Nashville welcomed the Capitals to town Saturday night for a rare inter-conference duel. Behind the efforts of Michal Neuvirth and Brooks Laich, Washington rallied past Nashville to claim a 3-2 overtime victory.
Despite Washington’s firepower, the ice tilted Nashville’s way in the first period. They got three full power play opportunities (and one partial), in which the Caps killed all of them. However, with 2:53 remaining in the period, J.P. Dumont’s shot from the slot found the top corner of the net right beneath the crossbar to give the Preds a 1-0 advantage.
Nashville outshot Washington 18-7 in the opening frame; Alex Ovechkin was held in check with just one.
Both teams traded a handful of chances early on in the second period before Jordin Tootoo put the Preds on top 2-0. His shot from the top of the circle re-directed off Brian Fahey’s skate and past Neuvirth.
The rest of the period was littered with penalties, with neither club being able to capitalize on the man advantage. On a shorthanded breakaway, Joel Ward was robbed by Neuvirth, who made flashed some leather with a nice glove save. The stop kept the Caps within striking distance before their third period onslaught.
With 12 seconds remaining in the second, Dave Steckel’s wrist shot trickled through Anders Lindback, but a quick whistle halted play. The puck never crossed the line as Ryan Suter stopped the puck behind Lindback.
As the third period got underway, you could sense a surge coming from the Caps.
The Preds committed a pair of avoidable penalties early on in the period, and Washington finally got on the board at 4:33 of the third (on the power play). Alexander Semin’s wicked wrister snuck underneath Lindback’s pad, drawing the Caps within one.
For the next handful of minutes, Washington really turned up the jets and had Nashville on its heels. The Preds failed to clear the puck out of the zone multiple times, prolonging some offensive zone shifts for the Caps.
Tomas Fleischmann tied the game at 12:14 when he picked up a loose puck on a broken play in front of the net, roofing it past Lindback.
Washington had numerous chances in the final seven-plus minutes to take the lead as they took advantage of a winded Predators team playing their third game in four nights. In the end, Barry Trotz’s crew basically had to survive to capture the point.
In overtime, Ryan Suter was called for tripping 47 seconds in. Less than a minute later, Ovechkin’s shot from the point was tipped in by Brooks Laich, giving the Capitals a big come-from-behind win, 3-2.
Neuvirth was the unsung hero of this game. He made 37 saves on 39 shots, many of which keeping the Caps in the game and down by just two. ‘Neuvy’ was also clutch on the penalty kill.
Post-Game Ponderings:
- Marcel Goc was injured on a play late in the second period. Nicklas Backstrom was penalized for boarding, pushing a defenseless Goc into the boards from five feet away (read Trotz’s comments below). Goc didn’t return to the game due to an upper-body injury.
- The Predators’ power play went 0-for-6 tonight. Even though they had some solid chances, it would have been nice if they could have scored on at least one of them when they had the opportunity to go up by three.
- Tootoo had a very good game playing on a new line with Joel Ward and David Legwand. He recorded five shots and a goal with a solid all-around effort.
- Nashville contained Ovechkin pretty well, holding him to just three shots. But as we knew coming in, you can’t just stop him and hope to get the win. Semin, Fleischmann, and Laich all struck for the Caps’ three goals.
Post-Game Quotes:
Barry Trotz:
“I thought we came out really well. We had a lot of structure, a lot of pace. We created a tremendous amount of chances. Obviously we were skating and drew some penalties. Even the power play was probably working better than it has been all along. We moved it, had some chances. They are the number one penalty killing team, and we really threw it around and some chances and didn’t convert. That’s going to happen sometimes. And we just couldn’t get that third goal as the game went on.”
Barry Trotz on Backstrom hit:
“Those are the type of hits that you want to take out of the National Hockey League. The biggest thing is I didn’t think Backstrom was playing the puck. He basically hit a player five feet away from the boards. If you’re a player and get hit in the back there, you’re going head first and that’s when people get really hurt. To me, those are extremely dangerous hits.”
Jordin Tootoo on first goal:
“It kind of gets the monkey off your back. But tonight was a big game for us and I thought we played pretty good in regards to winning the game. We had a couple mental errors and we can’t let that happen in the third period.”
Anders Lindback on the surge from Washington:
“I think we had a really good game all through, but it was only a matter of time before they turned it up and starting coming at us offensively. Unfortunately, they did it their way and played real well I thought.”
Joel Ward on letting it get away:
“We were up by two… anytime you’re in your own building and up by two you should be able to seal that win. We had some chances and just couldn’t bury them. It’s very tough for sure.”
Final Thoughts:
This was certainly not the way the Preds wanted to end up with a point tonight. They outplayed the Beasts of the East through 30 minutes, but failed to capitalize on good scoring chances and couldn’t keep up once the third period started. Washington imposed their will in the final 20 minutes to capture the win. When you keep the Caps in the game, they usually make you pay.
It’s back to the drawing board for the Preds, who continue to have some injury issues. Pekka Rinne and Martin Erat are expected to be in the lineup next week against Calgary, but the statuses of Matthew Lombardi and Marcel Goc are unknown at this time.
If you would have told me they’d start the season 3-0-1 against this competition, I would have run with it and taken it to the bank. Trotz’s gang is usually very resilient, so expect a great effort when they host the Flames on Tuesday.
Ryan Porth for Preds On The Glass
Showing posts with label nashville predators washington capitals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nashville predators washington capitals. Show all posts
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Monday, October 4, 2010
Predators End Preseason On A Roll and Monday Round-Up
The Nashville Predators could not have hoped for a better preseason than the one they got. They were 1-2 during the "evaluation phase" of the camp and 3-0 during the "execution" portion of the camp.
Pekka Rinne picked up where he left off in April going 2-0 with a .957 save percentage and a 0.99 goals against average in four games.They appear to have found their back-up goalie in Anders Lindback unless someone passes through waivers that they can't resist.
On offense, they only scored 13 goals in six games but have three solid scoring lines and an experienced energy line that will also add a few goals.
On the blueline, they have six solid defensemen and several more for replacements and injury call-ups.
It appears that the final reductions on their roster will come today or tomorrow. Word is that Aaron Johnson was waived on Sunday which would leave 25 in camp.
My guess would be that Jamie Lundmark, who has been dinged up, and Jonas Andersson who was a healthy scratch on Sunday will go to Milwaukee. Alexander Sulzer may also go if the Preds start with less than 23 on the roster or only six D-men.
Segei Kostitsyn received a foot injury and may actually have a broken toe. Depending on the severity, he could star the season on injured reserve. That is a shame because fans have enjoyed his play in games and he does possess plenty of potential that could add another dimension to the Preds if he can play "The PredatorWay."
There has never been as much optimism about the Predators in Nashville as there is at this point. Surprisingly, over the last year or so, traditional hockey folks (re:Canada) have finally bought into the teams success and several notable pundits are speaking in glowing terms about the Preds' chances this season.
As Charlie Daniels always says, "Ain't it good to be alive and in Tennessee,"
Programming Note...
Due to the Predators Meet the Team Party for season ticket holders tonight at 6 p.m. at the Bridgestone Arena, there will not be a POTG Radio tonight.
Our original plan was to have a season preview but Section303.com had a round-table of Pred's bloggers doing the same thing on Saturday. Go here to listen to a great show that includes Ryan Porth, Dirk Hoag, Mark Willoughby, Jeremy Gover, Paul McCann, and me.
It is a well produced and edited show that you will enjoy.
Preds-Capitals Round-Up...
Here is our story from yesterday with the preseason stats leaders at each position.
Josh Cooper spoke with Barry Trotz after the game and Trotz appears pleased with the result and looks to the upcoming cuts that may come today. Here is his game story.
Jay Levin of Preds.com has his report from the game that includes the possibility of only six D-men on the opening day roster.
In the blog world, Amanda at Predlines had the most complete report that was extrapolated from a bad Washington feed. Dirk Hoag has his advanced stats that always gives another angle to the game.
From DC Katie Carrera has her game story and notes from the contest.
In Pred Nation...
Josh Cooper had a story on Colin Wilson's hockey sense on Saturday.
Jim Diamond digs up the story of Pred prospect Charles-Oliver Roussel calling Sergei Kostitsyn "soft." Also, what about 30 goals for Marty Erat? Jim thinks that it should be possible.
David Boclair raises an interesting point that the Predators have few banners in the rafters commemorating their playoff appearances.
Joe Yerdon has his PHT preview of the Predators and gives a fair shake to the team's chances.
Dirk Hoag asks the question as to who will win the Central Division and appears to have gotten a lot of homers responding.
Paul McCann looks at the final cuts for the Preds and has news that Aaron Johnson has been waived.
Renaud Lavoie also reports that in addition to Johnson, ex-Preds Darcy Horichuk and Ben Guite have also been waived.
Jas Faulkner has the latest on the Predators' G.O.A.L. Program. It's a great way to introduce kids to hockey.
Is J.P. Dumont the least valuable right winger in the NHL. One study hangs that title on him based on his sub-par year last season. Puck Daddy has the story.
Dan Bradley doesn't think too much of the Wings in his Central Division preview at Excellence Through Guesswork.
The Canadian Press picks the Preds sixth in the West. There has really been a change in the last year in the Northland's view of Nashville.
Hockey Night in Nashville is excited about the season opening on Saturday and throws props to us, Forechecker and Section 303. I like their idea of trying to get as many fans in the building for warm-ups as they can. It's a interesting part of the game that most fans miss.
The Milwaukee Admirals sent a bunch of players packing and their roster now stands at 23. Goalie Jeremy Smith will return to Cincinnati to start the season. Several more moves are likely as the Preds will send up to four players to the Ads in the next day or so. Ads Roundtable has more on the destinations of the players that are leaving.
The Ads won 3-2 in a shootout over Rockford on Friday, 3-1 over Chicago on Saturday,
Pred prospect Jeremy Smith has a pirate theme to his new mask that incorporated the Predators and Admirals theme. He should have gotten a Cyclones item too, it appears.
Around the NHL...
Ryan Porth released his very nice PDF version of his season preview. Email him at rldhockey@gmail.com and he will send you a free copy. This year's is the best yet and the price is perfect.
Ryan also has Burning Questions from the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference with input from bloggers from around the league on key issues with each team. Ryan starts whacking away at a list of cup contenders to expose his pick to win it all before the season starts on Thursday.
Craig Custance relates that not all GM's are happy with wealthy team's ability to bury bad contracts in the minors. This is as much circumvention as the Kovi deal according to one executive.
Jose Theodore signed with the Wild for one year, $1.1 million. The Preds should have jumped all over that.
Here is an interesting draft in a keeper league from McKeen's Hockey.
New York Times Slapshot has a discussion of the MSM-Blogger credential debate and includes a quote from Nashville's own, Dirk Hoag.
Brendan Morrison was released by Vancouver. He is a real character guy that we hope turns up elsewhere.
Erik Ersberg will probably pass through waivers. He's no superstar but does have NHL experience. Will this be a test of the Preds' commitment to Anders Lindback?
Here's news of everyone's favorite NHL heavyweight from @RealKyper: Sources say #NHL vet Kyle Wellwood is headed to the KHL. Playing rest of year for Atlant. Here is more from PHT.
Adrian Dater has the story of the Avalanche finally making it to the over the salary floor.
Puck Daddy has the odds from Bodog for the NHL season. I'm really liking the over on the Predators at 89.5. If you go to the original site, you can also do over and unders on Patric Hornqvist, Steve Sullivan, Matthew Lombardi, and Shea Weber.
Down Goes Brown has their Western Conference Preview in their own patented style.
Michelle Kenneth has some interesting comments about MSM and Bloggers in New York in her musings column.
From @DarrenDreger: I just got off the phone with Darcy Tucker. He's retiring to go into business with longtime agent Carlos Sosa. Adrian Dater has a positive piece about Tucker at Versus.
USA Hockey has produced the Intelligym to help you learn hockey sense.
If you plan on attending the Lester Patrick Awards in Boston, here is the info. Tickets are $175.
For those planning on speaking to Finnish players (like Pekka), here is a hockey translation list from Mike Russo.
The Copper and Blue explains re-entry waivers and how it applies to their situation.
Another year, another satellite provider controversy as Dish has dropped MSG, Fox and other sports outlets.
If you were to try to build a crappy team, who would you pick. Read this from PHT.
Odds and Ends...
A special shout out to Bobby Cox of the Atlanta Braves who managed his last regular season game on Sunday. I have been a fan of Bobby since 1978 when he first joined the Braves. He was with Toronto when I worked in their organization in the early 80's and provided some of my best sports memories when the Braves finally made the playoffs in '91 and allowed me to celebrate my 40th birthday winning the World Series on October 28, 1995.
A raid at a a Cocoa Beach strip club finally answers the age old question about where the Deja Vu chain goes looking for the ugly one in their "100 beautiful girls and one ugly one" slogan.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Pekka Rinne picked up where he left off in April going 2-0 with a .957 save percentage and a 0.99 goals against average in four games.They appear to have found their back-up goalie in Anders Lindback unless someone passes through waivers that they can't resist.
On offense, they only scored 13 goals in six games but have three solid scoring lines and an experienced energy line that will also add a few goals.
On the blueline, they have six solid defensemen and several more for replacements and injury call-ups.
It appears that the final reductions on their roster will come today or tomorrow. Word is that Aaron Johnson was waived on Sunday which would leave 25 in camp.
My guess would be that Jamie Lundmark, who has been dinged up, and Jonas Andersson who was a healthy scratch on Sunday will go to Milwaukee. Alexander Sulzer may also go if the Preds start with less than 23 on the roster or only six D-men.
Segei Kostitsyn received a foot injury and may actually have a broken toe. Depending on the severity, he could star the season on injured reserve. That is a shame because fans have enjoyed his play in games and he does possess plenty of potential that could add another dimension to the Preds if he can play "The PredatorWay."
There has never been as much optimism about the Predators in Nashville as there is at this point. Surprisingly, over the last year or so, traditional hockey folks (re:Canada) have finally bought into the teams success and several notable pundits are speaking in glowing terms about the Preds' chances this season.
As Charlie Daniels always says, "Ain't it good to be alive and in Tennessee,"
Programming Note...
Due to the Predators Meet the Team Party for season ticket holders tonight at 6 p.m. at the Bridgestone Arena, there will not be a POTG Radio tonight.
Our original plan was to have a season preview but Section303.com had a round-table of Pred's bloggers doing the same thing on Saturday. Go here to listen to a great show that includes Ryan Porth, Dirk Hoag, Mark Willoughby, Jeremy Gover, Paul McCann, and me.
It is a well produced and edited show that you will enjoy.
Preds-Capitals Round-Up...
Here is our story from yesterday with the preseason stats leaders at each position.
Josh Cooper spoke with Barry Trotz after the game and Trotz appears pleased with the result and looks to the upcoming cuts that may come today. Here is his game story.
Jay Levin of Preds.com has his report from the game that includes the possibility of only six D-men on the opening day roster.
In the blog world, Amanda at Predlines had the most complete report that was extrapolated from a bad Washington feed. Dirk Hoag has his advanced stats that always gives another angle to the game.
From DC Katie Carrera has her game story and notes from the contest.
In Pred Nation...
Josh Cooper had a story on Colin Wilson's hockey sense on Saturday.
Jim Diamond digs up the story of Pred prospect Charles-Oliver Roussel calling Sergei Kostitsyn "soft." Also, what about 30 goals for Marty Erat? Jim thinks that it should be possible.
David Boclair raises an interesting point that the Predators have few banners in the rafters commemorating their playoff appearances.
Joe Yerdon has his PHT preview of the Predators and gives a fair shake to the team's chances.
Dirk Hoag asks the question as to who will win the Central Division and appears to have gotten a lot of homers responding.
Paul McCann looks at the final cuts for the Preds and has news that Aaron Johnson has been waived.
Renaud Lavoie also reports that in addition to Johnson, ex-Preds Darcy Horichuk and Ben Guite have also been waived.
Jas Faulkner has the latest on the Predators' G.O.A.L. Program. It's a great way to introduce kids to hockey.
Is J.P. Dumont the least valuable right winger in the NHL. One study hangs that title on him based on his sub-par year last season. Puck Daddy has the story.
Dan Bradley doesn't think too much of the Wings in his Central Division preview at Excellence Through Guesswork.
The Canadian Press picks the Preds sixth in the West. There has really been a change in the last year in the Northland's view of Nashville.
Hockey Night in Nashville is excited about the season opening on Saturday and throws props to us, Forechecker and Section 303. I like their idea of trying to get as many fans in the building for warm-ups as they can. It's a interesting part of the game that most fans miss.
The Milwaukee Admirals sent a bunch of players packing and their roster now stands at 23. Goalie Jeremy Smith will return to Cincinnati to start the season. Several more moves are likely as the Preds will send up to four players to the Ads in the next day or so. Ads Roundtable has more on the destinations of the players that are leaving.
The Ads won 3-2 in a shootout over Rockford on Friday, 3-1 over Chicago on Saturday,
Pred prospect Jeremy Smith has a pirate theme to his new mask that incorporated the Predators and Admirals theme. He should have gotten a Cyclones item too, it appears.
Around the NHL...
Ryan Porth released his very nice PDF version of his season preview. Email him at rldhockey@gmail.com and he will send you a free copy. This year's is the best yet and the price is perfect.
Ryan also has Burning Questions from the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference with input from bloggers from around the league on key issues with each team. Ryan starts whacking away at a list of cup contenders to expose his pick to win it all before the season starts on Thursday.
Craig Custance relates that not all GM's are happy with wealthy team's ability to bury bad contracts in the minors. This is as much circumvention as the Kovi deal according to one executive.
Jose Theodore signed with the Wild for one year, $1.1 million. The Preds should have jumped all over that.
Here is an interesting draft in a keeper league from McKeen's Hockey.
New York Times Slapshot has a discussion of the MSM-Blogger credential debate and includes a quote from Nashville's own, Dirk Hoag.
Brendan Morrison was released by Vancouver. He is a real character guy that we hope turns up elsewhere.
Erik Ersberg will probably pass through waivers. He's no superstar but does have NHL experience. Will this be a test of the Preds' commitment to Anders Lindback?
Here's news of everyone's favorite NHL heavyweight from @RealKyper: Sources say #NHL vet Kyle Wellwood is headed to the KHL. Playing rest of year for Atlant. Here is more from PHT.
Adrian Dater has the story of the Avalanche finally making it to the over the salary floor.
Puck Daddy has the odds from Bodog for the NHL season. I'm really liking the over on the Predators at 89.5. If you go to the original site, you can also do over and unders on Patric Hornqvist, Steve Sullivan, Matthew Lombardi, and Shea Weber.
Down Goes Brown has their Western Conference Preview in their own patented style.
Michelle Kenneth has some interesting comments about MSM and Bloggers in New York in her musings column.
From @DarrenDreger: I just got off the phone with Darcy Tucker. He's retiring to go into business with longtime agent Carlos Sosa. Adrian Dater has a positive piece about Tucker at Versus.
USA Hockey has produced the Intelligym to help you learn hockey sense.
If you plan on attending the Lester Patrick Awards in Boston, here is the info. Tickets are $175.
For those planning on speaking to Finnish players (like Pekka), here is a hockey translation list from Mike Russo.
The Copper and Blue explains re-entry waivers and how it applies to their situation.
Another year, another satellite provider controversy as Dish has dropped MSG, Fox and other sports outlets.
If you were to try to build a crappy team, who would you pick. Read this from PHT.
Odds and Ends...
A special shout out to Bobby Cox of the Atlanta Braves who managed his last regular season game on Sunday. I have been a fan of Bobby since 1978 when he first joined the Braves. He was with Toronto when I worked in their organization in the early 80's and provided some of my best sports memories when the Braves finally made the playoffs in '91 and allowed me to celebrate my 40th birthday winning the World Series on October 28, 1995.
A raid at a a Cocoa Beach strip club finally answers the age old question about where the Deja Vu chain goes looking for the ugly one in their "100 beautiful girls and one ugly one" slogan.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Ward Leads Predators to Final Preseason Win in Washington
Joel Ward scored two third period goals and Pekka Rinne threw a shut out at the Capitals as the Predators closed out their preseason with a 3-0 win over Washington.
Cal O'Reilly opened the scoring for the Preds at the 11:58 mark of the second period on a goal that was assisted by Patric Hornqvist and Steve Sullivan.
On a day when Jonas Andersson did not dress and Sergei Kostitsyn was slowed by a foot injury, the O'Reilly's goal as well as the primary assist on Wards second goal had to help his case on making the team's final roster.
Joel Ward scored an unassisted short-handed goal at 7:43 in the third period to give the Preds a 2-0 lead. Ward put the icing on the cake with his second goal five minutes later with Cal O'Reilly and Steve Sullivan adding assists.
Pekka Rinne capped his best preseason as a Predator with a 22 shot shut out. The Predators' defense limited the powerful Caps offense to eight 8 shots in the first period and seven in each of the last two.
Rinne finished the pre-season with a 2-0 record and a .957 save percentage and a .99 goals against average in four games.
The Predators power play was held scoreless again going 0-3, including a four minute double minor that ended seconds before Ward's second goal. The Predators penalty kill held the Caps scoreless on two opportunities and contributed on the positive side with Ward's first goal.
There were reports of chippyness between Shea Weber and Alexander Ovechkin that started when Weber slashed Ovechkin in the first period. We will see if that carries over to the regular season meeting between the two clubs in Nashville on October 16.
Ward's two goals tied him with David Legwand and Marty Erat for the preseason lead in goals for the Preds with two each. Sullivan's two assists pushed him into the assist lead with three. Even with no shots on Sunday, Patric Hornqvist still led the team in shots with 13.
The Preds finished the preseason with a fairly anemic 13 goals in six games but only allowed 10 goals to the opposition.
The Predators finished the preseason with a 4-3 record, including wins in the final three games that were after the "evaluation" phase.
The Predators returned home after the game and will practice at 3 p.m. on Monday at Centennial Sportsplex before going to the Bridgestone Arena for the Meet the Team Party for season ticket holders.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Cal O'Reilly opened the scoring for the Preds at the 11:58 mark of the second period on a goal that was assisted by Patric Hornqvist and Steve Sullivan.
On a day when Jonas Andersson did not dress and Sergei Kostitsyn was slowed by a foot injury, the O'Reilly's goal as well as the primary assist on Wards second goal had to help his case on making the team's final roster.
Joel Ward scored an unassisted short-handed goal at 7:43 in the third period to give the Preds a 2-0 lead. Ward put the icing on the cake with his second goal five minutes later with Cal O'Reilly and Steve Sullivan adding assists.
Pekka Rinne capped his best preseason as a Predator with a 22 shot shut out. The Predators' defense limited the powerful Caps offense to eight 8 shots in the first period and seven in each of the last two.
Rinne finished the pre-season with a 2-0 record and a .957 save percentage and a .99 goals against average in four games.
The Predators power play was held scoreless again going 0-3, including a four minute double minor that ended seconds before Ward's second goal. The Predators penalty kill held the Caps scoreless on two opportunities and contributed on the positive side with Ward's first goal.
There were reports of chippyness between Shea Weber and Alexander Ovechkin that started when Weber slashed Ovechkin in the first period. We will see if that carries over to the regular season meeting between the two clubs in Nashville on October 16.
Ward's two goals tied him with David Legwand and Marty Erat for the preseason lead in goals for the Preds with two each. Sullivan's two assists pushed him into the assist lead with three. Even with no shots on Sunday, Patric Hornqvist still led the team in shots with 13.
The Preds finished the preseason with a fairly anemic 13 goals in six games but only allowed 10 goals to the opposition.
The Predators finished the preseason with a 4-3 record, including wins in the final three games that were after the "evaluation" phase.
The Predators returned home after the game and will practice at 3 p.m. on Monday at Centennial Sportsplex before going to the Bridgestone Arena for the Meet the Team Party for season ticket holders.
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Predators and Capitals Square Off in Nashville Tonight
The Nashville Predators will play their third preseason game in three nights against an Alexander Ovechkin-less Washington Capitals team at the Bridgestone Arena at 7 p.m.
The Preds are fielding their strongest lineup of the year with debut appearances by Shea Weber, Matthew Lombardi and Steve Sullivan. Patric Hornqvist, Colin Wilson, Sergei Kostitsyn and a renewed J P Dumont will also be on the ice. Local Favorite, Blake Geoffrion, will also play.
The most interesting battle to watch will be on the blue line where the battle for six through ten on the depth chart continues. Older players, Aaron Johnson, Bret Palin, and Alexander Sulzer are competing against youngsters, Ryan Ellis and Ryan Ryan Parent for a spot on the roster.
Other than Weber, none of the six D-Men playing tonight are a lock to start the season in Nashville. Parent probably has the best shot to stay. Ellis is the most likely to leave, eventually heading back to Juniors with specific instructions to focus on the defensive side of his game.
Johnson and Palin were both picked up in the off-season as defensive depth players. Palin has spent the last five years in the Calgary Flames organization playing in the AHL. Last season, he started the season as the captain in Abbotsford but was limited to 21 games due to injury.
Johnson has played 225 NHL games with Columbus, NY Islanders, Chicago, Calgary and Edmonton, picking up 14 goals and 32 assists at the NHL level.
In goal, Pekka Rinne will probably start and will be followed by Anders Lindback, who was impressive last night against Carolina, stopping all 15 shots.
Washington's squad will feature Mike Green, Nicklas Backstrom, and Mike Knuble. Ovechkin and Alexander Semin did not make the trip.
Here are the complete rosters as announced by the Predators.
Nashville Predators
2 D Aaron Johnson
3 RW Wade Belak
5 C Blake Geoffrion
6 D Shea Weber
9 C Marcel Goc
13 C Nick Spaling
15 C Matthew Lombardi
23 D Brett Palin
24 RW Matt Halischuk
26 RW Steve Sullivan
27 RW Patric Hornqvist
33 C Colin Wilson
38 LW Kelsey Wilson
49 D Ryan Ellis
52 D Alexander Sulzer
71 RW J.P. Dumont
74 LW Sergei Kostitsyn
77 D Ryan Parent
35 G Pekka Rinne
39 G Anders Lindback
Washington Capitals
3 D Tom Poti
4 D John Erskine
15 F Boyd Gordon
16 F Eric Fehr
19 F Nicklas Backstrom
20 F Keith Aucoin
21 F Brooks Laich
22 F Mike Knuble
23 D Lawrence Nycholat
24 F Brian Willsie
26 F Matt Hendricks
36 F Francois Bouchard
42 F Steve Pinizzotto
44 D Brian Fahey
50 F Cody Eakin
52 D Mike Green
55 D Jeff Schultz
75 D Grant McNeill
83 F Jay Beagle
89 D Tyler Sloan
90 F Marcus Johansson
30 G Michal Neuvirth
35 G Dany Sabourin
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
The Preds are fielding their strongest lineup of the year with debut appearances by Shea Weber, Matthew Lombardi and Steve Sullivan. Patric Hornqvist, Colin Wilson, Sergei Kostitsyn and a renewed J P Dumont will also be on the ice. Local Favorite, Blake Geoffrion, will also play.
The most interesting battle to watch will be on the blue line where the battle for six through ten on the depth chart continues. Older players, Aaron Johnson, Bret Palin, and Alexander Sulzer are competing against youngsters, Ryan Ellis and Ryan Ryan Parent for a spot on the roster.
Other than Weber, none of the six D-Men playing tonight are a lock to start the season in Nashville. Parent probably has the best shot to stay. Ellis is the most likely to leave, eventually heading back to Juniors with specific instructions to focus on the defensive side of his game.
Johnson and Palin were both picked up in the off-season as defensive depth players. Palin has spent the last five years in the Calgary Flames organization playing in the AHL. Last season, he started the season as the captain in Abbotsford but was limited to 21 games due to injury.
Johnson has played 225 NHL games with Columbus, NY Islanders, Chicago, Calgary and Edmonton, picking up 14 goals and 32 assists at the NHL level.
In goal, Pekka Rinne will probably start and will be followed by Anders Lindback, who was impressive last night against Carolina, stopping all 15 shots.
Washington's squad will feature Mike Green, Nicklas Backstrom, and Mike Knuble. Ovechkin and Alexander Semin did not make the trip.
Here are the complete rosters as announced by the Predators.
Nashville Predators
2 D Aaron Johnson
3 RW Wade Belak
5 C Blake Geoffrion
6 D Shea Weber
9 C Marcel Goc
13 C Nick Spaling
15 C Matthew Lombardi
23 D Brett Palin
24 RW Matt Halischuk
26 RW Steve Sullivan
27 RW Patric Hornqvist
33 C Colin Wilson
38 LW Kelsey Wilson
49 D Ryan Ellis
52 D Alexander Sulzer
71 RW J.P. Dumont
74 LW Sergei Kostitsyn
77 D Ryan Parent
35 G Pekka Rinne
39 G Anders Lindback
Washington Capitals
3 D Tom Poti
4 D John Erskine
15 F Boyd Gordon
16 F Eric Fehr
19 F Nicklas Backstrom
20 F Keith Aucoin
21 F Brooks Laich
22 F Mike Knuble
23 D Lawrence Nycholat
24 F Brian Willsie
26 F Matt Hendricks
36 F Francois Bouchard
42 F Steve Pinizzotto
44 D Brian Fahey
50 F Cody Eakin
52 D Mike Green
55 D Jeff Schultz
75 D Grant McNeill
83 F Jay Beagle
89 D Tyler Sloan
90 F Marcus Johansson
30 G Michal Neuvirth
35 G Dany Sabourin
More Later...
Buddy Oakes for PredsOnTheGlass
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