Nashville Predators Look to the $49 Million Man for the Stanley Cup by Get Real Hockey

The Nashville Predators resigned goaltender Pekka Rinne to a 7-year $49 million dollar contract last week making him the highest paid player in franchise history. Not only does this signing mean that Nashville is willing to dip a little farther into the cap to keep a franchise and Vezina quality goaltender around. It also is the first step towards the important goal of keeping captain Shea Weber. The extension to Rinne’s contract says that Nashville is serious about taking steps towards winning the Cup sometime in the near future.






Rinne celebrated his new deal, signed on his twenty first birthday, by shutting out the Phoenix Coyotes 3-0. For Preds fans across the world this shut out was a welcome sight. Rinne has been absolutely outstanding so far this season, however, at times he has given up goals that were unlike the Rinne of last season. Rinne is already the franchise leader in shutouts and currently leads the league in shutouts, a trend that probably won’t be changing anytime soon. As the face of an organization that has struggled to get respected, and publicity the long term signing of Rinne is the best thing that has happened. Finally the Predators have proved to fans that they are ready to stop the recent trend in the revolving goaltending door. Over the course of franchise history almost every solid starting goalie has been pushed out by his backup. Examples are Dunham starting till Vokoun started shining, goodbye Dunham. Vokoun enjoyed a stellar career in Nashville until Chris Mason proved to be worthy as a starter, after Mason came Ellis, then Rinne. Last season the trend appeared it might continue on as backup Anders Lindback stepped up and played unbelievably when Rinne was injured.





This contract symbolizes several things that Predators fans everywhere can celebrate. The end of the revolving goaltending, that the Predators are willing to dig deep into their pockets to help make a run at the cup. Hopefully this is just the first of the Predators resigning the rest of the Big 3. As a Predators fan I can only hope that Suter and Weber will feel that this is an organization that is moving in the right direction to win a Stanley Cup in the near future, and the sign a long term contract just like Rinne has.





- Isaac Berky
 
Credits: http://www.getrealhockey.blogspot.com/

Nashville Predators lose series to Vancouver but best is yet to come

The most successful season in Nashville Predators history came to a close last night. The Vancouver Canucks capitalized on early mistakes from the Preds and defeated them 2-1 in front of a sold out Bridgestone Arena.




This game will be remembered for the missed opportunities Nashville had. The Predators allowed two early goals by Mason Raymond and Daniel Sedin ten minutes into the game, as the highly energized and frenzied pace seemed to work against the home team. This lost marks the third time Vancouver has beaten the Preds at home in this series. Nashville was able to get back into the game thanks to improbable goal by David Legwand. The veteran forward scored on a banking shot that hit off of Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo’s leg.



But Nashville wouldn’t be able to get any closer. The Predators couldn’t exploit its power play opportunities as they were just 1-21 in the series while having the man advantage. Nashville had an 18 shotson goal compared to Vancouver’s 9 but the Canucks were able to put 2 of those shots in net.



“I thought we played the first two periods as well as we’ve played all in the playoffs,” coach Barry Trotz said. “The first period was a little disturbing because according to our [calculations] and what we track … we were outchancing them 11-2 and we were losing 2-0.



Vancouver’s Ryan Kesler continued to be the thorn inside of Nashville’s side as he recored assists on both goals for the Canucks. The first would come off a Ryan Suter turnover that happened to be near the net. Kesler zipped a pass to Raymond for a backhanded shot past Pekka Rinne.



This was a disappointing end to an otherwise great season for Nashville. The Predators won their first playoff series in defeating the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, recorded their first playoff victory in overtime, their first playoff road victory, the teams first win in an elimination game (Saturday night in Vancouver, forcing Monday’s game six), and set the single season attendance record averaging 15,562 655 a game at Bridgestone Arena



The Predators ownership is hoping that this season’s momentum rolls over as they now turn their attention to key off-season moves. This includes re-signing their top restricted and unrestricted players. The first player on that list has to be Shea Weber (who had the best beard in the world by the way), earned $4.5 million this season. He could command as much as $7 million and any team (and there will be many) that is willing to make that offer could possibly take him away from the Predators. Goalie Pekka Rinne is locked up for next season but the Preds would be smart to lock up the Vezina trophy finalist up long term. Steve Sullivan is a fan favorite for all of years of fighting injury but with his contract up and his health down as he only played a limited amount of games this year; his time may be up in Nashville. Joel Ward had a breakthrough in the playoffs and his $1.5 million salary will surely increase in the open market as he is an unrestricted free agent. He may have played himself out of Nashville’s price range. The list goes on as Nashville would probably like to lock up Defensemen Ryan Suter up long-term as well.



The challenge the Predators face now is sustaining the success that they have achieved this year. This is a team on the rise as long as their core stays intact with Weber, Suter and Rinne. They have the playoff experience needed to advance in future playoffs. They also have a number of possible impact players in the minors including local favorite Blake Geoffrion, Defensemen Jonathon Blum, and left-winger Taylor Beck. If the Preds can find a way to add some scoring punch to the lineup, that would take this team to a new level. As Ryan Kesler of the Canucks proved, a dynamic scoring wing can pay big dividends in the playoffs. Hopefully the Preds can sign a talented offensive wing to add to an already tenacious defense, but that may be hard to due considering the players that are already in line for new contracts. The salary cap also isn’t Nashville’s friend as they have one of the lower payrolls in the league.



Above all the uncertainty about the Predators, we can all agree that this was a watershed moment type of season for them. They have gained respect from non-believers who never thought a hockey team could survive here and gained numerous new fans with their tough grind it out style. Even though this wasn’t the ending we wanted in Smashville it’s only the beginning of bigger and better things for Hockeytonk.



Congratulations to the Nashville Predators for a great season and we look forward to an even better one next year.

The Memphis Grizzlies and the Nashville Predators give Tennessee a taste of post-season success:

A couple of weeks ago I assessed the post-season success or should I say unsuccessfulness of Tennessee’s professional sports franchises. (See: http://www.noomizo.com/index.php/the-tennessee-sports-fan-conundrum-why-cant-tennessees-professional-sports-teams-acheive-post-season-success/) and as always it seems my foot has now been placed firmly in my mouth. The Memphis Grizzlies at the time had never even won a playoff game, and were given the tall task of facing the number one seed of the NBA’s western conference in the San Antonio Spurs. The Nashville Predators hadn’t won a playoff series and were facing arguably the hottest NHL team coming into the playoffs in the Anaheim Mighty Ducks. As much as I credit myself for knowing a thing or two about our local pro teams, little did I and for the most part the state of Tennessee anticipate that we would be treated to a pair of fast-paced and exciting NHL and NBA playoff series victories for both teams.

The Predators got things started as they battled Anaheim in a highly entertaining back and forth battle of up-tempo teams. The series featured everything you want in an NHL series with brutal hits (Martin Erat had four teeth knocked out by Jarkko Ruutu in game 4), spectacular goals (You won’t find a better one than Bobby Ryan’s amazing goal in game 5), suspensions (Ryan for stomping Jonanthon Blum’s foot) and a dramatic come from behind victory overtime thriller in game 5.

The Preds fought for every inch of ice and resembled the hard nosed blue collar team they always have been under Barry Trotz. Shea Weber, Ryan Suter, Pekka Rinne, and Mike Fisher all showed at various points why they are so valuable to the team. But it was also the unsung heroes in Jered Smithson with his game-winning shot in OT of game 5 as well as Nick Spaling scoring two goals in the game 6 clincher, detailing the entire team effort. They also stole the hearts of Nashville in the process as the sold out Bridgestone arena was rocking in every game. “Hockeytonk” showed to be alive and well in “Smashville” as fans came out in droves to see their Predators. The local and national media have finally caught on as the media presence at Predator games has nearly tripled. They have given us locals something else to talk about other than the Titans and the NFL lockout labor strife. They have made us proud and proved that hockey can survive in this non-traditional southern market.

The Predators have fought for respect since they arrived in Nashville. They seem to finally be getting there just due as Head Coach Barry Trotz has been nominated for the Jack Adams award for coach of the year, Goalie Pekka Rinne is up for the Vezina trophy for best goalie and defensemen Shea Weber is a finalist for the Norris trophy awarded to the NHL’s best defensemen. As critical as the press has been about Nashville’s hockey team, it seems that things are finally changing for the better. The Predators attendance has steadily increased as the chart below shows. And now with the playoff victory under their belt, the numbers should only get better.

Season Avg. Paid Avg. Comps

2008-09 14,189 852

2009-10 14,155 834

2010-11 15,562 655

The Memphis Grizzlies have come into their own at the right time as they took down perennial playoff power San Antonio Spurs in just six games. The Spurs were the number one seed in the west and Memphis was given little hope of winning a couple of games much less the entire series. The Grizzlies came out in game 1 and showed the Spurs they meant business as they punished San Antonio in the post thanks to Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph. The newly minted “Bruise Brothers” just obliterated the older Spurs team on the inside. San Antonio had no answer for the multi skilled big men as Memphis ran its offense to perfection thru the duo. The Spurs tried everything including small lineups and inserting seldom used rookie Tiago Splitter in favor of undersized and ineffective Dejuan Blair. Memphis also used a stifling perimeter defense featuring perimeter pit-bulls Shane Battier and Tony Allen. One of the surprising and ironic events is how the injury of the Grizzlies most athletic player in Rudy Gay has allowed the paring of Battier and Allen to attack other team’s best wing players. The lethal 3-point shooters of the Spurs were limited to just 29.4% in the series after shooting an NBA best 39.7% during the regular season. Marc Gasol has made the trade of his brother Pau to L.A mentionable in these parts again as he has developed into one of the better center in the league. He averaged 20 points and 16 rebounds against the Spurs

However, maybe the biggest story of the Grizzlies surprising run has to be the emergence of Zack Randolph as their go to clutch performer. Randolph as you remember was the enigmatic head case that made stops in Portland, L.A., and New York before arriving in Memphis. He was a player who reputation had preceded him. He was known for having talent but not the work ethic that was needed to become a consistent star. Randolph is now proving that he has moved past those demons as he carried the Grizzlies past San Antonio averaging 27 points and 11 rebounds for the series. He bullied his way to the hoop and showed a soft leathery jump shot from the outside. He made the game winning 3-pointer in game 3 that stunned the Spurs so much that they never recovered from it (Tim Duncan looked as if his eye-balls were going to pop out).

Credit also has to be given to the Grizzlies coaching and bench play as Head Coach Lionel Hollins has mixed and matched players until he finally settled on a unit featuring hard nosed defenders in Darrell Arthur and Sam Young and balanced it out with skilled offensive players O.J Mayo and Grevis Vasquez. Memphis has taking on the identity of its coach Hollins who was a member of the 1977 and 1978 NBA all-defensive teams. He relishes the opportunity for his team to get out in passing lanes and playing in your face pressure defense. Hollins has been the steady hand that has led Memphis to respectablity. He has taken this team and made it his as he has navigated thru the Allen Iverson debacle and enstilled confidence in Point Guard Mike Conley by giving him the minutes he needed to become a solid leader on the team.

As a result of their attainment both the Grizzlies and the Predators have made this spring much more interesting here in Tennessee. The teams continue their march into history as the Preds now are facing the number one seeded Vancouver Canucks. The Grizzlies are taking on up and coming Oklahoma City, a team featuring one of the best players in the world in Kevin Durant. There are so many similarities in these teams as both face stiff challenges in their quests to bring home championship hardwood that has eluded the volunteer state. They are both hard working blue collar teams that don’t have the name recognition as the big cities teams do. Nashville and Memphis have also proved that they are hungry for more as well, as they have both already taken a victory in their second round series.These two teams have captured the spirit of Tennessee, from the rolling hills and country music of the mid-state to the bar-b-qued filled aroma and fun loving elements of Beale Street of Memphis. These two teams have a chance to go down in Rocky Top lore.

The Weekend Run-down April 18, 2011

NBA Playoffs Opening Acts – After one of the most exciting and entreating NBA seasons in history, the NBA showcased what might be the best ever playoffs as well. The post season opened with three stunning first game upsets (Grizzlies over Spurs, Hornets over Lakers and Hawks over Magic) to get things started. The stars showed up as Chris Paul went off for a ridiculous 33 points, 7 rebounds, 14 assists and 3 steals in the Hornets big victory of the Lakers. Chicago’s Derrick Rose continued his MVP campaign as he would not let the Bulls lose scoring 39 points and controlling the last part of the game with his unstoppable moves against Indiana. Not be outdone, Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant poured in 41 points in the Thunder’s victory of the Denver Nuggets. The most disturbing big time performance has to go to Orlando’s Dwight Howard. The big man was in beast mode as he scored 46 points and collected 19 boards. There is no way that your best player puts up those kinds of numbers and his team still loses by double digits. Someone needs to put out an APB for the rest of Orlando’s starters not named Dwight Howard or Jameer Nelson. Boston was down most of the game against the New York Knicks but was saved by Ray Allen as he hit the game winning 3-pointer in the waning moments of game 1 of this renewed rivalry. I can’t remember a better opening act to the NBA playoffs than this one. There wasn’t a bad game out of the bunch and it is just the beginning.

Predators take a 2-1 series lead over Ducks: Smashville came out in full support of its Nashville Predators as a raucous sell-out crowd of 17,113 flooded Bridgestone Arena to see the Preds defeat the Anaheim Mighty Ducks 4-3. The Preds capitalized on the suspension of Anaheim’s Bobby Ryan out shooting the Ducks 37-16. Mike Fisher gave the Preds the lead for good as he scored at the 10:21 mark in the third period. Nashville’s prime-time players showed up as Captain Shea Webber scored a goal (His seventh goal tying the Nashville’s Predators all-time mark), Martin Erat had a power-play goal and an assist. David Legwand and Jordin Tootoo also scored. Ryan Suter had two assists. The Predators could not let this opportunity pass as Anaheim’s second leader scorer Ryann was suspended for stomping defensemen Jonathon Blum’s foot in Friday’s game. The Predators look to take a commanding 3-1 lead this Wednesday at Bridgestone Arena. The Preds have all the momentum and hopefully are on their way to winning their first ever playoff series.

Jimmie Johnson wins closest race ever at Talladega: It was a two man race the whole way and almost at the finish line. The five-time defending Sprint cup champ held on to the victory over Clint Bowyer by two-thousandths of a second with a little help from Dale Earnhardt Jr. Little E played good teammate and help catapult Johnson to victory. Saying Junior sacrificed is an understatement, as he carries a 101 race winless streak and also the burden of being the most popular Sprint cup driver. If I couldn't win the race,'' Junior said, "I wanted Jimmie to win the race, because I had worked with him all day and he is my teammate.'' This was the closet victory ever in a Sprint cup race as it tied Ricky Craven’s win at Darlington in 2003. Earnhardt Jr. would still end up in fourth place as the top eight drives were separated by a mere 0.145 seconds. Talladega will always be good for paint swapping as there were twenty-six leaders and the lead car changed a whopping 88 times, tying the record from last year’s race. Johnson made sure to give Earnhardt his due by giving him the checkered flag but initially Earnhardt was reluctant to accept. "He said it belonged to me, but I don't agree with that," Earnhardt said after his fourth-place finish. "I appreciate it. I'll get him to sign it and it'll be one checkered flag that ain't mine."