Tag: mike fisher

Preds thwart Brodeur’s NHL Return 4-3

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Source: Kristen Jerkins Photography

Source: Kristen Jerkins Photography

After falling hard on their butts in Raleigh against the Hurricanes Tuesday night, the Predators returned home to face an all too familiar foe this season; the St. Louis Blues. Now, you’re probably thinking (or saying), “This is old news; the Blues have been in the Central Division longer than the Preds have been in existence.” True, but when was the last time Nashville and St. Louis became the equivalent of “big brother vs. little brother”, knocking each other for first place in the hearts of mom and dad (A.K.A. the Central Division)? In my personal opinion, Chicago took on the role of “big brother” after Detroit left for the Wild, Wild… East(ern) Conference. Though Chicago [fans] is still a pain in the rear end, this season has definitely been a “Nashville vs. St. Louis” for keeps and it doesn’t look like either side is going to back off any time soon.

Coming into Nashville on a four-game hot streak, St. Louis is just about cruising along, picking up NHL veteran goaltender (and household name) Martin Brodeur this week. Brodeur spent the last twenty-one *twenty-one* years with the New Jersey Devils organization until entering free agency after the end of last season. This man has won the Stanley Cup three times, won the Vezina Trophy four times, the William M. Jennings Trophy five times, and a multitude of other ones on top of those mentioned. In a word, the man’s a legend and will end up in the Hall of Fame sooner rather than later.

Okay, let’s get off the Marty Brodeur kicker and move on to the game
(warning: potato-quality .gif overload below):

First Period:

  • Vladimir Tarasenko started the Blues off in the right direction at 5:46 for his fifteenth goal of the season.
  • After Tarasenko’s goal, Coach Peter Laviolette called a time out to essentially remind the Predators that they had left Raleigh a day ago and it was time to wake up and get in the game.

    "Uh... Y'all know we're playing for real, right?"

    “Uh… Y’all know we’re playing for real, right?”

  • Apparently, Laviolette’s pep talked did some magic because Filip Forsberg would match Tarasenko at 14:10 with his eleventh goal of the season. Mike Ribeiro (14) would nab the lone assist on Forsberg’s goal.
    mGrNqL
  • Eric Nystrom would give Nashville the 2-1 lead with just fifty-seven seconds left in the first period for his fifth goal of the season. Mike Ribeiro (15) and Mike Fisher (1) would collect the assists.
    nystrom

Second Period:

  • Mike Ribeiro (who apparently took a lot from Laviolette’s pep talk) started the second period out in favor of Nashville, nailing his eight goal of the season at 1:25. James Neal (6) and Filip Forsberg (14) would do some assisting.
    MIKE
  • Ah, but Vladimir Tarasenko would retaliate at 3:51 for his second goal of the night.

Third Period:

  • With a breakaway sent from the Hockey Gods, Colin Wilson nailed a backhander on Brodeur at 9:30 for his fifth goal of the season. Roman Josi (11) and Craig Smith (8) helped assist #33 in the breakaway.
    COLIND
  • Jaden Schwartz would give St. Louis a reason to fight at 12:32, putting the Blues within one of tying with Nashville.

Unfortunately for the Blues, their four-game winning streak would end as Nashville was able to hold off the extra attacker to seal the victory and the Central Division lead. With this victory, Nashville is now 17-6-2 on the season where St. Louis has now fallen to 16-8-2. Ah, but Nashville is back at it on Saturday night as the Chicago Blackhawks bop into town.

Forsberg gives Preds the Edge over Oilers 1-0 in OT

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Source: Bruce Bennett/Getty Images-

How about that “Scoresberg”, y’all? For Predators fans, he could essentially be considered a Saint; as for the Capitals faithful? Well, they are still peeved over that Martin Erat/Mike Latta trade, and you can’t blame them. Though he was just a draft pick at the time (where as Erat/Latta had were exposed to the NHL), Forsberg was certainly a risky pickup. Did David Poile successfully predict his potential? Apparently, but we doubt he’d be the Rookie Offensive leader if he were still under the guidance of Barry Trotz.

Screen shot 2014-11-29 at 9.02.25 PM

I won’t go into the highlights of last night’s game other than Filip Forsberg’s goal at 3:55 in overtime for his tenth goal of the season. Roman Josi (8) and Shea Weber (8) nabbed the assists on the rookie phenom’s goal, giving Nashville the victory on Thanksgiving. The Oilers have now lost eight in a row, losing by one point in each of those games (minus the 7-1 loss against Chicago). Edmonton is floating in a boat all too familiar to the Predators; you have great talent (such as Taylor Hall and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins), but something just isn’t connecting. Whether that missing piece be within the coaching staff or the players, they have good pieces, but they just haven’t found the rhythm. Good news, though! The Columbus Blue Jackets, who Nashville faces on Saturday night, are last in the league (Edmonton is above them with 16 points). Oh, and let us not forget to mention that it was also Mike Fisher’s season debut. No big deal.

First Period Action pushes Preds past Oilers 3-2

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Source: ESPN.com

After a six-game road trip, tallying 4-2-0, the Preds returned home last night to face the Edmonton Oilers for the second time this season (first time Nashville won 4-1). Though their record going into last night’s game was numbered at 6-8-1, the Oilers are a much stronger team than they let on. However, Nashville is on a power run and it’ll take more than being strong to knock them off their high horse.

Notable Notes:
– After suffering knee-to-knee contact with Brennan Evans of the Grand Rapids Griffins, it looks like Viktor Stalberg will be out for a 4-6 week period. Due to the injury, Evans has been suspended for four games.
– Good news for Mike Fisher fans as word has it he should be ready to return within two weeks.

First Period:
– Mike Ribeiro wasted no time getting the Predators on the board at 2:51, Nashville’s fastest goal this season. James Neal (4) and Filip Forsberg (10) picked up the assists on Ribeiro’s fourth goal of the season.
– Barely seven minutes later, Matt Cullen collect his second goal of the season with a tip-in past Viktor Fasth at 9:21. Seth Jones (4) and Craig Smith (3) would nab the assists.
– Filip Forsberg would put Nashville up 3-0 at 19:06 for his seventh goal of season and second point of the night. Mike Ribeiro (9) would collect the loan assist on Prince Filip’s goal.

Second Period:
– Edmonton would relieve Fasth of his duties and replace him with Ben Scrivens going into the second period.
– The Oilers took the first period to heart, scoring just 31 seconds into the second period with a goal from Benoit Pouliot.
– Edmonton would jump within one of Nashville with another goal at 14:42 from Nail Yakupov.

Third Period:
– No goals.

Edmonton bounced back strong in the second and third periods, but Nashville was able to hold them off and seal victory with the return home. As I mentioned, Edmonton’s record doesn’t account for how strong of a team they actually are; they just haven’t hit their stride yet (sounds super familiar). Nashville’s return was a quick one, as they jump back on plane and hop over to St. Louis to try another hand against the Blues, who are itching to push back into first in the Central Division (Nashville has 22 points, St. Louis as 21). Saturday night, Nashville returns with Winnipeg in tow (and it’s Pekka bobblehead night).

Preds take Home Opener over Senators 3-2

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Happy Friday, everyone and boy, doesn’t it feel good to officially have hockey back in the Athens of the South? The Preds made sure you were awake last night as the narrowed passed the Ottawa Senators for a 3-2 victory in their Home Opener. So, without further ado, here is your recap from last night’s nail-biter:

Scratches/IR: Victor Bartley, Taylor Beck, Mike Fisher (IR), Matt Cullen (IR), Viktor Stalberg (IR).

Notes before the Game: Has everyone seen the awesome opening video/projector-on-ice show that the Preds outdid themselves with last night? If you haven’t, we have the YouTube link below, but if you want to see this in person, you better have or find tickets to Saturday’s game against Dallas. Jump to the 2:00 minute mark to see the projector show in action — special thanks to Jeremy K. Gover for the video.

y5XBNDPardon my language but… that was pretty. damn. cool. Again, if you missed it last night, be there tomorrow night.

First Period:
– No goals with Nashville out-shooting Ottawa 13 to 9.

Second Period:
– Ottawa would strike first on the board at 1:15 into the 2nd Period with goal from Kyle Turris. The Senators would hold Nashville at bay through the remainder of the second period.
– Nashville would remain on top of Ottawa in terms of shots, taking 10 to Ottawa’s five.
– In an “old habits die hard” moment, David Legwand – who spent an eon with the Predators and was their first ever draft pick – headed to the wrong penalty box after tripping Seth Jones. .Gif courtesy of the fine folks over at On The Forecheck.
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Third Period A.K.A. Wakey-Wakey Time:
– Thanks to a penalty from Jared Cowen at 19:41 in the second period, Nashville started the third period out with a lovely power play, which Craig Smith took advantage of for his first goal of the season. Smith was assisted by Filip Forsberg (1) and Derek Roy (1).
– Less than seven minutes later, Shea Weber would give the Predators a 2-1 with a wrap around goal with some assistance from Ryan Ellis (1) and Paul Gaustad (1).
– Not to be outdone, Eric Nystrom would answer at 10:20 with his first goal of the season, pushing Nashville up 3-1 with assistance from Paul Gaustad (2) and Filip Forsberg (2).
– However, the Senators weren’t snoozing through the third. Ottawa’s Alex Chiasson would sink one past Pekka Rinne to put the Senators within one with a little under six minutes to go in regulation.

Even with Craig Smith taking a hooking penalty with less than two minutes left in regulation (and Leggy taking a holding call with under a minute left), the Predators whipped back and held the Senators at bay to win their first game of the season.

Three Stars of the Game:
First Star: Shea Weber
Second Star: Filip Forsberg
Third Star: Paul Gaustad

So, needless to say, Nashville started out on the right foot yesterday, though there definitely were some bumps in the road that need to be looked at and addressed. The Predators are back tomorrow at 7PM to take on division rivals, the Dallas Stars.

Predators Captains Announced

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alterante

The Nashville Predators announced who will be the captains of the team this year, with really only one alternate needing to be decided. Is anyone surprised they gave the second ‘A’ to James Neal? Mike Fisher, though injured, will remain the first alternate captain, with Roman Josi wearing it while rotating through different players until Fisher returns. Though his first year with the Preds, Neal stepped naturally into a leadership role within the team, which makes me a prime candidate for the ‘A’.

The Predators open their season tonight at 7PM against David Legwand and the Ottawa Senators.

A Baby Weber

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Per a recent interview from Fox 17-Nashville, Shea Weber and his wife welcomed a tiny Weber into the family over the off-season. You can read the article here: www.m.fox17.com/sports/Shea_Weber_becomes_a_proud_papa (if the link isn’t working, check out our Facebook page — it has it on there). Now, the article doesn’t go into much detail, as Weber didn’t want to make a huge deal out of it. It’s a wonder how the news did not get out beforehand, especially after the news broke regarding teammate Mike Fisher and his wife, Carrie Underwood’s, bun in the oven. However, Mrs. Weber isn’t Country Royalty and doesn’t have a cult following — that we know of — to answer to. Of course, there is no way their pregnancy could be kept a secret — oh the woes of the limelight, am I right? As I mentioned, Weber didn’t go into specifics, just mentioning off hand that a baby had been welcomed to the family with no word on whether it was a boy or girl (or even a human at all — it could be a “fur baby” for all we know). Any who, congratulations to our Captain and his lovely wife on the new bundle of joy!

Note: The picture above is NOT the actual Weber baby. I just lucked upon an image on Thinkstock.com of a baby on a hockey glove. Cool beans!

Preds Sign Volchenkov; Fisher Out 4-6 Months

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PicMonkey Collage

After a relatively quiet 4th of July weekend, the Predators have been awfully active for a Monday afternoon. An hour or so ago, the Predators announced the signing of veteran defenseman, Anton Volchenkov for a one-year, $1 million contract. Volchenkov, a native of Russia, was offered a KHL contract with SKA St. Petersburg if no team from the NHL showed interest, but Nashville snatched him up for a good price — his former contract with the New Jersey Devils was a 6-year, $25.5 million. The left-handed Volchenkov will probably land on the second line and pair with right-hander Seth Jones for now.

On to more pressing news is the loss of Mike Fisher, who suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon thus placing him on the IR for at least 4-6 months… ouch. Fisher, who has been weighing his career options, may find this is the turning point to retire early, but we shall see. Fisher had his surgery to repair the torn tendon last Thursday, July 3rd. As you may imagine, now that this news is out, rumors of Nashville taking a stab at veteran, Vincent Lecavalier are becoming more and more heated. Personally, I don’t think it’ll happen, but with David Poile at the helm, anything is possible.

We will continue to update as more information on both players becomes available.

Preds Trade Hendricks for Dubnyk

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Image Courtesy: Getty Images

Image Courtesy: Getty Images

Early this afternoon, the Predators made an announcement that took everyone by surprise. General Manager David Poile struck a deal with the Edmonton Oilers to swap Center Matt Hendricks with Goaltender Devan Dubnyk. Here’s the official press release from the Preds:

Nashville, Tenn. – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has acquired goaltender Devan Dubnyk from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Matt Hendricks.

Dubnyk, 27 (5/4/86), has posted an 11-17-2 record, a 3.36 goals-against average, a .894 save percentage and a pair of shutouts while appearing in 32 of the Oilers’ 49 games this season. The 6-6, 210-pound Regina, Sask., native has appeared in 171 career NHL contests – all with Edmonton since 2009-10 – including 38 of 48 games in 2012-13, 47 games in 2011-12 and 35 games in 2010-11. He has a .910 save percentage, 2.88 goals-against average and eight shutouts to go along with a 61-76-21 record.

Edmonton’s first choice, 14th overall (first round), in the 2004 Entry Draft, Dubnyk has represented Canada at the past four World Championships (2010-13), and won a gold medal with his homeland at the 2006 World Junior Championships. A Kamloops Blazer (WHL) from 2001-06, Dubnyk was a 2004 recipient of Daryl K. Seaman Trophy as WHL Scholastic Player of the Year, and was the 2004 CHL Scholastic Player of the Year.

With both Marek Mazanec and Carter Hutton having more off days than on, it was only a matter of time before Poile nabbed a reputable goalie… but is it too little too late? Also, is this a sign that Poile has come to terms with the fact that Rinne may not be back to 100% before season’s end? Though Poile says the trade has nothing to do with Pekka’s return, we beg the differ.

Well, wether or not that’s the case, Devan Dubnyk also had a press conference himself, thanking the city of Edmonton for the opportunities that the organization gave him and how excited he is to join the Predators.

And as for Hendricks? He thanked the Preds organization for his short time here, but not before mentioning on an Edmonton radio station that he hadn’t fit in since “day one”. Ouch.
https://twitter.com/EdmontonOilers/status/423617611100733441

Well, let’s be honest; Who really fits well under the Trotz system? Oh, oops.
Anyway, Nashville slipped in like a smooth criminal and managed to convince Edmonton to retain half of Dubnyk’s salary.

David Poile, you sly dog, you…!

Well, this does mean two things for certain: Some lucky soul in Milwaukee will get the call to fill Hendy’s position & someone (looking at you, Hutton & Mazanec) will have to step back to the Admirals. Though Poile claims they have not decided as to which goalie will step down, he did say he has a good idea as to who it will be…

Well, wether you felt like you fit here or not, we wish you well in Oil Country, Hendy. Here are tweets from Victor Bartley & Mike Fisher wishing Hendricks luck in Canada:

https://twitter.com/mikefisher1212/status/423573346299949056
Rich Clune wished him well, but apparently he deleted it.

So, who all remembers this gem from last year?

Err… about that. You know, he may have learned a very valuable lesson from that incident.
Forget that video above & check out this video entitled Dubnyk 101:

Good news, he likes giraffes. We have those at the Nashville Zoo, bud.

Predators Fall to Flyers in SO 3-2

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Image courtesy: Getty Images

The Predators have been back and forth lately, with a 4-0 shutout win against the Blue Jackets Wednesday, to a 3-0 shutout loss to the Oilers on Thursday. So, with the Flyers coming into town after their win against Winnipeg on Friday night, maybe the back and forth would continue with a win for the pesky Preds, right? Philadelphia’s record is pretty close to Nashville’s, 11-12-2 to the Predators’ 13-11-2 so honestly, it was either team’s game… except that Nashville was missing Shea Weber, Kevin Klein, Filip Forsberg and Pekka Rinne.

  • Shea Weber took a puck to the face on Thursday night against Edmonton, ruling his injury day-to-day. Kevin Klein sustained a lower-body injury at some point, placing him on the scratched list also. And little Filip Forsberg, who’s injury at first was considered minor, was placed on the Injured Reserve and Joe Piskula was recalled from Milwaukee.
  • Not all was bad news, as Patric Hornqvist made his return to the lineup after sitting out a few games with an injury.

First Period:

  • The Flyers stepped to the plate first, with a clean slapshot from Captain Claude Giroux at 16:49.
  • Mike Fisher would give Flyers fans just one minute to celebrate before tying the game at 1 with a snap shot setup from Patric Hornqvist at 17:49. Fisher’s goal was his 6th overall and Hornqvist’s 8th assist overall.
  • The Predators were given two powerplay opportunities in the first period, but failed to collect on either one. Philly was unable to capitalize on their one powerplay opportunity.

Second Period:

  • No goals were collected in the second period, but Nashville once again outshot the Flyers, this time 11 to 8.
  • The Predators again had prime powerplay opportunities, but failed on all three once again.

Third Period:

  • Colin Wilson would put the Predators up by one in at 5:05 in the 3rd period for his 4th goal of the season. Gabriel Bourque (7th assist) and Ryan Ellis (7th assist) assisted on #33’s goal.
  • Sean Couturier would breakthrough for Philadelphia at 13:06 with a slick snap shot, tying the game at two a piece.
  • Nashville would outshoot Philadelphia 9 to 4.

No goals would amount in OT, so Marek Mazanec would get his first NHL career shot at a Shootout. Craig Smith, Matt Hendricks & Matt Cullen would all miss their shots at Steve Mason, but it would be Vincent Lecavalier’s sole goal to seal the game in favor of the Flyers.

So with Shea Weber, Kevin Klein, Filip Forsberg & Pekka Rinne out, who will rise up and shine for the Predators? Though Kevin Klein shouldn’t be out for too long, it looks like Forsberg and Weber may be (we already know about Rinne’s outlook). Somewhere the Predators will need for someone to rise up is on the powerplay. Although Nashville has always struggled in that area, last night’s performance was hard to watch.

Nashville has two more games at home before heading East to see Joel Ward, Mike Latta and, maybe, Martin Erat in Washington D.C. Until then, the Predators welcome the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday and Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night.

Predators Out-Play Blackhawks 7-2

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Image Courtesy: Getty Images

Back-to-back games are rough on any team and after coming off a 17-day road trip, Nashville was no exception. But after losing 4-1 to Pittsburgh and turning right around to take on the 13-2-4 Chicago Blackhawks? But let us not forget the Predators way: When they should win, they lose; When they should lose, they win. Totally makes for great blood pressure, truly. Let’s jump to the highlights:

First Period:

  • Similar to last night, Nashville struck first with a wrister from Matt Cullen at 7:28, his third goal of the season. Craig Smith (6th assist) and Seth Jones (6th assist) would collect the assists.
  • Nick Spaling would put the Predators up 2-0 at 8:25 with wrister of his own for his second goal of the season. Craig Smith would notch his second assist of the game (7th overall) and Ryan Ellis would pick up an assist, too (4th overall).
  • Nashville would outshoot Chicago 10 to 7, with NHL rookie Marek Mazanec stepping up his game from last night’s punishment.

Second Period:

  • The Predators kept the momentum into the second with a Power Play tip-in goal from Patric Hornqvist (6th goal) at 9:02. Roman Josi, who was first awarded the goal, picked up his 2nd assist overall along with Shea Weber (5th overall).
  • Craig Smith (4th goal) would give Nashville a substantial 4-0 lead at 18:18 with a backhander past Corey Crawford. Matt Cullen (3rd assist) would pick up the assist.
  • Chicago would finally get on the board at 18:44 with a wrister from Patrick Kane, his 11th goal of the season.
  • Nashville would keep the Blackhawks at bay with a 4-1 at the end of the 2nd period, though this time, Chicago outshoot the Predators 18 to 13.
  • Kudos to Mazanec for blocking 17 of 18 shots during the second period, especially after being pulled after the same period the night before. Amazing what a game at home can do… even if there is way too many mustard jerseys filling said seats.

Third Period:

  • Chicago would embrace the second intermission and come out swinging in the third, collecting their second goal at just 6:14 into the second period. Brandon Pirri collected his 5th goal of the season on Chicago’s goal.
  • Viktor Stalberg would give his old team a big middle finger just fifteen seconds later with a backhander past Crawford for his second goal of the season. Gabriel Bourque (3rd assist) and David Legwand (12th assists) would help collect Nashville’s fifth goal of the night.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQHUu3XNfMw
  • At 12:19, Mike Fisher would pick up his third goal of the season with an assist from Patric Hornqvist (7th assist), putting the home team up 6-2.
  • And, at 14:07, Captain Shea Weber sealed the deal with his signature slapshot to put Nashville up 7-2. Roman Josi (3rd assist) and David Legwand (13th assist) setup Weber’s 5th goal of the season.
  • Chicago would put the extra pressure on Mazanec in the third period, outshooting Nashville a cool 16 to 7. Again, another shout out to the NHL rookie for blocking 15 of 16 shots on goal. He took a pounding, nonetheless.
  • Marek Mazanec, after being pulled after the second period the night before, collected his first NHL win tonight against the defending Stanley Cup champions. The final shot totals: Chicago 41, Nashville 30. So, doing the easy math, Mazanec blocked 39 of 41 shots on goal. Pretty spectacular for a rookie, eh?

Again, the Nashville Predators just have this uncanny way of defeating teams that just aren’t on the radar. Never, never count out the pesky Preds, my friends. Even after the whole ticket debacle, the Bridgestone Arena was still overrun with those awful red jerseys, which was not unexpected; we pissed them off. Maybe with this win, Chicago fans will have some respect when visiting Nashville and maybe, just maybe, take them down a peg or two. Did I personally hear the whole “two Cups in three years” line tonight? Yes, yes I did. As they say, “Scoreboard, son”.