Forsberg to stay in Nashville?

This is sheer speculation, but I sure hope ESPN analyst Terry Frei is right:

Q: Might Peter Forsberg return to Philadelphia?

A: Maybe, because he's been there long enough to hear the argument that many locals prefer Jim's to Geno's (order in English only, please) and Pat's. But I'm in the minority: I think he's going to come around to choosing between re-signing with the Predators, if he's healthy enough and they want him, or going home to Sweden … and staying there.

For the record, Frei, who has written for both Denver newspapers as well, has been pretty fair to the Preds over the years, pointing out attendance issues when necessary but noting successes on and off the ice, too.

Preds attendance soaring since All-Star Break

The Preds currently have the best record in the NHL, but Nashville has taken a beating this season among hockey writers and fans for not filling seats to support the team.

Since the All-Star Break in late January, the Preds are averaging 16,122 fans per game and have sold out four of their past eight games. This doesn't put the team on par with the nightly capacity crowds in hockey hotbeds such as Toronto, Detroit and Montreal, but it is a major improvement. Fans are supporting this team, and crowds this season (as usual) have been engaged and vocal when it comes to what is taking place on the ice. This is not front-page news in the hockey world, but I'd like to see some of the Preds' harsher critics from traditional hockey circles at least note that the community is filling seats to cheer on the team instead of continuing to pile on based on attendance numbers from earlier in the season. Here are the Preds' figures since the All-Star break (sellouts designated with an asterisk):

Feb. 3 Ducks: 17,113*
Feb. 8 Leafs: 15,018
Feb. 10 Kings: 17,113*
Feb. 14 Sharks: 13,836
Feb. 17 Wild: 17,113*
Feb. 19 Coyotes: 15,862
Feb. 22 Canadiens: 15,808
Feb. 24: Red Wings 17,113*

I'm curious why there has not been much mention of New Jersey's attendance woes. A perennial playoff team during the past decade that is currently right behind the Preds in the overall standings, the Devils rank below Nashville in attendance in a much larger market (Newark, Exit 16W, Northern New Jersey, whatever you choose to call it). Why is Nashville drawing the ire of reporters and fans who consider themselves insiders while New Jersey, a team that would have relocated to Nashville in 1995 if they had not pulled off a Cinderella run to win the Stanley Cup, is not?

Sports Illustrated's Farber checks out Preds

Want to peek inside the Preds' locker room? Sports Illustrated writer Michael Farber has written a great story that includes plenty of details about the team's behind-the-scenes atmosphere:

[Barry] Trotz, the only coach in Predators history, mixes realism with an inveterate optimism. In the days leading to Saturday's game, Predators' coaches were forbidden to bring up their Thursday-night loss to the Montreal Canadiens, in which Nashville squandered three two-goal leads and lost in a shootout. Anyone caught talking about how Nashville had kicked away a precious point would have been expected to contribute to the Negativity Fund -- a so-labeled plastic container in the coaches' office that staff members pay into for spreading bad vibes. On Friday associate coach Brent Peterson wrote energy and patience on a whiteboard as coaching guidelines for practice. Then he began to write NO S-A-R.. before stopping. "How," he asked, "do you spell sarcasm?"

The stakes will be high over the next few weeks as the Preds continue their playoff run, but Farber reveals that the team engages in other matchups with nearly the same intensity:

The most riveting pre-Red Wings activity came on Friday at the clubhouse Ping-Pong table at which Forsberg, who says he was unbeaten during his season and a half with the Flyers, dropped games to winger Martin Erat and to goaltender Tomas Vokoun, before avenging the loss to Vokoun as teammates yelped. When the table tennis ended, hockey practice began: a sprightly, energetic session. No negativity anywhere.

Forsberg may have his hands full on the ping-pong table, but it looks like he's starting to fit in just fine in the locker room and on the ice. I've loved watching this team on the ice since year one in 1998, and it's great to hear a little bit about how things play out away from the rink, too.

Road trip will boost Preds

I agree with Coach Trotz that the current Preds road trip is likely to only help make Nashville an even better team as it enters the stretch run before the playoffs:

One of the plusses of the Predators' longest road trip of the season — five games over 10 days — is that the team will get some bonding time with recent acquisitions Peter Forsberg and Vitaly Vishnevski. "You can say all you want while you're at home, but you don't bond as well," Predators Coach Barry Trotz said. "Over the next 10 days, we're going to be on the road and it's a bunch of guys together on the road, sort of against the world. We just have to bear down and hopefully pull together."

One benefit of having all eyes on Forsberg since the trade is that Vishnevski has likely been able to integrate with his new team that much more easily. He isn't the one who's every move is being watched, and so far he appears to be fitting in well.

Does Forsberg want to be here?

It's not really fair to be questioning this so soon after such a huge trade, but last night's game has me wondering a bit. Consider this item from John Glennon's recap of the Preds' 6-5 loss to Montreal last night:

Predators Coach Barry Trotz asked center Peter Forsberg whether he wanted to be one of the top three shootout participants against the Canadiens, but Forsberg declined."He said he didn't want to go as one of the first three,'' Trotz said. "He just said it wasn't something he didn't feel real strong about, so I listened to him.''Forsberg was the fourth Predators shooter, but slipped as he neared the Montreal crease and failed to get off a quality attempt.

Peter Forsberg is reportedly a humble locker-room leader, so maybe he's just deferring to the team's established leaders. I attended the game last night, and it was a little disconcerting to learn after the fact that Forsberg turned down Coach Trotz's first request to participate in the shootout. Putting him on the ice in the sudden-death round with the game on the line added even more pressure, and even NHL superstars are human and can't make a spectacular play every time.

The trade is already paying dividends in the stands and around the city, and the team can afford the steep price it paid because it didn't require a big departure from the current roster. There are rumblings around the league that Forsberg may already have it in mind to return to Philadelphia in the offseason, but some of those rumors are from Flyers fans who are disappointed about an unexpectedly awful season for their favorite team.

Forsberg has made no promises to the Preds, but he did waive a no-trade clause in his contract to allow the deal to happen. He was serving as Philadelphia's captain, though, and perhaps he sees this move as a way to help the Flyers' future because he has been limited so far this season for them on the ice.

I hope he will at least give Nashville the honor of keeping an open mind about our team and our community. This could very well be a great place for him to earn another championship, whether this year or thereafter, and it could be a great and welcoming place for him to complete his career, too.

Playing in two quick home games after arriving as the savior via a blockbuster trade will put pressure on anyone, even a premier athlete. The long road trip that starts next week will be a big challenge for the team, but I have a feeling it will be a very good thing for Forsberg's Predators tenure.

This goal shouldn't have counted...

... but I'm sure glad it did. Did anyone else notice how much the Preds' Martin Erat was offside before he assisted on David Legwand's goal in the second period tonight? The Preds went on to beat the Anaheim Ducks 5-4 in overtime, but I could tell watching in real time that Erat was either much faster than everyone on the ice or past the blue line before the puck. I didn't hear Pete and Terry point out the missed call, but maybe they were just being nice.

The DVR didn't lie: Erat was easily five feet ahead of the puck into the zone. I think the ref must have missed the offsides call because he was busy avoiding the puck. His head was turned away from Erat, and by the time he recovered Erat and the puck were even.

I'm happy the Preds won against the NHL's current best team, but these two points should come with an asterisk attached. Regardless, go Preds!!

Preds bounce back

You know things are good for the Preds when earning a split against the Wings and Avs has me wanting more. After being shut out 3-0 by Detroit Friday night, Nashville responded with a hard-fought 1-0 shutout win of its own over Colorado.

Scoring a total of one goal in a two-game stretch is a concern to me, but I'm hoping it's a symptom of the six-day layover between games prior to Friday. Still, it's great to earn two points with only a single goal.

The Preds took a lot of penalties this weekend, and it cost them against the Wings. They survived it against the Avalanche, but only because Chris Mason stood on his head making saves. The Preds take the road again this week to face Columbus on Wednesday, and here's hoping for fewer penalties and more offense. Go Preds!!

Wings shut Preds down, out

The Red Wings were the better team on the ice last night in Detroit, period. They defeated the Preds 3-0 and effectively answered the bell in this first matchup of the young 2006-07 season.

Detroit came out flying in the first period while Nashville looked a half-step behind. The Wings carried the play for much of the period, and the Preds took too many penalties. Robert Lang tallied on the power play to give Detroit the only score it would need. Nashville gave up an unnerving 20 shots in the opening frame, too. The Wings also heavily outperformed the Preds in winning faceoffs, which never helps.

Niklas Lidstrom added a score early in the third that gave the Wings an extra cushion. Though the Preds never tallied, they did sustain increased pressure during the period before allowing an empty-net goal late.

Here are a few isolated observations I had during the game, too:

• Martin Erat continues to play extremely well. He is as physical as ever, and his stickhandling is spectacular at times.
• Josef Vasicek had his first ice time in a few weeks returning from injury. I didn't notice him in the first period, but he was aggressive in the second. It's good to see him healthy again.
• Henrik Zetterberg is blazing fast. He blazed past Paul Kariya in one stretch, and that's a tough thing to do.
  

The Preds finally return home tonight with a chance to bounce back against the Colorado Avalanche. Nashville's overall and road winning streaks had to end eventually, and here's hoping that the team can get back on the right track quickly after this setback in Detroit.

Preds rolling

Wow. The Preds are red hot. Nashville completed a rare (first-ever?) sweep through Western Canada with a 5-3 victory over Edmonton last night. In the process, the Preds (8-3-1) handed the Oilers their first home loss this season.

The Preds limited shots on goal (22) again, a good sign, but they surrendered another late goal before adding an empty netter of their own. I have a hard time griping when the team is playing so well, but continuing to give up goals late in regulation is a concern.

The Preds head to Minnesota for another challenging matchup on Saturday night before taking a six-day break in advance of their first tilt against the Red Wings on Nov. 10. Nashville leads the Central Division by two points over Detroit.

Preds top Canucks

The Preds continued their hot streak on the road last night by hanging on to win 3-2 in Vancouver. Nashville yet again surrendered a 2-0 lead in the third, but Steve Sullivan made an incredible play to follow up on his own breakaway attempt and score with just over five minutes remaining. The pattern of relinquishing leads (four out of the past five games) continues to be a concern, but a win is a win. The Preds (7-3-1) are now alone in first place in the Central Division, and they take on a tough Edmonton Oilers team (7-4) in Alberta tonight. Edmonton is 6-0 at home this season, and Nashville is red-hot overall (7-0-1 since starting the season 0-3) and on the road. Great timing for what should be a great matchup.

The Canucks crowd booed Tomas Vokoun at every opportunity last night. I tuned in late and couldn't understand why, but apparently he may have "embellished" an early goaltender interference call by falling to the ice. I didn't see it, but two Canucks bloggers had opinions to share: Amanda and, ahem, Flow.

Tough one for the Preds

The Preds take on the Vancouver Canucks on the road tonight. As the Vancouver Sun reports, the Preds are pretty hot right now, but they generally don't play well in British Columbia. Nashville is 3-10-1 all-time (with the 1 being a tie prior to the arrival of the shootout) at Vancouver, but a lot of those losses were absorbed by less talented Preds teams. It should be another good test for a young and promising Preds squad. Here's hoping the Preds get out to a steady lead and, for once this season, hold onto it. Go Preds!!

Preds edge Sharks

The Preds (5-3-1) edged the Sharks (7-4) by a score of 4-3 last night in a thrilling, fast and physical matchup. Here are my answers for yesterday's three questions:

1. I don't think the Preds' five-day break between games or the Sharks' game on Wednesday night seemed to matter much on the ice. This was a hard-fought, physical game the whole way through, and it was really fun to watch.
2. The Preds outshot the Sharks 29-27 and, most importantly, considerably reduced their shots against from 46 during their previous game. That's a good sign.
3. The Sharks still outmuscled the Preds at times in the first and third periods, but the Preds' size upgrades were noticeable on the ice. They dominated the second period, too.

Here are a few other observations I had while watching the game. Both teams forecheck aggressively, and that made for a lot of back-and-forth skating. On the Sharks goal that opened the scoring at 1-0, Dan Hamhuis only partially connected on his signature hip check near the left boards, and Joe Thornton (who was a beast all night) shook it off and found Mark Bell for an easy goal.

Alexander Radulov's score to tie the game at 1-1 was a wicked wrister that caught Sharks goalie Vesa Toskala totally off guard. Not bad for Radulov's first NHL goal. As he should have, Radulov was exuberant in the wake of the score and leapt off the ice before being surrounded by his teammates. Radulov logged about 11 minutes of ice time and was all over the place during play. He looks to be a stud in waiting behind a talented set of Preds forwards. He easily slipped behind the Sharks defense a couple of times and was blazing fast at times. He played sound positionally on most shifts and had a couple of solid checks, too. He didn't hesitate to get in front of Toskala in the second period and attempt a redirect on a shot from the point, either.

Scott Hartnell was a force on the ice all night. His goal to make the score 2-1 came on a pretty tic-tac-toe passing play that left him alone in front of the net. His second goal late in the contest, the eventual game winner, was all hustle and a brilliant play, as he bounced the puck off Toskala from behind the goal. The Arnott, Kariya and Erat line played extremely well all night and continues to be huge for the Preds. Erat, in particular, stands out in my mind so far this season as the team's most improved player. Tomas Vokoun was exceptional in net, as usual, and he bailed the Preds out at times in the third. I am concerned that the Preds yet again surrendered a two-goal advantage in allowing the Sharks to tie the game 3-3, but they didn't buckle down the stretch.

All in all, this was a good way to wrap up a short homestand and head out for a long road trip on a high note. We'll see how the team plays as it makes the typically tough Northwest swing through Canada over the next week or so. Go Preds!

Preds back in action

The Preds (4-3-1) are back in action tonight hosting the San Jose Sharks (7-3) , and I'm pondering the following questions as they prepare to take the ice:

1. What will matter more: the Preds' five-day break since losing to Vancouver on Saturday, or the Sharks' loss to the Red Wings last night?
   
2. Which team will give up more shots tonight? The Preds (46) or the Sharks (39), who both were heavily outshot in their last contests.
3. How will the Preds matchup with the Sharks now that the Preds have added some size at forward (Arnott, Dumont and Vasicek, the last of whom is likely out for tonight)?

We'll see in a few hours. This one should make for a good game. Go Preds!!

Wise words from the Preds

True and very challenging words to live up to, courtesy of your Nashville Predators.

Two minutes for holding

The Preds run a tight ship, and they didn't hesitate to throw us in the penalty box. We didn't mind so much. ;)

She shoots, she scores

My wife and I attended the Preds Meet the Team party last night at the Arena. We had a ball. This is a great event done absolutely right by a great organization. (Thanks to my friend Chris Woodruff for the photos.)

Canucks down Preds in OT

You can't win them all, but I see some concerns emerging for the Preds after last night's loss to the Canucks. Some of these concerns have been lingering despite the recent win streak.

Vokoun is facing too many shots. He saw more than 45 last night, and though he's still playing outstanding right now, he can't expected to perform miracles and bail this team out every night. It wasn't all late in the game while holding the lead, either. The Preds were heavily outshot in the first period before they leveled things out in the second.

The Preds are surrendering late leads, too. It happened during the recent road trip, but the Preds eked out a win in New Jersey anyway. Last night, Vancouver scored with 1:40 left in the third before winning the game in overtime. On the heels of allowing two goals in the final two minutes against New Jersey Thursday night, this is a pattern. It's a bad one.

Alexander Radulov's debut, according to The Tennessean, met with mixed reviews. He didn't record a point in limited ice time, and he took a bad penalty in the third that shifted momentum. I wasn't expecting an all-star night on the very first try, though, and I am sure Radulov will settle in over the next few games.

On a positive note, Martin Erat scored again for the Preds. He's averaging a point per game so far this season and looks strong on the ice. Erat and the rest of the Preds now have until Thursday to enjoy their road trip success and recover from Saturday's defeat. They take on last years playoff foe, the San Jose Sharks, at home next.

Preds host Canucks

Can the Preds make it five in a row tonight against the Canucks? I hope so, and I hope the Canucks also used up all their luck last night when they beat Saint Louis 3-2. Vancouver scored with less than a minute remaining in the third to tie the game, and they scored again (depending on whom you ask) as the clock expired in overtime to earn the win.

This looks to be an even matchup on paper. The Preds are 4-3, and the Canucks are 4-3-1. I'm stoked about Alexander Radulov making his regular-season Preds debut. I won't be there tonight, but I can't wait to see what happens. Go Preds!

Radulov on the way

I can't wait to see Alexander Radulov play for the Preds, and he'll be playing for them soon.

How good is he? I don't know yet, but the odds are good that he'll be outstanding even on the NHL level. He posted junior-level numbers near what Mario Lemieux did in the early 80s, and he was named this season's first AHL player of the week--during his first-ever week in the league. I guess he earned it with seven points in three games.

It's easy to fall into hyperbole with promising young players, but Alexander looks like the real deal.

Road warriors

Let's hear it for the Preds! Going undefeated on multigame road trip is impressive, especially three games in the greater Big Apple area. Last night's 4-3 shootout victory is the Preds' fourth in a row, so they've gone from ice cold to red hot in one week's time. Here's the AP story on the Devils' site, too.

It was nice to see Jason Arnott tally against his former team, as did Martin Erat, who again looked solid throughout. Erat also netted the lone goal for either team in the shootout. I am hoping that the end of the third period will teach the Preds that they can't sit on any lead, no matter how much time is left. Coach Peterson is quoted in the Preds' recap story, and he's right: They definitely laid back over the last several minutes of the period. Surrendering a 3-1 margin in the final two minutes is ugly, but at least Nashville recovered and reclaimed the win in the shootout.