Looks about right, doesn't it?

I am attempting to gather some of the wonderful highlights of the Vancouver Canucks during the fight for the Stanley Cup. Finding videos of all the great things they have done are kind of hard like when Kesler got smashed in the face and started bleeding. I’m sure someone has it somewhere… If you have any videos you’d like to contribute to this section, please email me or Twitter me (@lady_preds) or (@rlhutching21).

Who doesn't miss this face?

Just in case you are starting to get antsy and feel like October can’t come fast enough, well here are some important dates both the NHL and the Predators have put out to help curve your addiction to hockey until the season finally starts back up. If you are wondering when the schedule will be announced for this coming season, you’ll have to wait until the NHL Awards. Section 303 will be in Las Vegas covering the awards show and in St. Paul covering the NHL Draft so don’t forget to visit their site when those dates come around!

JUNE 19 – Deadline for first club-elected arbitration
JUNE 22 – NHL Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada
JUNE 24 – First round of NHL Draft in St. Paul, Minnesota
JUNE 25 – Remainder of rounds of the NHL Draft in St. Paul, Minnesota
JUNE 27 – Predators Rookie Development Camp starts
JUNE 29 – Deadline for tendering qualifying offers to RFA’s
JUNE 30 – 2011-12 salary cap limits
JULY 1 – Free agency begins
JULY 4 – Predators Rookie Development Camp ends
JULY 5 – Deadline for player-elected arbitration
JULY 6 – Deadline for second club-elected
JULY 10 – Predators Dancers 1st Tryouts – 2-5pm @ Bridgestone Arena
JULY 20 – Arbitration hearings start
JULY 24 – Predators Dancers Final Tryouts – 6pm @ Hard Rock Cafe
JULY 30 – Predators Ice Girls Tryouts – 1-3pm @ Centennial Sportsplex
AUGUST 4 – Arbitration hearings end
AUGUST 6 – Deadline for arbitration decisions
SEPTEMBER 12 – Predators rookies report to Rookie Training Camp
SEPTEMBER 15 – Training Camp begins

If any other important Preds or NHL dates pop up, I’ll add them to the list as they are announced, along with the schedule. Also, for the girls trying out, the Ice Girls tryout is completely closed to the public, meaning no creepers can come watch. Same goes for the first tryout for the dancers. However, the final dance tryout is opened to the public, so be prepared to dance in front of a bunch of people (should be used to that anyway, right?)! For more information on tryouts or anything to do with the Preds, just visit the official website. They usually have everything covered pretty well.

I'm guessing Burrows forgot to eat dinner and thought Bergeron looked tasty.

As many of you know, I have a certain team I do not like. No, it is not the Red Wings, Penguins, Sharks, what have you. No, it’s the Vancouver Canucks. After their poor sportsmanship against the Predators, I want nothing more than to see them be sent back to Vancouver packing… especially that jerk, Ryan Kesler!

The only reason they are even being mentioned in a post is because of something Alex Burrows decided to do last night during Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals against the Boston Bruins. I watched this game and yes, I was uber pissed when the Canucks scored with 18 seconds left of the game. Well, at one point, Burrows and Bruins’ center Patrice Bergeron got into a heated argument and smashed a Ref in between their little scuffle. I honestly did not notice what Burrows did, but everyone else did. Alex Burrows decided, at that moment, it was a good idea to channel his inner Mike Tyson and chomp down on Bergeron’s right index finger.

Really? You really felt the need to bite him? I guess if some guy his sticking his stinky glove in my face and my hands were being restrained by a Ref I’d use my teeth, too. You have to admit though, Burrows must have bitten him really hard to get through that glove. Maybe Burrows just forgot to eat dinner that night. The world may never know, but the Canuck is claiming he did not bite the Bruin.

“I don’t think so,’’ he said, when asked if he bit Patrice Bergeron. “I think he had his finger in my mouth. I don’t think I bit him. He put his hand up, he put it in the other guy’s face, and a finger got in my mouth. That’s what happened.’’

Well Burrows, that’s one of those things that either happened or didn’t happen. That, and video doesn’t lie (if you have the right angles, of course). Anyway, Mr. Mike Tyson is looking at a possible suspension for this little canuck/killer whale stunt. I wouldn’t mind him being suspended (of course not, I don’t like the Canucks) and I’m not saying that because I think it would help the Bruins win. After watching last night’s game, it is obvious the Bruins can handle the Canucks. In fact, I honestly think it comes down between both goalies. Roberto Luongo (Canucks) is an amazing goalie, but I think Tim Thomas (possibly Captain America) is just as good (or at least, last night he definitely proved himself worthy of a Stanley Cup). As a Boston Red Sox fan, I already kind of like the Bruins, so to see them kick the Canucks to the curb, I’d be mucho happy. Not nearly as happy as I would have been to see the Preds knock them out, but close.

Well, here’s to Game 2 – May Burrows be suspended, Hamhuis be scratched, and Thomas be angered.

Terrible video, but I like the Canadian guys talking about it. Also, it’s pretty clear Burrows thought Bergeron’s finger was a Twix.

Even George Washington loves Boston!

Yes, the statues of Boston are taking cues from Nashville’s naked statues. It’s definitely a good tradition to have, I’d say.

True Blue Thrashers fans stand up for their team even in the Georgia heat.

Yes, I am aware I am a day behind. If you follow me on Twitter, you’d know I had a busy day yesterday and by the time I got home, writing a compelling and wonderful blog post about the Thrashers just wasn’t going to happen.

Well, it’s officially official: the Thrashers are heading north to Winnipeg to become the… Jets again? Quite possibly, but considering that’s who the Coyotes used to be, a new name might be in the works. Manitoba Moose?

Many have joked about Atlanta and their newly lost hockey team. Some have wondered if the fine folks of Atlanta, Georgia were even aware there was a hockey team. Guess what? A lot of people did and now they are hockey-less. Of course, it hits close to home considering it was in 2007 when we too almost lost our team to Canada (Hamilton not Winnipeg, Rudy). Sadly, there was nothing true blue Thrashers fans could do to keep their team from heading north.

As Predators fans go, we are curious as to what that means for the future of our conference. Will we stay in the Western Conference or move over to our buddies in the East? Personally, it would be nice to see the Preds move to the Eastern Conference, but the Predators are not the only contenders that could possibly move conferences. We also have Detroit and Columbus. Those details, if a move even happens, will be noted when it comes around.

So now we have a bunch of happy Canadians and a few brokenhearted Southerners missing their hockey team. Congrats, Canada. You’ve done it again.

Still not officially official, but it's pretty much a done deal for Thrasher fans.

Although it’s not officially official (as I’d like to call it), Thrashers fans are coming to terms with the fact that, by next week, the chances of Atlanta still having an NHL team is highly unlikely. As Preds fans, we’ve been placed in that same situation. We understand how it feels to have our team threatened to be shipped back to Canada. Luckily, we had enough fans and backers to stop the process from happened, but sadly for Atlanta, the end of an era is over.

Like I said, it isn’t official yet. The news over this situation has flip flopped back and forth so many times, I can’t even keep track. I wasn’t going to write a post about the Thrashers leaving until I knew for a fact it was true, but from everything I am reading, it looks like the Thrashers are just waiting for someone to announce it.

I feel terrible for loyal Thrashers fans. My heart would be broken if the Predators were sent to Canada (Anywhere – not just Canada). You can read what one Thrashers blogger has to say about his team leaving here at Bird Watchers Anonymous. Reading that blog made me feel really bad for those fans, even if when they did come to Nashville, I always cringed when they yelled during the National Anthem.

It’s a sad day for all hockey fans (except for you residing in Winnipeg), but the fans of the Nashville Predators welcome Thrashers fans to visit Nashville and possibly become fans with us. Hey, we’re all Atlanta Braves fans up here so it makes things even, right?

But in all seriousness, I am very sad to see Atlanta’s team go and I’m even more sad for the fans.

Come on, you know it's funny!

So I’d rather the Tampa Bay Lightning win over the Boston Bruins, but these ads that the Bruins have been posting all across the city of Boston are quite hilarious. Okay, so I know if this were happening to the Preds, I’d be uberly ticked off. This isn’t about the Predators so it’s funny. You have to admit, the posters are pretty good. Lightning fans have pressured the Bruins to remove the ads, though and I don’t blame them. I know they’d have some nasty ones for the Preds.

You can see more photos here at Massholesports.com. I like their quote: By a masshole, for the massholes. Nashville should have something catchy like that. Maybe we do and I haven’t come across it. Closest thing I can think of is Pucking Preds.

Are the Thrashers feeling a little crowded in the ATL?

Welp, tomorrow is the big day for the Atlanta Thrashers… or so we think it is. Speculation is going around that the Thrashers might be moving North to Winnipeg due to lack of sales and a fanbase in Atlanta. I would beg the differ, but I am not an NHL big wig so my opinions are worthless (except here, of course). The heat has been on both the Thrashers and the Phoenix Coyotes lately on which team would make the move. Unfortunately for Southern hockey, it is looking like Atlanta will be the chosen team to move on to Winnipeg. To add insult to injury, even the Thrashers’ owner doesn’t see hope for the team. Looks like to me, Winnipeg is desperate for a hockey club. Is Canada getting nervous since they haven’t been to the Stanley Cup in… how long has it been? Yea, let’s not go there.

With ATL leaving (if they end up doing so), what does that mean for the Predators? Well, anyone who owns a map knows that Winnipeg is not anywhere near where the Eastern Conference line ends so the most logical thing would be that the Preds and the Winnipeg (insert new team name) would switch conferences, bringing the Preds over to play with the likes of the Bruins, Penguins, & the Hurricanes. This would be a huge step for the Predators franchise since, as we all know, the Eastern Conference isn’t as competitive as the West (some may think otherwise, but we all know the truth) and the Preds would fair much better. However, the Preds have just started making a name for themselves in the brutal Western Conference. Would we want to lose it now? Most people I’ve asked have said, without any doubt, yes. I don’t blame them, either. The Preds would do awesome in the East.

But again, we are not 100% sure that the Thrashers will be moving to Canada tomorrow. Heck, it could be some team out of left field that gets shipped off. Doubt it, but it seems to me it’s 90% Thrashers, 10% Coyotes. Although I would hate for a Southern team to move, it could help the Preds in the long run by moving to the Eastern Conference.

Alexander Radulov was recently interviewed saying he wanted to return to the Predators. Here is the article:

Mattias Ekholm: Will he fit in with the other defensemen? No doubt.

The Nashville Predators have signed Borlange, Sweden native Mattias Ekholm to a 3-year entry level contract. Here is the official wording from the Preds:

“Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has signed 2009 fourth-round pick Mattias Ekholm (mat-TEE-uhs EHK-hohlm) to a three-year entry level contract. 

Ekholm, 20 (5/24/90), was named 2010-11 Elitserien Rookie of the Year award – following the likes of Patric Hornqvist, Nicklas Backstrom, Loui Eriksson and Henrik Zetterberg – after ranking fourth among Swedish Elite League defensemen in goals (10) and points (33) in his first full season with Brynas IF. The 6-4, 204-pound native of Borlange, Sweden also tied for fourth among SEL blueliners in power-play goals (5) and 11th in plus/minus rating. In 2009-10 with Mora, he led all junior players in Sweden’s second division (Allsvenskan) in assists (21), and ranked fourth among junior skaters in points (22).

Nashville’s seventh choice, 102nd overall, in the 2009 Entry Draft, Ekholm earned a bronze medal while representing Sweden at the 2010 World Junior Championships, tying for the 2010 WJC lead with a +10 rating in the process. He also played for Sweden at the 2008 U-18 World Championships, notching a goal in six games, and won a gold medal with the Tre Kroner at the 2008 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament.”

Good thing the Preds acted fast considering as of June 1st, they would have lost his draft rights under a transfer agreement with Sweden. From the achievements this young 20-year-old has accomplished, I see great things from this kid. Two other important prospect the Predators are looking into are Switzerland native Roman Josi and Canadian Ryan Ellis. The question that comes up is, with so many defensemen, who is going to get traded? We’ll find out soon!