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Preds squeak by ATL 2-1

Tonight the Preds visited Atlanta and squeaked out a 2-1 victory over the host Thrashers. The Preds got goals in the first from Ryan Suter and Colin Wilson. They then rode on the back of strong play from Dan Ellis in net to keep Atlanta from scoring a goal to tie it after Antropov scored within the first minute of the second period. The Preds played a solid opening period of play, limiting the opponents chances to the outside and pushing back a team that is coached with an emphasis on the attack. After the first intermission the Preds played the majority of game quite lackadaisically, and while the Thrashers didn’t play their way back into the game as much as the score suggests, the Thrashers did generate enough offense to keep things tense. In the end it wasn’t enough and the Preds skated off with a huge 2 point gain in the Western Conference standings.
* According to the official scoresheet, the attendance in Atlanta tonight was just over 11k. If that’s true, then they must have stayed in the lobby. I would ball park it around 7k in attendance and even that feels a bit generous.
*I have to say I wasn’t terribly inspired by any of the even strength lines. The Suter goal came on the team’s first power play opportunity, and the Wilson goal was his own, as he jumped on a defensive gaff while on the forecheck and lifted the puck past Hedberg after an efficient deke. Hopefully some chemistry is developed soon as this is a critical roadtrip and has the potential to be a season ending run without some wins.
*It was a lot of fun to be a Pred fan in enemy territory tonight. The Preds heads very a very vocal group jeering the opposition and it was very easy to understand what was being said. Very well done. According to tweeters watching from home our taunts were coming through on the TV feed. Well done indeed.
*Up next for your Predators are 3 games in 4 nights, 2 of which are against teams jockeying with the Preds (Ducks and Kings). First on the interary are the San Jose Sharks on Thursday.


Until next time – Big Kev

Welcome to the ice your bi-polar Predators

Allow me to lead this post with an apology. This post will probably be a lot more erratic and grammatically mangled than usual. I'm tired. I'm frustrated. I trust you'll bear with me.

Frustrations abound for the hockey faithful of the Nashville Predators as the team returned from the Olympic break on Tuesday. The team made a statement in goaltending in signing netminder Pekka Rinne to a 2 year extension during the break, and as the team faced off against the Oilers, he nestled between the pipes as the established future of Predator goaltending for at least the next few years. Thanks to goals from newly acquired defenseman Denis Grebeshkov, rookie Colin Wilson, all-star blueliner Shea Weber and captain Jason Arnott, the Preds sloppily squeezed out a 4-3 win in the venue's debut game as the Bridgestone Arena. Rinne was not tested frequently, and turned aside 22 of 25 shots in the win. Both teams showed a lot of rust in the game, and I felt that the line of Wilson-O'Rielly-Tootoo was the best forward line of the night. Wilson's game was particularly strong, having a couple of takeaways, playing strong along the walls, winning battles, and one of those little things they call a goal. On Thursday, the Preds wrapped up a nice birthday present for me in the form of a 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings, who are one of several teams involved in the race for the final playoff spots in the West. Rinne again got the start, looking more comfortable in net than he had on Tuesday, but once again was not tested heavily, stopping 20 of 22 shots. I'll be honest, I didn't get to watch Friday's game at Detroit. However, from following the tweets of my fellow Pred fans throughout the game, as well as the game recaps provided by much more capable bloggers than myself, it seems as though the only Predator who came to play was goalie Dan Ellis. The Preds were never in this game and lost the game 5-2, as well as Olympic goaltender Shea Weber with what appeared to be an arm or hand injury. Weber has been listed as day-to-day and Cody Franson was recalled to fill his spot on the roster. Today the Preds had a matinee faceoff against the Northeast Division leader Vancouver Canucks. In all 4 games played since returning from the break, the Preds have allowed the first goal, this time allowing Edler to find himself alone in the slot, who quickly wired a wrist shot past Rinne. Arnott struck on the power-play to even the score, and Tootoo brought the Preds into the lead in the 2nd, tapping his own rebound over the shoulder of Luongo. Simple breakdowns allowed Samuelson and Hansen to get 2 goals on Rinne in the 3rd period, and an empty netter allowed the Canucks to leave The Bridge with a 4-2 win and, more importantly, a HUGE 2 points in the standings.

*The goaltending HAS to improve. Rinne had a very strong opening 2 periods tonight, but the 2nd goal was from a terrible angle from distance and was not a quick, surprise shot. Rinne has a history of giving up these bad angle shots. I have wondered about whether his height factors into it. Could he be having to bend over so far to get under the crossbar, that it exposes the area between his body and the post? If so, it is up to him and goaltending coach Mitch Korn to make the necessary adjustments.

*I'm very encouraged by the continued strong play of rookie Colin Wilson. I have been curious if the addition of Boyd would force a numbers game that would result in Wilson being returned to Milwaukee, but Wilson is certainly making a case for himself.

*Everyone wants to know what Trotz has refused to split Hamhuis and Klein, and you can count me among them. This pairing isn't working. It hasn't all season.

*Boyd certainly was an encouraging part of tonight's game, his Predators debut. I am curious about how much of an opportunity he'll get to succeed. He comes onto a team loaded with 3rd- and 4th-liners, which has actually been handling itself well in terms of secondary scoring, while the top 6 "big guns" continue to struggle. If he continues this strong play, he makes his case to become a fixture in the lineup.

*It's been a real treat to not see Belak in the lineup. Belak seems a nice guy, but does not provide a contribution to the games, and therefore I label him "useless boob." I will not change my mind.

*I miss Jan Hlavac. I still think Poile was foolish to let him walk.

*I had the pleasure of bumping into fellow Tweeter @predsaddict for a post-game meal at the Murfreesboro Steak & Shake, though quite by accident. I had a great time discussing the team with her and her friend and look forward to speaking with her again.


I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below! Until next time, God bless! - Big Kev

Roster recap

An amazing series of Olympic games has passed and the NHL returned to action this week, with the Preds having played host twice this week to a couple of teams with the trade-deadline day sandwiched in between the 2 games. The season has gone as I predicted it would back in September, and the Oilers found themselves facing the need to make changes as they prepare to reload, if not rebuild, so Monday they exchanged D Denis Grebeshkov with Nashville for a second-round pick in the upcoming draft. On Tuesday, the Predators placed Ryan Jones on waivers in preparation to send him to Milwaukee, but he was instead picked up by Edmonton and was immediately put to work, facing off against the Blackhawks on Wednesday night. Personally, I don't think Nashville as a team feels the loss of Jones. I never had a problem with Jones' game, but his style of play never seemed to mesh with Trotz's system. I expect he'll do well in Edmonton which seems to rely a little more on speed and creativity, where Nashville is a little more defensively sound. Wednesday was a record-setting trade deadline day, but Nashville was one of the less active teams with only one trade made. The Preds sent their fourth-round pick to Calgary in exchange for utility forward Dustin Boyd, who has scored 19 points (8g,11a) this season. I believe both trades were calculated decisions toward improving an uncharacteristically poor penalty kill, and thus I was happy to see Preds GM David Poile improving his club where he could. There were a couple of things that I found intriguing about these trades. Grebeshkov does bring with him a $3.1 million price tag for this season, which of course is prorated over these last 6 weeks of the regular season. On its own, this is certainly a manageable pricetag for a top-4 defenseman, even on a small market budget. However, Grebeshkov is a restricted free agent this summer, meaning that if the club intends to extend him, they will likely have to give him a raise. The concern this raises is that it begins to suggest the money that will be needed to keep fellow defenseman Dan Hamhuis on the team. Both Hamhuis and David Poile have expressed a mutual desire to reach an extension to keep him and his family in Music City long term, but I expect that Hamhuis will feel he deserves on par or in excess of Grebeshkov if he remains in house. My curiousity with Boyd is that he is coming into a team that has begun to settle on its 3rd and 4th line players. Just prior to the Olympic break the team decided to recall Colin Wilson and Wilson came to play, convincing the staff to call him back up again as the team was preparing to begin the sprint to the postseason coming out of the Olympic break. I get the feeling that the team is prepared to stay with Wilson for long haul, and the other 3rd and 4th liners around him are established NHLers, save for Hornqvist. The point being none of these players are likely to be going back down to Milwaukee, unless there game falls apart. So where does Boyd fit into the roster? Who rides the pine to create the opening for him? I guess we'll see tonight when Nashville visits Detroit to face off with the Red Wings, after which I aspire to have a new post for my thoughts on this weeks games.

As always, I look forward to your thoughts and comments. - Big Kev