Devils horrible start.
One of the thing we talked about on Monday's POTG Radio was Kyle Turris actually being ready for the NHL. Here is a story about him from the Arizona Republic.
Matt Reitz discusses the two-headed monsters in goal.
John Smallwood says that the Daniel Briere reaction is part of a winning attitude that has a firm grip in Philadelphia.
Jonathan Moncrief takes a look at the week ahead for the Predators' Saturday opponent, the Los Angeles Kings. Before the Kings play the Preds, they have a meeting with the East leading Lightning on Thursday. Drew Doughty has been cleared to play Thursday against the Lightning after missing six games.
Justin Bourne doesn't like hockey agitators and names a couple of names along the way in this Puck Daddy post.
Ryan Port looks at teams that are set to make a turnaround from poor starts. The Devils could play poorly and still improve.
As bad as Anaheim's defense has been, it is no surprise that the Ducks are keeping Cam Fowler past the 10 game mark. He now plans to move in with Scott Niedermayer.
Mirtle reviews the statistics for the Leafs for the first ten games of this year and last year. Goaltending has made a big difference even though the offense is off a little. Meanwhile, Brian Burke is upset with the fans for booing Dion Phaneuf.
Odds and Ends...
Condolences to the family of Pro Surfer, Andy Irons, who passed away yesterday unexpectedly.
This report from the London Times goes against conventional wisdom that folks won't pay for internet news.
Brad Templeton has good information for web page owners on linking to other sites and internet copyright infringement. The only issue I've ever had is other folks copying some of my YouTube videos and posting them on their accounts as if they created them.
Nashville RollerGirl Four Leaf Roller is the WFTDA Featured Skater of the month. To see the RollerGirls Friday night bout at 7:15 on the big screen, head over to Beyond the Edge.
Here's a study that uses Facebook status changes to graphically show when the most active times of the year for relationship breakups might be.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Last year, the four games between the Preds and Yotes were competitive and played very close to the vest. The Predators were 1-2-1 against Phoenix and were tight defensive battles with excellent goaltending. Two of the games went to a shootout where the Preds were 1-1.
Barry Trotz and Dave Tippett are very similar in their coaching style and play team oriented games to get the most out of talent available. Tippett won the Jack Adams Award for coach of the year last season while Trotz was the runner up.
While the Predators have struggled in the last two games, the Coyotes have been inconsistent all year, never stinging together two victories in a row. This will be a pivotal game for both teams as the Preds hope to end their two-game side and the Yotes see a wounded team and would like to take advantage of the situation.
Pekka Rinne (2-2-2, 2.41 GAA, .928) will start in goal for the Predators while Ilya Bryzgalov (3-2-3, 2.61, .922) will be in net for the Coyotes.
The Coyotes are almost at full strength with the return of Martin Hanzal who has missed six games.
Matthew Lonbardi was supposed to face his old team for the first time tonight but is weeks away from a return. Ryan Suter and Martin Erat also did not make the three game trip west with the team. Jordin Tootoo, Marcel Goc, and Francis Bouillon are with the team but their health is uncertain at this point.
Neither team has been impressive on special teams with the Predators scoring at a 12.8% clip on the man advantage while the Coyotes are at 9.1%. On the penalty kill, Phoenix has had a 83,3% success rate while the Preds are at 81.6%.
In all probability, with such a close match, the game will be won by the team that plays with the most jump and is able to minimize mistakes.
Other previews from the Predator world come from the Tennessean, Amanda DiPaolo, Chris Burton, and Hockey Night in Nashville.
Previews from the Desert come from Five for Howling, Arizona Vibe, Coyotes Examiner, the Arizona Republic, and the Coyotes Aggregator.
In Pred Nation...
The launch of Pekka Rinne's Jersey aboard the space shuttle has been delayed once again. NASA will decide today whether to try to go tomorrow or wait until December.
Jim Diamond has the sad story of Zach Budish needing ACL surgery on his good knee as a result of a moped accident. This is a real setback for a prospect that once was regarded as top ten in his draft class.
Jim also met with Predators' coach Peter Horachek and discussed his surgery last week for prostate cancer and his return to the ice on Tuesday. The timing coincides with the Preds' Movember campaign to raise awareness of men's health issues, especially prostate cancer.
Jim continued with a hat trick of articles with a five questions piece with Coyotes Examiner Anthony Perez.
Ryan Porth caught up with Joel Ward for a ten game check-up before he headed west. Joel is great talking about Pekka's mo.
Colin Wilson blogs at Inside Predators about the road trip. Funny that he doesn't mention anything about getting lost at the hotel.
Indications are that Segei Kostitsyn may be moving up to a higher line in a post by Josh Cooper. Josh also tells the story of how the Preds found Anders Lindback and has a notes column.
Hockey's Future looks at the increased role of Prospect Taylor Beck this season. They also finished up their Fall Organization Rankings and the Predators maintained the number one slot.
Barry Trotz is pleased with Jerred Smithson's faceoff work but not with a few others.
Amanda Dipaolo has her weekly Central Division Shakedown at Predlines. All five teams would be in the playoffs if they started today.
After hearing lat week that the Pred-Kings game had been added to the kings schedule, we were optimistic that it would be on the Center Ice package. The latest schedule (as of 11/2) does not show it. It would be a real shame if it is not added as this is a matchup that deserves national exposure.
Pekka Rinne was named a top 10 rising star for November by Brand Affinity. It the jersey going into space the driving force here?
Mike MacDonald has a post at Bleacher Report on the Preds' road trip.
Around the NHL...
Steven Stamkos, Tim Thomas and Chris Stewart were named as the NHL Three Stars of the month for October. This is highway robbery for Tim Thomas. There is no way that Stamkos had a better month than Thomas. Michal Neuvirth was named Rookie of the month which was no surprise to anyone.
As usual, Jason Arnott is baffled, this time over his lack of ice time in the Devils' 3-0 loss to Vancouver on Monday.
In more serious news from New Jersey, Zach Parise will miss three months after his successful knee surgery. The only good news is that the Devils should get some cap relief by placing Parise on LTIR.
James O'Brien looks at the numbers behind the Devils horrible start.
One of the thing we talked about on Monday's POTG Radio was Kyle Turris actually being ready for the NHL. Here is a story about him from the Arizona Republic.
Matt Reitz discusses the two-headed monsters in goal.
John Smallwood says that the Daniel Briere reaction is part of a winning attitude that has a firm grip in Philadelphia.
Jonathan Moncrief takes a look at the week ahead for the Predators' Saturday opponent, the Los Angeles Kings. Before the Kings play the Preds, they have a meeting with the East leading Lightning on Thursday. Drew Doughty has been cleared to play Thursday against the Lightning after missing six games.
Justin Bourne doesn't like hockey agitators and names a couple of names along the way in this Puck Daddy post.
Ryan Port looks at teams that are set to make a turnaround from poor starts. The Devils could play poorly and still improve.
As bad as Anaheim's defense has been, it is no surprise that the Ducks are keeping Cam Fowler past the 10 game mark. He now plans to move in with Scott Niedermayer.
Mirtle reviews the statistics for the Leafs for the first ten games of this year and last year. Goaltending has made a big difference even though the offense is off a little. Meanwhile, Brian Burke is upset with the fans for booing Dion Phaneuf.
Odds and Ends...
Condolences to the family of Pro Surfer, Andy Irons, who passed away yesterday unexpectedly.
This report from the London Times goes against conventional wisdom that folks won't pay for internet news.
Brad Templeton has good information for web page owners on linking to other sites and internet copyright infringement. The only issue I've ever had is other folks copying some of my YouTube videos and posting them on their accounts as if they created them.
Nashville RollerGirl Four Leaf Roller is the WFTDA Featured Skater of the month. To see the RollerGirls Friday night bout at 7:15 on the big screen, head over to Beyond the Edge.
Here's a study that uses Facebook status changes to graphically show when the most active times of the year for relationship breakups might be.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Glendale OK's Funding for the Coyotes and Wednesday Wrap-Up
It's hard to believe that over a year has passed since Jim Ballsillie's takeover attempt of the Phoenix Coyotes. Yet based on media reports heading in to last night's City of Glendale city council meeting, thing appeared to be no more certain for Coyote fans than they were last May.
The Glendale City Counsel action last night was not really what anyone expected in the media leading up to the event. On Monday night it was reported that Ice Edge was the sole bidder and thet they were "pulling out" of negotiations if they couldn't get exclusive rights with the city.
Early in to the meeting, that was being watched nationwide over the internet, it was determined that all the hype about Ice Edge being the only group left was false information. The city revealed that COG was still negotiating with both Ice Edge as well as the Reinsdorf group.
Bill Daly spoke on behalf of the league and stated that they were confident a deal would be done. He indicated that the whole commitment by Glendale to a CFD was merely an insurance policy and that a new owner would be in place by the end of the summer.
It was interesting watching @coyoteshipcheck and @Yotesgurl speak on behalf of the fans on the computer.
In the end, the COG guaranteed the $25 million "insurance policy" to keep the team afloat while negotiations between the league and the two entities continued. This assures the Coyotes and their fans at least another year in Glendale
The CBC has video of Gary Bettman speaking during the meeting assuring them that the media frenzy was just that. Doom-sayer David Shoalts has the Toronto-centric view of the funding.
Pre-Meeting Coyotes Speculation...
Travis Hair had the pre-meeting round-up of opinions on the Coyote situation. Travis had specific instructions for the City Council crowd prior to the meeting.
J T Bourne has a thoughtful piece about the situation and the potential that Phoenix has if they could get a level playing field.
Could Winnipeg get their revenge against Gary Bettman? This post explores how it could happen.
Word is out that an early version of next season's NHL schedule has a Winnipeg option that would shift Colorado to the Pacific. Here's another angle from @TSNBobMcKenzie: I am not saying the Coyotes are going to Winnipeg. I am not saying they're not going to Winnipeg. But I am saying the NHL has more than one Winnipeg "contingency" schedule in place. Kansas City? Vegas? I am told their are multiple options and a schedule for each.
Shawn Gates plays Devils Advocate on the Phoenix dilemma.
Last Night's Playoff Game...
Game six of the series between Chicago and Vancouver was fairly anti-climatic as the Hawks easily won 5-1 to move to the Western Conference finals against the San Jose Sharks.
Coach Joel Quenneville looked like a genius when Troy Brouwer scored the openg goal to get the ball rolling. Brouwer had not played well in the playoffs but was re-inserted into the game six line-up after a few games off.
It was a disappointing year for Vancouver fans who did not get the goaltending they expected from Roberto Luongo in games played on home ice with the Hawks winning three games at GM Place.
Tonight's Playoff Action...
Tonight is a hockey fan's dream with a game seven and a game six lined up to decide the Eastern Conference finals. The only way it could be better would be if the start times were staggered more than an hour.
In the first game at 6:00 CDT Montreal will play at Pittsburgh in game seven action where the loser will go home. This should be a compelling game and if Montreal could score early to take the Pen's crowd out of it, then it will be very interesting.
An hour later, at 7:00 CDT, Boston will play the Flyers in Philadelphia. Many thought this series was over but the Flyers have won the last two elimination games to force the series back to their home ice to try to pus it to game seven. In Monday's 4-0 loss, the Bruins simply did not show up. It will be interesting to see how they respond tonight.
At the World Championships...
The United States is in big trouble as they face off against Finland this afternoon. A loss or an OTL along with a Germany win or OTL could send them to the relegation round. This would be a major blow to a US program that has been flying high in international competition in the past few months. Puck Daddy has more on the embarrassment of relegation.
On Tuesday, Russia continued to roll as they beat Kazakhstan 4-1 as Predator Denis Grebeshkov scored a goal. The Czechs were surprised by Norway in a 3-2 loss which was the first ever win over the Czechs in their history dating back to 1937. Slovalia beat Belarus 4-2 and Sweden beat France 3-2.
Today's schedule looks like this:
Denmark - Germany 9:15am
Italy - Latvia 9:15am
Finland - USA 1:15pm
Canada - Switzerland 1:00pm
In Pred Nation...
John Glennon has a new story on Preds defenseman prospect Jon Blum and the weight he has added over the past year. He also updates on the Memorial Cup and news that Gabriel Bourque was named the MVP of the QMJHL playoffs.
Jim Diamond has the low down on the Predator's draft position being determined as a result of tonight's Pittsburg-Montreal game seven. The Preds will pick either 18th or 19th.
The playoff rankings are out from TSN and several Pred prospects fared well. Ryan Ellis was 3rd in the OHL, Gabriel Bourque was 2nd in the QMJHL, Blake Geoffrion was 19th in the NCAA, Mark Dekanich was 11th in the AHL, and finally, everyone's favorite, Alexander Radulov is rated number one in the KHL.
On the NHL level, Cody Franson was also the sixth best rookie. Patric Hornqvist was number 20 on the Wing, Shea Weber was 12 on the defense, and Pekka Rinne was ninth in goal.
We missed this story from the Preds yesterday on the players in the World Championships. I was not aware that Antti Pihlstrom was playing for Finland.
Predators.com has a new interview with Barry Trotz where Tom Callahan sat down with the coach to review the past season. The interview is similar to the post-season presser but is a worth while watch.
Admirals Short Shifts looks back at Ben Eaves' retirement.
From Cincinnati the Pred's ECHL team lives for another day. From @cycward: CYCLONES WIN!!! 6-3.. best-of-7 series is now TIED 3-3.. GAME 7 WEDNESDAY NIGHT! USBank Arena 7:30pm
Around the NHL...
With the situation in Phoenix coming to a head, the NHL is denying that they are financially involved on the Island.
The Memorial Cup starts on Friday with Ryan Ellis and the Windsor Spitfires taking on the host Brandon Wheat Kings. The finals will be on Sunday, May 23.
Freddy Charles has a new look at Ten Signs that You are becoming a Hockey Addict.
Matt Reitz has a look at tonight's game seven between the Pens and Habs. It is a classic in the making. he also has his weekly look at next month's entry draft that he is hosting in LA.
Michelle Kenneth has a list of players to watch.
It appears that he Lightning are trying to nickel and dime themselves out of paying for post-season surgery to Stephane Veilleux. After a lot of negative pub, the Bolts decided to pay for the procedure. The NHLPA grievance has been put on hold nor now.
Intent to Blow has the story of Sami Salo's brass balls that prepped him for last night's game.
Odds and Ends...
Here is a fairly amazing video with a suggestion on how to remove the oil from the gulf. Sometimes folks overlook simple solutions.
From the baseball world one of my favorites is having his jersey retired in Atlanta, From @Braves: We're retiring Tom Glavine's #47 on August 6th before the game against the @SFGiants. Should be a great ceremony!
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
The Glendale City Counsel action last night was not really what anyone expected in the media leading up to the event. On Monday night it was reported that Ice Edge was the sole bidder and thet they were "pulling out" of negotiations if they couldn't get exclusive rights with the city.
Early in to the meeting, that was being watched nationwide over the internet, it was determined that all the hype about Ice Edge being the only group left was false information. The city revealed that COG was still negotiating with both Ice Edge as well as the Reinsdorf group.
Bill Daly spoke on behalf of the league and stated that they were confident a deal would be done. He indicated that the whole commitment by Glendale to a CFD was merely an insurance policy and that a new owner would be in place by the end of the summer.
It was interesting watching @coyoteshipcheck and @Yotesgurl speak on behalf of the fans on the computer.
In the end, the COG guaranteed the $25 million "insurance policy" to keep the team afloat while negotiations between the league and the two entities continued. This assures the Coyotes and their fans at least another year in Glendale
The CBC has video of Gary Bettman speaking during the meeting assuring them that the media frenzy was just that. Doom-sayer David Shoalts has the Toronto-centric view of the funding.
Pre-Meeting Coyotes Speculation...
Travis Hair had the pre-meeting round-up of opinions on the Coyote situation. Travis had specific instructions for the City Council crowd prior to the meeting.
J T Bourne has a thoughtful piece about the situation and the potential that Phoenix has if they could get a level playing field.
Could Winnipeg get their revenge against Gary Bettman? This post explores how it could happen.
Word is out that an early version of next season's NHL schedule has a Winnipeg option that would shift Colorado to the Pacific. Here's another angle from @TSNBobMcKenzie: I am not saying the Coyotes are going to Winnipeg. I am not saying they're not going to Winnipeg. But I am saying the NHL has more than one Winnipeg "contingency" schedule in place. Kansas City? Vegas? I am told their are multiple options and a schedule for each.
Shawn Gates plays Devils Advocate on the Phoenix dilemma.
Last Night's Playoff Game...
Game six of the series between Chicago and Vancouver was fairly anti-climatic as the Hawks easily won 5-1 to move to the Western Conference finals against the San Jose Sharks.
Coach Joel Quenneville looked like a genius when Troy Brouwer scored the openg goal to get the ball rolling. Brouwer had not played well in the playoffs but was re-inserted into the game six line-up after a few games off.
It was a disappointing year for Vancouver fans who did not get the goaltending they expected from Roberto Luongo in games played on home ice with the Hawks winning three games at GM Place.
Tonight's Playoff Action...
Tonight is a hockey fan's dream with a game seven and a game six lined up to decide the Eastern Conference finals. The only way it could be better would be if the start times were staggered more than an hour.
In the first game at 6:00 CDT Montreal will play at Pittsburgh in game seven action where the loser will go home. This should be a compelling game and if Montreal could score early to take the Pen's crowd out of it, then it will be very interesting.
An hour later, at 7:00 CDT, Boston will play the Flyers in Philadelphia. Many thought this series was over but the Flyers have won the last two elimination games to force the series back to their home ice to try to pus it to game seven. In Monday's 4-0 loss, the Bruins simply did not show up. It will be interesting to see how they respond tonight.
At the World Championships...
The United States is in big trouble as they face off against Finland this afternoon. A loss or an OTL along with a Germany win or OTL could send them to the relegation round. This would be a major blow to a US program that has been flying high in international competition in the past few months. Puck Daddy has more on the embarrassment of relegation.
On Tuesday, Russia continued to roll as they beat Kazakhstan 4-1 as Predator Denis Grebeshkov scored a goal. The Czechs were surprised by Norway in a 3-2 loss which was the first ever win over the Czechs in their history dating back to 1937. Slovalia beat Belarus 4-2 and Sweden beat France 3-2.
Today's schedule looks like this:
Denmark - Germany 9:15am
Italy - Latvia 9:15am
Finland - USA 1:15pm
Canada - Switzerland 1:00pm
In Pred Nation...
John Glennon has a new story on Preds defenseman prospect Jon Blum and the weight he has added over the past year. He also updates on the Memorial Cup and news that Gabriel Bourque was named the MVP of the QMJHL playoffs.
Jim Diamond has the low down on the Predator's draft position being determined as a result of tonight's Pittsburg-Montreal game seven. The Preds will pick either 18th or 19th.
The playoff rankings are out from TSN and several Pred prospects fared well. Ryan Ellis was 3rd in the OHL, Gabriel Bourque was 2nd in the QMJHL, Blake Geoffrion was 19th in the NCAA, Mark Dekanich was 11th in the AHL, and finally, everyone's favorite, Alexander Radulov is rated number one in the KHL.
On the NHL level, Cody Franson was also the sixth best rookie. Patric Hornqvist was number 20 on the Wing, Shea Weber was 12 on the defense, and Pekka Rinne was ninth in goal.
We missed this story from the Preds yesterday on the players in the World Championships. I was not aware that Antti Pihlstrom was playing for Finland.
Predators.com has a new interview with Barry Trotz where Tom Callahan sat down with the coach to review the past season. The interview is similar to the post-season presser but is a worth while watch.
Admirals Short Shifts looks back at Ben Eaves' retirement.
From Cincinnati the Pred's ECHL team lives for another day. From @cycward: CYCLONES WIN!!! 6-3.. best-of-7 series is now TIED 3-3.. GAME 7 WEDNESDAY NIGHT! USBank Arena 7:30pm
Around the NHL...
With the situation in Phoenix coming to a head, the NHL is denying that they are financially involved on the Island.
The Memorial Cup starts on Friday with Ryan Ellis and the Windsor Spitfires taking on the host Brandon Wheat Kings. The finals will be on Sunday, May 23.
Freddy Charles has a new look at Ten Signs that You are becoming a Hockey Addict.
Matt Reitz has a look at tonight's game seven between the Pens and Habs. It is a classic in the making. he also has his weekly look at next month's entry draft that he is hosting in LA.
Michelle Kenneth has a list of players to watch.
It appears that he Lightning are trying to nickel and dime themselves out of paying for post-season surgery to Stephane Veilleux. After a lot of negative pub, the Bolts decided to pay for the procedure. The NHLPA grievance has been put on hold nor now.
Intent to Blow has the story of Sami Salo's brass balls that prepped him for last night's game.
Odds and Ends...
Here is a fairly amazing video with a suggestion on how to remove the oil from the gulf. Sometimes folks overlook simple solutions.
From the baseball world one of my favorites is having his jersey retired in Atlanta, From @Braves: We're retiring Tom Glavine's #47 on August 6th before the game against the @SFGiants. Should be a great ceremony!
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Wings Roll into Second Round and Wednesday Wrap-Up
Thanks to Conor McKenna at The Team 990 in Montreal for having me on The Playoff Push again last night to wrap up the Preds-Hawks series.
The Detroit Red Wings rolled over the Phoenix Coyotes 6-1 in game seven at Jobbing.com Arena last night in Glendale. That put an end to the Yote's unbelievable run this year that was movie script worth material.
Even thought the Coyotes were the higher seed, they had underdog status against the long mighty Red Wings. After toying with Phoenix for six games, the Detroit team that everyone expected to see showed up and played an almost perfect road game.
Congrats to all our Coyote friends for a great season and condolences on the playoff loss.
The Wing's victory sets up a second round match with San Jose which will be a very competitive series. Chicago and Vancouver will meet in the other Western Conference simi-final in a renewal of last year's bloody battle.
Tonight's First Round Finale...
Montreal has held Washington at bay all the way up to game seven which happens tonight at 6:00 CDT on Versus. Fans in Pittsburgh and Boston are pulling for the Caps in order to set up a second round match between the Pens and Bruins which should have plenty of bad blood with the return of Marc Savard.
The Eastern Conference second round matches will not be determined until this game is decided. Boston, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are waiting for news of their opponent as well as to when the series will begin.
In Pred Nation...
John Glennon has an analysis of what may happen in the offseason at the Tennessean.
David Climer beats the drum about the Preds needing more offense.
Jim Diamond has the story of Shea Weber being honored by his peers in a poll at SI.
David Boclair looks at Jason Arnott and the other playoff no shows.
Ryan Lambert does the Pred's eulogy for Puck Daddy. I took it as a tongue in cheek piece that did a good job of covering every stereotype possible about hockey in Nashville. There's no point in being upset as he was preaching what the Canadian choir wanted to hear.
Jeremy at Section 303 took exception to Lambert's story and fired off a rebuttal. Here's another rebuttal from @cragcoolsprings a guy from Calgary calling Nashville a hick town is like a baptist calling a Mormon uptight.
Patton Fuqua also jumps in at Section 303 with a toast to the Preds.
Forechecker didn't let the dirt settle on the grave before jumping in to free agency questions. Dirk also reports that he well rested Denis Gerbeshkov will play for Russia in the World Championships next month.
Mike Chen interviews Dirk in a much nicer Post Mortem of the Preds season at From the Rink.
Paul McCann wraps up the season at Hockey Buzz. Paul's Slapshot Radio will continue onward in the ususal Wednesday night slot as the playoffs continue.
Teresa Walker puts a bow on the Pred's season at USA Today.
The Preds loss to Chicago in game six set all kings of viewing records in the Windy City as reported by @stevelepore: As impressive as the Caps ratings are, CSN Chicago drew a 9.2 rating for Game 6 last night, a new record, and a ridonkulous number. That game peaked at a 12.6
Around the NHL...
The finalist for the NHL Foundation Player award were announced on Tuesday. Either Dustin Brown, Mike Green or Ryan Miller will be on stage at the NHL Awards in June accepting the award that goes to the player that "embodies the core values of the NHL -- commitment, perseverance and teamwork -- to enrich the lives of people in his community".
Here's a new twist in the Lighthouse Project saga with a potential casino deal with the Shinnecock Nation (not related to Pred Nation).
Habs prospect P K Subban played in his first NHL playoff game on Monday. It was a wild day for the rookie.
Steve Lapore analyzes the realities of success by the Habs and Yotes for the TV mavens. he also has the latest on the new HBO movie, Broad Street Bullies which premieres on May 4.
From @reporterchris: As rumored for a while, it looks like the NHLPA's MVP award will be renamed after Ted Lindsay.
From the Rink has a piece on the Worst Hockey Fans in Canada. It's probably not who you would expect.
More recognition for our friends at @IntentToBlow: We got linked by the BBC! Ok well their user forums. But screw it. Intent to Blow - as seen on the BBC.
Odds and Ends...
For those of you on Foresquare, have you ever wondered how many badges there are and what they look like? Here is what is supposed to be a complete listing with pictures of each including the new WSJ specialty badges.
Did you know there was a "secret" language in social media so parents won't understand what their kids are saying? This is a really lame article.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
The Detroit Red Wings rolled over the Phoenix Coyotes 6-1 in game seven at Jobbing.com Arena last night in Glendale. That put an end to the Yote's unbelievable run this year that was movie script worth material.
Even thought the Coyotes were the higher seed, they had underdog status against the long mighty Red Wings. After toying with Phoenix for six games, the Detroit team that everyone expected to see showed up and played an almost perfect road game.
Congrats to all our Coyote friends for a great season and condolences on the playoff loss.
The Wing's victory sets up a second round match with San Jose which will be a very competitive series. Chicago and Vancouver will meet in the other Western Conference simi-final in a renewal of last year's bloody battle.
Tonight's First Round Finale...
Montreal has held Washington at bay all the way up to game seven which happens tonight at 6:00 CDT on Versus. Fans in Pittsburgh and Boston are pulling for the Caps in order to set up a second round match between the Pens and Bruins which should have plenty of bad blood with the return of Marc Savard.
The Eastern Conference second round matches will not be determined until this game is decided. Boston, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are waiting for news of their opponent as well as to when the series will begin.
In Pred Nation...
John Glennon has an analysis of what may happen in the offseason at the Tennessean.
David Climer beats the drum about the Preds needing more offense.
Jim Diamond has the story of Shea Weber being honored by his peers in a poll at SI.
David Boclair looks at Jason Arnott and the other playoff no shows.
Ryan Lambert does the Pred's eulogy for Puck Daddy. I took it as a tongue in cheek piece that did a good job of covering every stereotype possible about hockey in Nashville. There's no point in being upset as he was preaching what the Canadian choir wanted to hear.
Jeremy at Section 303 took exception to Lambert's story and fired off a rebuttal. Here's another rebuttal from @cragcoolsprings a guy from Calgary calling Nashville a hick town is like a baptist calling a Mormon uptight.
Patton Fuqua also jumps in at Section 303 with a toast to the Preds.
Forechecker didn't let the dirt settle on the grave before jumping in to free agency questions. Dirk also reports that he well rested Denis Gerbeshkov will play for Russia in the World Championships next month.
Mike Chen interviews Dirk in a much nicer Post Mortem of the Preds season at From the Rink.
Paul McCann wraps up the season at Hockey Buzz. Paul's Slapshot Radio will continue onward in the ususal Wednesday night slot as the playoffs continue.
Teresa Walker puts a bow on the Pred's season at USA Today.
The Preds loss to Chicago in game six set all kings of viewing records in the Windy City as reported by @stevelepore: As impressive as the Caps ratings are, CSN Chicago drew a 9.2 rating for Game 6 last night, a new record, and a ridonkulous number. That game peaked at a 12.6
Around the NHL...
The finalist for the NHL Foundation Player award were announced on Tuesday. Either Dustin Brown, Mike Green or Ryan Miller will be on stage at the NHL Awards in June accepting the award that goes to the player that "embodies the core values of the NHL -- commitment, perseverance and teamwork -- to enrich the lives of people in his community".
Here's a new twist in the Lighthouse Project saga with a potential casino deal with the Shinnecock Nation (not related to Pred Nation).
Habs prospect P K Subban played in his first NHL playoff game on Monday. It was a wild day for the rookie.
Steve Lapore analyzes the realities of success by the Habs and Yotes for the TV mavens. he also has the latest on the new HBO movie, Broad Street Bullies which premieres on May 4.
From @reporterchris: As rumored for a while, it looks like the NHLPA's MVP award will be renamed after Ted Lindsay.
From the Rink has a piece on the Worst Hockey Fans in Canada. It's probably not who you would expect.
More recognition for our friends at @IntentToBlow: We got linked by the BBC! Ok well their user forums. But screw it. Intent to Blow - as seen on the BBC.
Odds and Ends...
For those of you on Foresquare, have you ever wondered how many badges there are and what they look like? Here is what is supposed to be a complete listing with pictures of each including the new WSJ specialty badges.
Did you know there was a "secret" language in social media so parents won't understand what their kids are saying? This is a really lame article.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Thursday Thoughts and Frozen Four Starts Tonight
One of the strengths of the Predator's team this year has been their "short memory" after bad losses and big wins. Regardless of how a game was played, they have had the ability to put it in their rear view mirror and move to the next game.
Hopefully, they will learn from last night's marginal effort and get ready for Saturday's game and the upcoming playoffs. This week is the first time this season, other than the Olympic break, that the Preds have had more than a day or two between games. They did not respond well to rest.
The Predators simply did not look like they were prepared for a full sixty minute effort against on of the NHL's top teams. Their third period melt down has become far too common in the last few weeks. On top of that, Patric Hornqvist was injured and did not play the second half of the game.
With the loss, the Preds appear headed for sixth or seventh place and a probable match with the Sharks or Canucks which will provide far more difficult travel than a series in Phoenix would have if the Preds had held on to fifth.
In the true Predator spirit, it's time to have a short memory and move forward. All the Preds can do, at this point, is win on Saturday and hope for a little help from others in slowing down Los Angeles and Detroit.
Predators - Coyotes Wrap-Up
Here is our story from last night.
John Glennon has the game story, notes column and postgame ponderings. He had no additional word on Patric Hornqvist's injury.
David Boclair reports from the City Paper.
In the blogs there are posts from Forechecker, Section 303, View from 111, and See Puck City.
The other side of the story comes from the Arizona Republic, Five for Howling, the Phoenix Examiner and The Coyotes Aggregator.
Frozen Four Begins Tonight...
Wisconsin will open against RIT at 4 p.m. CDT and then Boston College will play Miami (OH) at 7:30 p.m. Both games will be shown on ESPN 2. The winners will meet Saturday at 6 p.m. CDT on ESPN.
Here's everything you need to know from the USCHO Site and Inside College Hockey.
Russ Cohen takes a look at the storylines in this year's Frozen Four.
Sean Leahy interviews Blake Geoffrion about the tournament, his potential of winning the Hobey Baker Award and a wide range of topics.
Bryan Mullen at the Tennessean has another store on Geoffrion.
The Hobey Baker Award will be announced tomorrow (Friday) at 6 p.m. CDT on ESPNU.
In Pred Nation...
Mark Willoughby say down with J.D. Elliott, the new Chairman of the Nashville Sports Authority, for an extended interview. This sis a really good piece that should be encouraging to Preds fans.
Jim Diamond looks at Gabriel Bourque leading his team in the playoffs. Jim also tweeted last night that the Predators Masterton Trophy nominee will be announced at 8 a.m. today.
Before last night's game John Glennon looked at the playoff atmosphere in Coyoteland.
Dirk does the math on Patric Hornqvist to see if he could be a 50 goal scorer.
Section 303 lists sixteen playoff teams in order of their chances to win the cup.
Admirals Short Shifts look at Milwaukee's playoff possibilities.
If the Preds play the Coyotes in the first round, there may not be a single game broad cast by a national network in the US or Canada. Here is a projection from Puck The Media.
The Odd Man Rush has part three in his series of possible Pred opponents with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Bridgestone is already reaping benefits from their naming rights deal with the Preds. The "Bridge" has been named the ACM Venue of the Year.
Around the NHL...
Keith Tkachuk announced his retirement last night which will mean that his last game may be against the Preds on Saturday night if he chooses to dress for the game.
J T Bourne has a good post about a pet peeve of mine. He explains why players don't shoot when the whole arena is screaming shoot.
There was a change in the top spot in the final list of prospect rankings released by central scouting. With the lotter being held next Tuesday, it's time for the speculation to warm up.
Steve Lapore has a revised schedule from NBC on playoff dates with an extra game added. He also has a look at local TV ratings for NHL teams that does not include the Predators.
Interesting Tweets from Dave Strader... @TheVoiceDS: Only teams that have made playoffs each year since the lockout including this season? SJ, Det & NJ. NYR can make the list if they get in. With Phx & LA making playoffs, the only 2 franchises not to make the playoffs since the lockout? Tor & Fla. Looking at final standings in West from last season, the top 4 seeds in the West made playoffs this season, the bottom 4 seeds all missed.
Ryan at the RLD follows his SCF contender article with one on the top five pretenders.
There will be an announcement of the 2011 All-Star game in Raleigh later today at 11:30 CDT. Hat tip to Steve Lapore for pointing me to this piece.
The 100th NHL Tweetup will be on the one year anniversary of the ones that got it started on opening day off the Stanley Cup Playoffs last year. I almost got to go but will now be in New York a week later.
Rob Higgins has his weekly fantasy update at the Toronto Sun. He gives a couple of ideas for next season if you are in a keeper league.
Jonathan Bernier was on NHL Home Ice yesterday and discusses his 2-0 shut out of the Preds from last week among other things. I wasn't aware that his brother scored the first goal on him in juniors. They also had CCHA Commish Tom Anastos discussing the start of today's Frozen Four.
Speak of the Devs has five things to watch for in this year's playoffs at View From My Seats.
THN has the Top Ten man games lost to injury. Number one is obvious but I am surprised by a couple of others.
A really nasty slam at "bloggers" comes from Eric Smith (not our friend in Columbus) "the radio analysit of the Toronto Raptors" who has some fairly amazing things to say about the online writing community. It's post like this that give the mainstream media a bad name. Credibility is earned by a writer's performance over time. Those that are trustworthy will gain readership regardless of the source. To his credit, Eric did reply to me.
Odds and Ends...
I've always said that if the power grid went down and didn't come back up within a few days, half of all Americans would die. This report goes further than that. Here is an older article with a better description of what an EMP attack would do. Sounds like something from the Matrix Trilogy.
On another front, Dahlia Kurtz discusses Dove's "beauty" enhancing products.
Who has the best burgers in Nashville? All 31 that are discussed don't hold a candle to In-N-Out's animal style. The 1685 miles to the closest In-N-Out location might make a local burger a bit easier. Blake's Lotaburger is a bit closer at 1030 miles and is still probably better than anything local.
Speaking of fatty fast foods, KFC has a fine new offering starting next week, the double down. Who needs bread?
Why is Russia charging US astronauts $56 million for a ride to the space shuttle when they only charge $35 million for "space tourists"?
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Hopefully, they will learn from last night's marginal effort and get ready for Saturday's game and the upcoming playoffs. This week is the first time this season, other than the Olympic break, that the Preds have had more than a day or two between games. They did not respond well to rest.
The Predators simply did not look like they were prepared for a full sixty minute effort against on of the NHL's top teams. Their third period melt down has become far too common in the last few weeks. On top of that, Patric Hornqvist was injured and did not play the second half of the game.
With the loss, the Preds appear headed for sixth or seventh place and a probable match with the Sharks or Canucks which will provide far more difficult travel than a series in Phoenix would have if the Preds had held on to fifth.
In the true Predator spirit, it's time to have a short memory and move forward. All the Preds can do, at this point, is win on Saturday and hope for a little help from others in slowing down Los Angeles and Detroit.
Predators - Coyotes Wrap-Up
Here is our story from last night.
John Glennon has the game story, notes column and postgame ponderings. He had no additional word on Patric Hornqvist's injury.
David Boclair reports from the City Paper.
In the blogs there are posts from Forechecker, Section 303, View from 111, and See Puck City.
The other side of the story comes from the Arizona Republic, Five for Howling, the Phoenix Examiner and The Coyotes Aggregator.
Frozen Four Begins Tonight...
Wisconsin will open against RIT at 4 p.m. CDT and then Boston College will play Miami (OH) at 7:30 p.m. Both games will be shown on ESPN 2. The winners will meet Saturday at 6 p.m. CDT on ESPN.
Here's everything you need to know from the USCHO Site and Inside College Hockey.
Russ Cohen takes a look at the storylines in this year's Frozen Four.
Sean Leahy interviews Blake Geoffrion about the tournament, his potential of winning the Hobey Baker Award and a wide range of topics.
Bryan Mullen at the Tennessean has another store on Geoffrion.
The Hobey Baker Award will be announced tomorrow (Friday) at 6 p.m. CDT on ESPNU.
In Pred Nation...
Mark Willoughby say down with J.D. Elliott, the new Chairman of the Nashville Sports Authority, for an extended interview. This sis a really good piece that should be encouraging to Preds fans.
Jim Diamond looks at Gabriel Bourque leading his team in the playoffs. Jim also tweeted last night that the Predators Masterton Trophy nominee will be announced at 8 a.m. today.
Before last night's game John Glennon looked at the playoff atmosphere in Coyoteland.
Dirk does the math on Patric Hornqvist to see if he could be a 50 goal scorer.
Section 303 lists sixteen playoff teams in order of their chances to win the cup.
Admirals Short Shifts look at Milwaukee's playoff possibilities.
If the Preds play the Coyotes in the first round, there may not be a single game broad cast by a national network in the US or Canada. Here is a projection from Puck The Media.
The Odd Man Rush has part three in his series of possible Pred opponents with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Bridgestone is already reaping benefits from their naming rights deal with the Preds. The "Bridge" has been named the ACM Venue of the Year.
Around the NHL...
Keith Tkachuk announced his retirement last night which will mean that his last game may be against the Preds on Saturday night if he chooses to dress for the game.
J T Bourne has a good post about a pet peeve of mine. He explains why players don't shoot when the whole arena is screaming shoot.
There was a change in the top spot in the final list of prospect rankings released by central scouting. With the lotter being held next Tuesday, it's time for the speculation to warm up.
Steve Lapore has a revised schedule from NBC on playoff dates with an extra game added. He also has a look at local TV ratings for NHL teams that does not include the Predators.
Interesting Tweets from Dave Strader... @TheVoiceDS: Only teams that have made playoffs each year since the lockout including this season? SJ, Det & NJ. NYR can make the list if they get in. With Phx & LA making playoffs, the only 2 franchises not to make the playoffs since the lockout? Tor & Fla. Looking at final standings in West from last season, the top 4 seeds in the West made playoffs this season, the bottom 4 seeds all missed.
Ryan at the RLD follows his SCF contender article with one on the top five pretenders.
There will be an announcement of the 2011 All-Star game in Raleigh later today at 11:30 CDT. Hat tip to Steve Lapore for pointing me to this piece.
The 100th NHL Tweetup will be on the one year anniversary of the ones that got it started on opening day off the Stanley Cup Playoffs last year. I almost got to go but will now be in New York a week later.
Rob Higgins has his weekly fantasy update at the Toronto Sun. He gives a couple of ideas for next season if you are in a keeper league.
Jonathan Bernier was on NHL Home Ice yesterday and discusses his 2-0 shut out of the Preds from last week among other things. I wasn't aware that his brother scored the first goal on him in juniors. They also had CCHA Commish Tom Anastos discussing the start of today's Frozen Four.
Speak of the Devs has five things to watch for in this year's playoffs at View From My Seats.
THN has the Top Ten man games lost to injury. Number one is obvious but I am surprised by a couple of others.
A really nasty slam at "bloggers" comes from Eric Smith (not our friend in Columbus) "the radio analysit of the Toronto Raptors" who has some fairly amazing things to say about the online writing community. It's post like this that give the mainstream media a bad name. Credibility is earned by a writer's performance over time. Those that are trustworthy will gain readership regardless of the source. To his credit, Eric did reply to me.
Odds and Ends...
I've always said that if the power grid went down and didn't come back up within a few days, half of all Americans would die. This report goes further than that. Here is an older article with a better description of what an EMP attack would do. Sounds like something from the Matrix Trilogy.
On another front, Dahlia Kurtz discusses Dove's "beauty" enhancing products.
Who has the best burgers in Nashville? All 31 that are discussed don't hold a candle to In-N-Out's animal style. The 1685 miles to the closest In-N-Out location might make a local burger a bit easier. Blake's Lotaburger is a bit closer at 1030 miles and is still probably better than anything local.
Speaking of fatty fast foods, KFC has a fine new offering starting next week, the double down. Who needs bread?
Why is Russia charging US astronauts $56 million for a ride to the space shuttle when they only charge $35 million for "space tourists"?
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Game Recap: Coyotes Beat Preds 5-2
The Phoenix Coyotes played a near perfect game in beating the Nashville Predators 5-2 at the Jobbing.com Arena in Glendale, Arizona on Wednesday night.
Taylor Pyatt scored the game winner halfway through the third period. Lauri Korpikowski, Wojtek Wolski, Shane Doan, and Petteri Nokelainen also added goals for the Coyotes. Keith Yandle had two assist in the winning effort.
The Predator goals were scored by Shea Weber and Steve Sullivan.
Ilya Bryzgalov stopped 23 of 25 Predator shots to claim the win. Pekka Rinne allowed four goals on 29 shots in the loss.
Scoring Recap...
The game started in an unusual fashion when Shea Weber scored on a slapper twelve seconds into the game as he took the shot off of a faceoff to the left of Bryzgalov. Jason Arnott got an assist off the faceoff and Ryan Suter fed the puck to Weber for the primary assist.
The Coyotes came right back and scored at 2:06 when Lauri Korpikowski took advantage of a bad change by the Preds and got free on a breakaway where he beat Pekka Rinne at the net to tie the game 1-1.
The rest of the first period was fast and furious with plenty of forechecking on both ends of the ice. There were few stoppages as indicated by there being only nine faceoffs for the period. The Yotes out shot the Preds 11-10 and led the Corsi 16-15.
The second period was full of penalties with Colin Wilson and Jordin Tootoo being called for minors. Phoenix was unable to convert. Then the Coyotes were called for back to back penalties to Daniel Winnik and Vern Fiddler, giving the Predators 57 seconds of five on three advantage but they were unable to put anything on the net.
Phoenix jumped to a 2-1 lead at 16:27 in the second when the Predators allowed Wojtek Wolski to get behind their defense which set up an outlet pass and a breakaway goal as Francis Bouillon was unable to recover.
The Predators appeared to struggle for much of the period and were out shot 11-6 by the Coyotes. The Yotes also led in the Corsi numbers 19-16.
It was announced before the third period that Patric Hornqvist would be out for the remainder of the game due to an "upper body injury".
The Predators tied the game 2-2 on a power play goal by Steve Sullivan at 5:53 that ended a streak of 29 man advantages with no goals for the Preds. The goal came on a rebound of a Cody Fransen shot that went wide and bounced toward Sullivan who had an open shot on net.
The Coyotes took the lead again at 10:36 when Lee Stempniak fed a pass to Taylor Pyatt who was open in the slot. Pyatt beat Rinne on a shot that Pekka would love to have another chance at stopping to give the Yotes a 3-2 lead.
Phoenix put the game away at 17:32 with intense pressure in the slot in front of Rinne when four Coyote players were moving toward the net and Shane Doan put the puck past Rinne to give the Yotes a 4-2 lead.
Phoenix put the icing on the cake with an empty netter with 19 seconds left when Petteri Nokelainen skated the puck into the net.
In the third period the Preds out shot the Yotes 9-8, but trailed 30-25 for the game.
Storylines From The Game
Coyotes Simply Out Played The Predators...
For anyone who wonders how the Coyotes have played as well as they have, they need to look at a tape of this game. The Coyotes played well in all areas of the game and kept the Predators from being able to execute and convert on their scoring chances.
Phoenix kept the pressure on the Preds on both ends of the ice for the entire game. The Predators appeared to be a half step slower for most of the game. The Predators had numerous scoring chances but were unable to convert.
Bad Time For A New Injury...
During a barrage of shot attempts by the Predators on a power play during the second period, a cannon shot from Shea Weber struck Patric Hornqvist in the upper body and he left the game and did not return.
Hornqvist was able to stay on the ice for the remainder of the five on three power play for a long 2:11 shift but never returned. There was no indication of the extent of the injury or how long that he may be out.
This comes on the heels of the Preds getting Jason Arnott back in the lineup after an extended absence.
Western Conference Race...
Much was made of the Preds-Coyotes match being a playoff preview before the game. With the loss, the Preds no longer hold the fifth slot in the Western Conference race.
With Detroit winning, the Preds and Wings each have 98 points but the Wings have an extra game to play so the Preds are officially in sixth place. Los Angeles is only a point behind the Preds with two games in hand.
Even with a win on Saturday, the Preds will need lots of help from others to finish higher than sixth or seventh.
Up Next...
The Predators returned home after the game and will face the St Louis Blues in the final game of the regular season. The game may be Keith Tkachuk's final game if he dresses out. Phoenix still has games remaining on the road with Los Angeles and San Jose.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Taylor Pyatt scored the game winner halfway through the third period. Lauri Korpikowski, Wojtek Wolski, Shane Doan, and Petteri Nokelainen also added goals for the Coyotes. Keith Yandle had two assist in the winning effort.
The Predator goals were scored by Shea Weber and Steve Sullivan.
Ilya Bryzgalov stopped 23 of 25 Predator shots to claim the win. Pekka Rinne allowed four goals on 29 shots in the loss.
Scoring Recap...
The game started in an unusual fashion when Shea Weber scored on a slapper twelve seconds into the game as he took the shot off of a faceoff to the left of Bryzgalov. Jason Arnott got an assist off the faceoff and Ryan Suter fed the puck to Weber for the primary assist.
The Coyotes came right back and scored at 2:06 when Lauri Korpikowski took advantage of a bad change by the Preds and got free on a breakaway where he beat Pekka Rinne at the net to tie the game 1-1.
The rest of the first period was fast and furious with plenty of forechecking on both ends of the ice. There were few stoppages as indicated by there being only nine faceoffs for the period. The Yotes out shot the Preds 11-10 and led the Corsi 16-15.
The second period was full of penalties with Colin Wilson and Jordin Tootoo being called for minors. Phoenix was unable to convert. Then the Coyotes were called for back to back penalties to Daniel Winnik and Vern Fiddler, giving the Predators 57 seconds of five on three advantage but they were unable to put anything on the net.
Phoenix jumped to a 2-1 lead at 16:27 in the second when the Predators allowed Wojtek Wolski to get behind their defense which set up an outlet pass and a breakaway goal as Francis Bouillon was unable to recover.
The Predators appeared to struggle for much of the period and were out shot 11-6 by the Coyotes. The Yotes also led in the Corsi numbers 19-16.
It was announced before the third period that Patric Hornqvist would be out for the remainder of the game due to an "upper body injury".
The Predators tied the game 2-2 on a power play goal by Steve Sullivan at 5:53 that ended a streak of 29 man advantages with no goals for the Preds. The goal came on a rebound of a Cody Fransen shot that went wide and bounced toward Sullivan who had an open shot on net.
The Coyotes took the lead again at 10:36 when Lee Stempniak fed a pass to Taylor Pyatt who was open in the slot. Pyatt beat Rinne on a shot that Pekka would love to have another chance at stopping to give the Yotes a 3-2 lead.
Phoenix put the game away at 17:32 with intense pressure in the slot in front of Rinne when four Coyote players were moving toward the net and Shane Doan put the puck past Rinne to give the Yotes a 4-2 lead.
Phoenix put the icing on the cake with an empty netter with 19 seconds left when Petteri Nokelainen skated the puck into the net.
In the third period the Preds out shot the Yotes 9-8, but trailed 30-25 for the game.
Storylines From The Game
Coyotes Simply Out Played The Predators...
For anyone who wonders how the Coyotes have played as well as they have, they need to look at a tape of this game. The Coyotes played well in all areas of the game and kept the Predators from being able to execute and convert on their scoring chances.
Phoenix kept the pressure on the Preds on both ends of the ice for the entire game. The Predators appeared to be a half step slower for most of the game. The Predators had numerous scoring chances but were unable to convert.
Bad Time For A New Injury...
During a barrage of shot attempts by the Predators on a power play during the second period, a cannon shot from Shea Weber struck Patric Hornqvist in the upper body and he left the game and did not return.
Hornqvist was able to stay on the ice for the remainder of the five on three power play for a long 2:11 shift but never returned. There was no indication of the extent of the injury or how long that he may be out.
This comes on the heels of the Preds getting Jason Arnott back in the lineup after an extended absence.
Western Conference Race...
Much was made of the Preds-Coyotes match being a playoff preview before the game. With the loss, the Preds no longer hold the fifth slot in the Western Conference race.
With Detroit winning, the Preds and Wings each have 98 points but the Wings have an extra game to play so the Preds are officially in sixth place. Los Angeles is only a point behind the Preds with two games in hand.
Even with a win on Saturday, the Preds will need lots of help from others to finish higher than sixth or seventh.
Up Next...
The Predators returned home after the game and will face the St Louis Blues in the final game of the regular season. The game may be Keith Tkachuk's final game if he dresses out. Phoenix still has games remaining on the road with Los Angeles and San Jose.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
First Round Preview? and Wednesday Wrap-Up
After a few days off the Nashville Predators return to the ice tonight in Glendale against Phoenix in what could be a preview of the same match up on the same sheet of ice one week later.
If the season ended today, Nashville would meet Phoenix, most probably on Wednesday, April 14 at Jobbing.com Arena in Glendale in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Going into the game, the Predators probably have more on the line in this particular game as they are trying to fend off any moves on their current fifth place position by Detroit and Los Angeles. On the flip side, this is the Coyote's final regular season home game and should be a sell out.
A win by the Preds by three or more goals would keep the slim chance alive for the Preds to move into fourth place ahead of the Yotes.
The Preds plan to work Captain Jason Arnott back into the line up tonight as they prepare for the playoffs and only have one game remaining to work the whole team as a group. Denis Grebeshkov's return has been ruled out until later in the playoffs.
At this point in the season, there is little left to be said about match-ups and statistics. The Preds need to hit the ice with a good start and play consistently for a full sixty minutes.
Both the Predators and the Coyotes are well coached and the game can almost be viewed as a chess match between two of the best coaches in the game today.
I would hate to see the Preds move down from the fifth position, but I really would rather see a Predator-Coyote match-up further into the playoffs. Both teams have scoring spread through the line-up, play good defense and have excellent goaltending.
It would seem a shame for one of these two teams to lose in the first round and not move forward. A series between the two teams could end up being one of the best in the entire playoffs. Time will tell.
For more information from the Coyote side go to Five For Howling, the Arizona Republic, the Examiner or The Coyotes Aggregator.
So What If We Get to Use These Tickets?...
In Pred Nation...
John Glennon has a couple of "Keys to the Game" from Jason Arnott and Dan Ellis at Inside Predators. He also has the story of Steve Sullivan feeling the urgency of this year's playoff run since it has been a while for him. He also has a note on the Kings passing the Wings after beating Anaheim last night in a shoot out. There is also the game at a glance.
David Boclair looks at the Pred's push for positioning in the last two games.
From @Forechecker: Are you ready for some hockey talk this afternoon? I'm appearing on @3hourlunch1045 today from 2-3 p.m., taking calls and talking Preds!
Hockey's Future has a look at the Predator's European prospects.
NHL.com has a feature on the Predator's defense.
Jas Faulkner asks "Is this the Year?"
Section 303 has a contest going for two free tickets to Saturday's finale. They also pointed us to another NHL app for the Blackberry that you can download here.
Chris Burton poses the question, "Is David Legwand Slumping or Mis-used?" He also has a preview of tonight's game.
Big Kev evaluates the East vs the West.
The Odd Man Rush has part two of potential Pred's opponents with a look at Vancouver.
Marcel Goc is in the lead in a poll asking who is the NHL's Unsung Hero at From the Rink.
The Milwaukee Admirals clinched a playoff spot with a 4-1 win over Peoria in an odd day game on Tuesday afternoon. Short Shifts also adds perspective.
Chris and Dave answer six questions about the Preds at Yardbarker.
Want to win a Pred's viewing party from Best Buy? Enter Here.
Around the NHL...
Calgary is officially out and Colorado is in after the Flames went quietly against San Jose and Colorado beat Vancouver in a shoot out. I had Calgary as a team with potential to go to the finals before the season. The bottom completely fell out as the season progressed. Jarome Iginla was ready to take the blame.
Ryan Porth picks his top five cup contenders.
Paul Kukla pays homage to this season's four retiring NHL officials.
Previews of Thursday's Frozen Four match ups can be found at the USCHO site.
Poor Josh Sacco... Now the Boston Herald has taken offense at his "Screw 'em" in his most recent speech at Fenway Park.
Matt Reitz discusses the Enigma of Kyle Quincey.
Wow! Interesting stuff rom @Jay_Grossman: CAN-US Final has better rating than NCAA Duke-Butler #FinalFour game. Where do we go from here?
Jonas Segal has an interesting piece on Dan Carcillo. Carcillo and Jordin Tootoo are two of the prototype players that are geared for the post lockout NHL. They combine grit and offense.
Random from Puck Daddy - Preds fan runs on field during opening day.
Sad news from Atlanta, @BenThrashers: With the Thrashers eliminated Chris Chelios will go back to AHl to help Wolves. It may be the end of his NHL career.
Odds and Ends...
Michelle Kenneth discusses living a responsible life.
Hard to believe Andy is old enough to go to college. But then again, My son Fisher has started and Toy Story was the first movie he ever went to.
Just when you think airlines can't get any worse, Spirit Airlines wants to start charging for carry on luggage.
Finally, @codeyh claims this would become humorous after it repeats a few times but I still don't get it. Here's the story on this dude.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
If the season ended today, Nashville would meet Phoenix, most probably on Wednesday, April 14 at Jobbing.com Arena in Glendale in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Going into the game, the Predators probably have more on the line in this particular game as they are trying to fend off any moves on their current fifth place position by Detroit and Los Angeles. On the flip side, this is the Coyote's final regular season home game and should be a sell out.
A win by the Preds by three or more goals would keep the slim chance alive for the Preds to move into fourth place ahead of the Yotes.
The Preds plan to work Captain Jason Arnott back into the line up tonight as they prepare for the playoffs and only have one game remaining to work the whole team as a group. Denis Grebeshkov's return has been ruled out until later in the playoffs.
At this point in the season, there is little left to be said about match-ups and statistics. The Preds need to hit the ice with a good start and play consistently for a full sixty minutes.
Both the Predators and the Coyotes are well coached and the game can almost be viewed as a chess match between two of the best coaches in the game today.
I would hate to see the Preds move down from the fifth position, but I really would rather see a Predator-Coyote match-up further into the playoffs. Both teams have scoring spread through the line-up, play good defense and have excellent goaltending.
It would seem a shame for one of these two teams to lose in the first round and not move forward. A series between the two teams could end up being one of the best in the entire playoffs. Time will tell.
For more information from the Coyote side go to Five For Howling, the Arizona Republic, the Examiner or The Coyotes Aggregator.
So What If We Get to Use These Tickets?...
In Pred Nation...
John Glennon has a couple of "Keys to the Game" from Jason Arnott and Dan Ellis at Inside Predators. He also has the story of Steve Sullivan feeling the urgency of this year's playoff run since it has been a while for him. He also has a note on the Kings passing the Wings after beating Anaheim last night in a shoot out. There is also the game at a glance.
David Boclair looks at the Pred's push for positioning in the last two games.
From @Forechecker: Are you ready for some hockey talk this afternoon? I'm appearing on @3hourlunch1045 today from 2-3 p.m., taking calls and talking Preds!
Hockey's Future has a look at the Predator's European prospects.
NHL.com has a feature on the Predator's defense.
Jas Faulkner asks "Is this the Year?"
Section 303 has a contest going for two free tickets to Saturday's finale. They also pointed us to another NHL app for the Blackberry that you can download here.
Chris Burton poses the question, "Is David Legwand Slumping or Mis-used?" He also has a preview of tonight's game.
Big Kev evaluates the East vs the West.
The Odd Man Rush has part two of potential Pred's opponents with a look at Vancouver.
Marcel Goc is in the lead in a poll asking who is the NHL's Unsung Hero at From the Rink.
The Milwaukee Admirals clinched a playoff spot with a 4-1 win over Peoria in an odd day game on Tuesday afternoon. Short Shifts also adds perspective.
Chris and Dave answer six questions about the Preds at Yardbarker.
Want to win a Pred's viewing party from Best Buy? Enter Here.
Around the NHL...
Calgary is officially out and Colorado is in after the Flames went quietly against San Jose and Colorado beat Vancouver in a shoot out. I had Calgary as a team with potential to go to the finals before the season. The bottom completely fell out as the season progressed. Jarome Iginla was ready to take the blame.
Ryan Porth picks his top five cup contenders.
Paul Kukla pays homage to this season's four retiring NHL officials.
Previews of Thursday's Frozen Four match ups can be found at the USCHO site.
Poor Josh Sacco... Now the Boston Herald has taken offense at his "Screw 'em" in his most recent speech at Fenway Park.
Matt Reitz discusses the Enigma of Kyle Quincey.
Wow! Interesting stuff rom @Jay_Grossman: CAN-US Final has better rating than NCAA Duke-Butler #FinalFour game. Where do we go from here?
Jonas Segal has an interesting piece on Dan Carcillo. Carcillo and Jordin Tootoo are two of the prototype players that are geared for the post lockout NHL. They combine grit and offense.
Random from Puck Daddy - Preds fan runs on field during opening day.
Sad news from Atlanta, @BenThrashers: With the Thrashers eliminated Chris Chelios will go back to AHl to help Wolves. It may be the end of his NHL career.
Odds and Ends...
Michelle Kenneth discusses living a responsible life.
Hard to believe Andy is old enough to go to college. But then again, My son Fisher has started and Toy Story was the first movie he ever went to.
Just when you think airlines can't get any worse, Spirit Airlines wants to start charging for carry on luggage.
Finally, @codeyh claims this would become humorous after it repeats a few times but I still don't get it. Here's the story on this dude.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Friday, March 26, 2010
Predators Move Closer to Playoff Lock and Friday Round-Up
The Nashville Predators moved closer to a playoff berth last night with their 4-3 overtime win over Phoenix. Before the game started, I said that it would be great if the Preds won in overtime so that the Coyotes would still get a point.
It was the first time in history that I actually wanted to see a three point game because we have been pulling for the Yotes to do well. When the Preds were up 3-1 well into the third, I never imagined that overtime was a possibility, but you never know.
With the win and the Calgary loss to the Islanders, the Preds are back up to a 99% chance of a playoff position. Barry Trotz repeated his prediction that it will take 97 points to make the playoffs. Calgary would have to go 7-1 to get to that level so Barry may be shooting high since that seems unlikely.
Saturday's game with the Red Wings will be another big test for the Predators as it will directly affect the standings with a possible four point swing if it ends in regulation.
The Preds went into Detroit three weeks ago and failed miserably with a weak effort. Hopefully, we will see a better effort at home tomorrow night.
Special Thanks...
We'd like to give a special thanks to Mark Willoughby for inviting us down to his palatial lower bowl seats for last night's game. It was good to see the game from a different angle and enjoy the company of Mark and his lovely wife.
Predators - Coyotes Wrap-Up
Here is our story and interviews from last night.
John Glennon has the game story, notes column and postgame ponderings.
Jim Diamond has his game story at the Examiner.
David Boclair reports from the City Paper.
In the blogs there are posts from Forechecker, Brandon Felder, View from 111, and See Puck City.
The other side of the story comes from the Arizona Republic, Five for Howling, the Phoenix Examiner and The Coyotes Aggregator.
In Pred Nation...
Three Predator prospects received high honors from the OHL for their play this season.
David Poile gave high praise to the Coyotes yesterday at Inside Predators.
The Admirals got beat by the last place Grand Rapids Griffins 3-2 last night.
Mark Willoughby has his weekly View column.
Around the NHL...
After all the posturing, the "head shot" rule was approved yesterday by the NHLPA and was in effect for last night's games.
A shocker last night was the Blue Jacket's 8-3 blow out of the Blackhawks. Even more shocking was how Joel Quenneville handled Christobal Huet. The Hockey Writeres have the story.
For updates on the NCAA Hockey Tournament this weekend, Inside College Hockey has wall to wall coverage.
Hockey's Future finishes their top 50 prospect list with the top 10. They also have their results on their poll of who will win the Calder Trophy. Finally,they have a preview of prospects playing in the NCAA tournament.
Matt Reitz has an interesting view of different fan perspectives.
Puck the Media has a guest post with a review of the NHL 3D game in New York. Here's another side of the story from Intent to Blow.
From @BenThrashers: Wayne Gretzky radio interview on CBC... from 1974. He was 13.
Odds and Ends...
I have really enjoyed the BBGeeks web page for teaching me what I wiould know if I read my instruction book. Adding a participant to a phone call is really easy.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
It was the first time in history that I actually wanted to see a three point game because we have been pulling for the Yotes to do well. When the Preds were up 3-1 well into the third, I never imagined that overtime was a possibility, but you never know.
With the win and the Calgary loss to the Islanders, the Preds are back up to a 99% chance of a playoff position. Barry Trotz repeated his prediction that it will take 97 points to make the playoffs. Calgary would have to go 7-1 to get to that level so Barry may be shooting high since that seems unlikely.
Saturday's game with the Red Wings will be another big test for the Predators as it will directly affect the standings with a possible four point swing if it ends in regulation.
The Preds went into Detroit three weeks ago and failed miserably with a weak effort. Hopefully, we will see a better effort at home tomorrow night.
Special Thanks...
We'd like to give a special thanks to Mark Willoughby for inviting us down to his palatial lower bowl seats for last night's game. It was good to see the game from a different angle and enjoy the company of Mark and his lovely wife.
Predators - Coyotes Wrap-Up
Here is our story and interviews from last night.
John Glennon has the game story, notes column and postgame ponderings.
Jim Diamond has his game story at the Examiner.
David Boclair reports from the City Paper.
In the blogs there are posts from Forechecker, Brandon Felder, View from 111, and See Puck City.
The other side of the story comes from the Arizona Republic, Five for Howling, the Phoenix Examiner and The Coyotes Aggregator.
In Pred Nation...
Three Predator prospects received high honors from the OHL for their play this season.
David Poile gave high praise to the Coyotes yesterday at Inside Predators.
The Admirals got beat by the last place Grand Rapids Griffins 3-2 last night.
Mark Willoughby has his weekly View column.
Around the NHL...
After all the posturing, the "head shot" rule was approved yesterday by the NHLPA and was in effect for last night's games.
A shocker last night was the Blue Jacket's 8-3 blow out of the Blackhawks. Even more shocking was how Joel Quenneville handled Christobal Huet. The Hockey Writeres have the story.
For updates on the NCAA Hockey Tournament this weekend, Inside College Hockey has wall to wall coverage.
Hockey's Future finishes their top 50 prospect list with the top 10. They also have their results on their poll of who will win the Calder Trophy. Finally,they have a preview of prospects playing in the NCAA tournament.
Matt Reitz has an interesting view of different fan perspectives.
Puck the Media has a guest post with a review of the NHL 3D game in New York. Here's another side of the story from Intent to Blow.
From @BenThrashers: Wayne Gretzky radio interview on CBC... from 1974. He was 13.
Odds and Ends...
I have really enjoyed the BBGeeks web page for teaching me what I wiould know if I read my instruction book. Adding a participant to a phone call is really easy.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Game Recap: Predators Beat Coyotes 4-3 in Shoot Out
Coach Barry Trotz speaks to the media
Steve Sullivan, Patric Hornqvist and Pekka Rinne speak
Coach Dave Tippett, Shane Doan and Lee Stempniak speak
The Nashville Predators gave up two goals in the third period, allowing the Phoenix Coyotes to tie the game, but rallied in the shoot out to come away with a 4-3 win.
David Legwand scored the shoot out winner on Ilya Bryzgalov to seal the win for the Predators who have won seven of their last eight contests. Phoenix has now lost two in a row after a nine game win streak.
Phoenix took an early 1-0 lead in the game when Lee Stepniak scored early in the first period.
Nashville came back with three unanswered goals from Patric Hornqvist, Steve Sullivan and Dan Hamhuis to take a 3-1 lead into the final period.
Phoenix came back with two quick goals by Wojtek Wolski and Keith Yandle in the third period to force the game into overtime.
Both teams skated well in the extra period but neither could close the deal.
In the shoot out, Lee Stempniak and Cal O'Reilly traded first round goals before David Legwand had the winner in the third round.
Adrian Aucoin had never missed a shootout goal, after going five for five recently, but was stopped by Pekka Rinne in the second round.
Pekka Rinne got the victory stopping 32 of 35 Coyote shots while Ilya Bryzgalov stopped 28 of 31 Predator shots.
Storylines From The Game...
Beating a Team That Has Been Great in Overtime...
Phoenix has been a league best 12-5 in the shoot out this year and had phenomenal success in all games that went past 60 minutes with a 17-6 record. The Predators were fortunate to win against such imposing odds.
Barry Trotz found positives in coming back with a win in the shoot out after giving up a two goal lead. "These guys are excellent in the shoot out and overtime and have a lot of wins and a lot of points in the extra session. That's what I'm focusing on is that we found a way to win and that is real important."
Trotz also explained his choice of David Legwand as the final shooter, "If you look at a lot of our shoot outs, Leggy's been the clutch guy. He a guy that came through when we were down or when we needed a goal. He's been real clutch, and we felt he would be clutch again, and he was."
Patrick Hornqvist discussed having to go to overtime, and summed up the thoughts of the whole team, "When you are in the car on the way home you have two points and that's all that matters."
Predators Played with Improved Inspiration...
After a somewhat lackadaisical outing on Tuesday, that cost them two points, the Predators played with more jump and energy from the start of the game. It is hard to comprehend why one game can be so different from another.
"That's the game of hockey, some nights you got it and some nights it's harder to get," explained Steve Sullivan. "In 82 games in a season, you are not going to be at your best. Our job as professionals is to make sure you minimize mistakes when you are not at your best and try not to hurt your hockey club and when you do have it, you try to make the most of your opportunities."
Scary Third Period Letdown...
For the second game in a row, the Predators gave up two third period goals at an inopportune time. Fortunately, they were able to recover in the shoot out to salvage the much needed two points.
Steve Sullivan discussed the third period, "I think it was a little bit of us. I think we were on our heels trying to protect our lead instead of keep going at it."
Barry Trotz took a lighter approach, "It's the Predator way. It's always exciting and you get your bang for the buck, keeping you here right to the end. No one can leave early."
Trotz then turned more serious stating, "We could have managed the puck a little bit better but I look at it that they are one of the best third period teams in the league. They just come at you with a lot of depth. They activated their D. We didn't manage the puck as well as we wanted but the real positive is that they are something like 34-3-3 when they score the first goal."
Playoff Race Yo Yo...
Every night the Western Conference teams seem to go up and down in the standings. The Predators moved from seventh to fifth with the win on Thursday night.
They finished the evening with 91 points which is a point ahead of Los Angeles, two points ahead of Colorado, and four points ahead of Detroit. Each of those three teams have played two less games and have additional opportunity to gain points.
Calgary, who is in ninth place with 83 points lost to the New York Islanders to give the Predators an eight point cushion in the race for a guaranteed playoff position. Calgary has eight games remaining and the Predators have seven.
Up Next...
The Predators return to the ice at the Bridgestone Arena on Saturday night to face the Detroit Red Wings in an important game as both teams are battling for playoff position.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
