Music City Blues: Nashville's Weber to Sign with Philly

                                  Shea Weber looks to be leaving Nashville for the Philadelphia Flyers (Christian Peterson/Getty Images)

The off-season has been less than kind to the Nashville Predators.

It started with the fiasco that was the Ryan Suter/Zach Parise contract hunt. After multiple teams scrambled for cash to sign the duo, they ended up in Minnesota. Consequently, the Nashville Predators lost one of their best defenseman.

Things didn't get much better for the Predators; Nashville then proceeded to lose top-forward Jordin Tootoo. To rub salt in the off-season wounds, Tootoo was signed by Nashville's Central Division rival, the Detroit Red Wings. And while Detroit fans tried to decide if they could ever cheer for the player they've loved to hate, Nashville was stuck trying to find something positive from their off-season.

Haha. It gets better. And by better, I mean worse.

Because now, it's their captain that's packing his bags.

Defenseman and captain Shea Weber signed a $110 million contract over 14 seasons with Philadelphia. Reports from Yahoo! Sports and the New York Times have indicated that Nashville has been interested in signing Shea Weber (a restricted free-agent)...at least they were before the Philadelphia offer. I mean, yeah, who wouldn't?

General Manager David Poile made the following statement two weeks ago, in regards to signing Shea Weber: "He's the captain of our team, I want to build our team around him. He has been terrific in the captain's role, as a player, I hope he will re sign with us" (July 4, The Tennessean). While that's all well and good for Poile and the Predators, this off-season has shown us that simply being a captain doesn't mean that the team will automatically lock-down a player.

It didn't happen for New Jersey with Parise, and frankly, it won't happen with Nashville for Weber.

There is no doubt that the Predators will be in trouble without Weber. As Yahoo! Sports reminded us, Weber would already be without his defensive partner Ryan Suter...and without Jordin Tootoo at forward.

The loss of Shea Weber would make a re-building year even harder for the Music City.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------







New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/20/sports/hockey/shea-weber-of-predators-is-offered-100-million-by-philadelphia-flyers-reports-say.html 


Yahoo! Sports: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nhl-puck-daddy/shea-weber-offer-sheet-aftermath-nashville-defining-moment-164417806--nhl.html

Predators Continue Prowl Through the Playoffs

Photo Credit: John Russell/Getty Images

The Nashville Predators franchise has been getting better and better over the course of its brief history. You can read more about that in my March blog posted entitled Predators on the Prowl. This blog post is more or less a continuation of that because tonight, the franchise took the next step. The Predators beat their Central Division rival Detroit Red Wings in five games to advance to the Western Conference semifinals.

This is especially significant for a franchise looking to prove itself as a Stanley Cup contender. Defeating a rival in a convincing manner such as this is impressive to say the least. One of the main reasons why is how consistently the Predators have played on the ice. Pekka Rinne has been a rock in net. In Games 3 and 4, he had phenomenal nights with 41 and 40 saves, respectively. Rinne seemingly thrives under pressure. During the regular season, he was 5-0-2 with a 1.66 goal-against average and .958 save percentage in games when he faced 40 or more shots. Throughout the series, Rinne has been a Sports Center Top Ten staple with his athletic saving ability and dominance as a netminder. In the clinching Game 5, center David Legwand led the Predators attack with an assist and scored the series-clinching goal thirteen seconds into the third period.

These are just a couple of the guys who have stepped up for the Predators this series. The team is playing great hockey throughout their lineup. With Rinne in net, defensemen like Ryan Suter and Shea Weber, and a balanced offensive attack this team is built for a playoff run. What they have lacked in the past is confidence and experience. They have a lot of both right now, and it is evident in how they are playing. It will be interesting to see how the Predators do the remainder of the playoffs. I believe they are capable of making a deep run. These Nashville Predators are serious contenders. If you don't take them seriously, they will make you pay. The Predators are on the prowl, seeking more prey to devour.

Predators on the Prowl

Few men in the NHL have had as many hard decisions lately as the Nashville Predators' GM David Poile. The biggest decision of all is what to do with two of the best defensemen in the league, Ryan Suter and Shea Weber. Weber will become a restricted free agent this summer. Additionally, Suter can become an unrestricted free agent as well. It is Poile's job to convince them both to stay in Nashville. His hope of course is to resign both. In regards to this, Poile said, "I have a Plan A. I really like Plan A. It's one that I know if it happens will keep us competitive and allow us to compete for the Stanley Cup."

The Nashville Predators franchise is trending right now, and it is the right direction. As far as attendance is concerned, they are on record pace for average attendance and sold-out home games. As a result, the Predators' revenue increased 25-30% last season and their television ratings have gone up over 50% this season. The front office has done a brilliant marketing job, which has resulted in the increase in ticket sales, expansion of advertising, and the team's continued partnership with Bridgestone. The Predators remain very involved in the community. They have helped build and support up-and-coming youth and high school hockey programs. Nashville, a city were hockey had never existed before, has been transformed by the sport.

In an effort to improve this year's team and to convince Suter and Weber to stay, Poile and the front office were busy prior to the NHL's trade deadline. They began by bringing in veteran defenseman Hall Gill, who is a former cup winner. Then, they acquired forward Andrei Kostitsyn and center Paul Gaustad right before the deadline. The moves will help keep the Predators among the top of the crowded Western Conference standings. They certainly hope to make a run at the Stanley Cup this year.

The Predators still have plenty of work to do. Their numbers and play might be improving, but they are still middle of the pack in many areas. However, when you consider where this team was and the fact that they play in a Southern market, the work Poile and the rest of the front office have done has been impressive. The Predators are on the prowl and looking for prey to devour. Their eyes are fully on Lord Stanley's Cup.

Winners and Losers from the NHL Trade Deadline

Winners

Nashville Predators - Nashville has traditionally been sellers at the deadline, but this year they decided to be buyers in a big way. Their blue line first got a boost with the acquisition of veteran defenseman Hal Gill. The Predators then added forward Andrei Kostitsyn to join younger brother Sergei. Finally, they acquired big center Paul Gaustad for some added team depth. The Predators are on the prowl and looking to make a run at the Stanley Cup.

Vancouver Canucks - Vancouver's concern from last year's playoffs was their overall toughness. They were bullied at times by the Bruins in the finals. As a result, they made two somewhat surprising moves to address this. First, they aquired winger Zack Kassian and defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani from the Buffalo Sabres. Kassian is a big boy and should help add some toughness to this team. Second, the Canucks added veteran checking center Sami Pahlsson. Pahlsson is no longer in his prime, but worth the additional depth for the limited cost given up.

Losers

Columbus Blue Jackets - The Columbus Blue Jackets are awful. There is no way around that fact. Captain and star player Rick Nash reportedly asked to be traded, but he ended up going nowhere. The Blue Jackets are clearly rebuilding. Nash doesn't fit that mold and should be given the opportunity to thrive somewhere else. Instead, they ended up with nothing to help turn around this abysmal team.

New York Rangers - The New York Rangers were the favorites in the Rick Nash sweepstakes. Since Nash ended up going nowhere, the Rangers had to scramble to get anything done. All they could manage was to bring in barely used winger John Scott. That move isn't the type of one the Rangers needed. The Rangers are still the best team in the Eastern Conference, but that gap just got a little bit smaller. They are on the losers list because they didn't improve much and their competition in the Eastern Conference just got better.

Night of Shootouts Reminds Us How Important They Are

When the regular season draws to a close, there is usually only a few points difference between playoff positioning and even making or missing them all together. These few points can often be made or lost in one simple thing. Shootouts. Every team plays them multiple times each season. If you win, you get two points. If you lose, you only get one. If you win enough of them, those additional points can start to add up nicely. Amazingly, five of the nine NHL games played tonight ended in a shootout. I will take a look at each one and give a breakdown of its importance.

Minnesota Wild 3 Florida Panthers 2

The Minnesota Wild have slid farther out of the playoff picture, but their steady goalkeeping came through for them again in this game. The Panthers are in the hunt to win the Southeast Division (currently only 1 point behind Winnipeg for the lead). If they win the division, they will likely get the #3 seed in the playoffs. If they don't, they are barely clinging onto the eight and final playoff spot. Ideally, they obviously want to win the division. However, this is yet another disappointing shootout loss. This now puts their shootout record for the season at 3-7. That is the most losses of any team currently in the playoffs. If the Panthers don't fix this soon, it might be the difference between the #3 seed and missing the playoffs all together.

Anaheim Ducks 3 Carolina Hurricanes 2

Both of these teams are considerably far out of their respective playoff pictures, so the importance is rather minimal. The Ducks have played better as of late. They are 7-1-2 in their last ten games. It is interesting to note that the Hurricanes are now 0-5 in shootout games. They are the only winless team in that regard.

Vancouver Canucks 4 Detroit Red Wings 3

This is the granddaddy of them all. The Red Wings came in with their NHL-record 23-game home winning streak. The Canucks came in with the NHL's best road record. As you might have imagined, these are the two teams with the most points in the Western Conference. With time running down in the third period, the Red Wings were clinging to a 3-2 lead. The Canucks pulled goalkeeper Roberto Luongo to get the extra attacker. With 16 seconds remaining in the game, Henrik Sedin found his brother Daniel, who blistered home the tying goal. In the shootout, Luongo shut down all three Red Wings shots. On the third shot for the Canucks, Alexandre Burrows netted the game winner. He reacted by pretending to snap his stick to signify the record steak being snapped. This game was a great one and could be a preview of the Western Conference finals further down the road.

St. Louis Blues 3 Nashville Predators 2

These two teams currently seem destined for a #4 vs. #5 playoff matchup in the Western Conference. With how evenly matched these teams appear to be, it could be very valuable to finish ahead of the other to secure the home ice for the matchup. By winning the game, the Blues increased their lead over the Predators to four points. There is still a lot of hockey to be played, but every point between these two could end up making the difference.

Phoenix Coyotes 4 Calgary Flames 3

The Coyotes are currently the #7 seed in the Western Conference playoff picture. They currently hold a five point lead over the hotly contested #8 seed (currently six teams within 4 points of that spot). The Coyotes should do all they can to keep winning to avoid getting involved in that mess. That is just what they accomplished by winning the shootout tonight. The Flames are one of those six teams currently in the hunt for that final playoff spot. Every point matters to those teams right now, so they didn't do themselves any favors by losing this shootout. They are now 3-5 in shootout games, which isn't terrible, but at this point, every point matters in these teams' pursuit of a playoff berth.