Category: NHL

‘The Great One’ Just Moved Down a Rung

globeandmail.com: Gretzky approves of potential Predators move

Gretzky approves of potential Predators move

 

TIM WHARNSBY AND ALLAN MAKI
From Thursday’s Globe and Mail
June 20, 2007 at 10:21 PM EDT

“First, it’s a great thing for [Balsillie],” Gretzky said. “Obviously,
he’s excited about it. If it actually works out that he gets to move
the team to Hamilton is something that we’ll have to follow over the
next little while.

“On the other side of it, I feel very disappointed for the people of
Nashville. But that’s business, that’s life. I will say this that if
the team is allowed to move to that area [Hamilton], it will be
tremendously successful.”

 

Damn you, Wayne! You do have a point. But Nashvillians and, hopefully, the businesses of Nashville aren’t going down without a fight.

I have said it before. While the potential for a move is there and I may not like it one bit that’s business. And EVERYBODY (for the most part) loves hockey in Canada. It would make better business sense (looking at Craig Leopold’s numbers) to move to a more receptive market.

Still, I love hockey and don’t want this team to move. If I had the cash I would buy several season tickets. Sigh . . .

*Props to my brother and his blog for this news.

Blogged with Flock

The Unloading Begins . . .

Flyers swap picks for rights to Hartnell, Timonen                                        Phil Coffey | NHL.com Editorial Director

Philadelphia acquired forward Scott Hartnell and defenseman Kimmo Timonen from the Nashville Predators in exchange for the 2007 first-round pick, No. 23, the Predators had sent to the Flyers in exchange for Peter Forsberg.

Both Hartnell, 25, and Timonen, 32,are two of the most anticipated unrestricted free agents expected to hit the market on July 1, but if things fall into place for the Flyers, they will have staged an impressive preemptive strike.

I guess that’s all David Poile can do with an uncertain budget and ownership.  It makes me sad but if I had the money I would STILL buy season tickets.  So there!

Stanley Cup Champs

First off, I am not a fan of the Anaheim Ducks whatsoever.  I am more of a fan of the sport of hockey than anything (and a big fan of the home team as well).  But I must say some things about the NHL playoffs that no other sport playoff series has.

Whenever I watch the playoffs and the finals no matter who wins the whole process brings a tear(s) to my eyes. Hockey is the only sport that has the hand-shaking thing.  Reminiscent of little league games it’s great to see opponents shake hands and hug (as manly as possible)after a rough series.  Especially after contentious moments.

It’s hard work and whoever ends up winning gets my respect.  One of my favorite teams to have won the cup was the Carolina Hurricanes.  I had the pleasure of working in the RBC Center and for the ‘canes before it was the RBC Center.  Always a fan even though I have since moved from Raleigh and am in Nashville and am a fan of my home team.

Congratulations to the Ducks.  And to the Predators, there’s always next year.

Get a Grip

Okay, it seems that every blogger in Nashville is talking about this potential purchase of the Nashville Predators by a Canadien (gasp) businessman. As a hockey fan I might as well jump on this bandwagon and say my piece (or is it peace? MTA a little help?) about the impending transaction.

To start off this post I must share an anecdote. The day I drove the Uhaul filled with our possessions I tuned in to one of the sports radio networks (I can’t remember which one) when they announced that Paul Kariya had just signed on to be a Predator. Hearing that announcement made the move from my beloved Black Mountain, North Carolina to Nashville worth it. The Elder Extroverted Holy One’s acceptance into Vanderbilt Divinity School aside I was all about living in a town with a NHL team again.

Okay, back to the topic at hand.

First of all the deal is not done.

The sale must be closed by June 30. Approval before that date from the NHL’s board of governors would be required.

Balsillie, the co-CEO of BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion Ltd., who saw his recent bid to buy the Pittsburgh Penguins fall apart, said he is respectful of all the “due diligence” required before the Predators deal can close.

“This is still Craig Leipold’s franchise until the deal is completed, so for me to comment at this time on any number of topics relative to the franchise would not be appropriate,” Balsillie said in a statement.

Hoops need to be jumped through and so forth and so on. However, I am as pessimistic about the outcome as most others are.

I must say that the current predicament the Preds are in I’m going to have to blame the corporate entities here in Nashville. As the Wall Street Journal says, “In a league where teams shoot for a 65-35 split between corporate and consumer ticketholders, the Predators’ fan base is about 30% corporate and 70% consumer.”

One can’t expect the fan base in this southern town to carry the whole burden of supporting the team. It has to be the whole community, which includes the local businesses. It seems that we, as fans, have done quite a lot to support our team. Heck, the Young Extroverted One loved our experience so much that she cried when I took someone else to a game! If I could afford it I would definitely get a couple of season tickets so I can take her to every game and to support our team.

When I worked for the Carolina Hurricanes it was extremely tough to make fans out of NASCAR and ACC basketball fans. It basically took a Stanley Cup win to build a following but there was definitely a core fan base that stuck it through the whole time. Plus, it took the local Raleigh businesses to get behind them. That’s what we need here.

But I must also keep in mind that this is all about business. If the deal goes through and the lease agreements aren’t made then Balsillie can do whatever he chooses with the team. If he decides to move it to a more hockey friendly community, like anywhere in Canada, then that’s his prerogative. I love hockey, I love the Predators but this relationship can’t work if the entire community doesn’t jump in to support them as well.

If any out-of-towners would like to support the Introvert/Extrovert family’s wishes to help support the Nashville Predators with season tickets then leave a comment below with your pledges. A hockey fan representative will contact you shortly.

Hockey in the South: A Perk from Winning the War of Northern Aggression?

As some of you already know, I love hockey. I love it on TV and more so in person. As long as I can see the whole sheet of ice to watch plays develop and other shenanigans that occur out of the camera’s watchful eye. But being at a game surrounded by these Nashvillian fans makes watching the game in person very interesting.

I went to Game 2 in the Stanley Cup Western Quarterfinals. Nashville Predators vs. San Jose Sharks. It was a great game to watch. The Preds won 5-2, by the way. Rivalries almost always develop during a series and this is no different. After events of Game 1 I expected this game to be a chippy and penalty riddled one. And it was.

The fans really went after the referees. Which seems to be common among sports. So, I was wondering if the fans (at least hockey fans) hate the ref’s calls because of the heat of the moment (which I tend to fall under when I don’t like a call)? Or are they just ignorant of the rules and how a referee makes calls?

It kind of irks me when I see a play develop and one player is really making a play for the puck and in the process trips his opponent and then the fans jump all over the ref. Sure, it sucks that it happened but it was a play on the puck not on the opponent’s feet. The refs have a hard enough job as it is and if he makes a mistake more than likely there will be a ‘make-up’ call. It happens. We move on. Unless a call shifts the momentum and outcome of the game. But I don’t think that happens very much in hockey in my very humble opinion.

The fights were a big deal, too. The paper here wrote a bunch about the number of penalty minutes and blah, blah, blah. The game ended with 3 pairs of players duking it out (which, as a Predators fan I’m sad to say, we lost those fights). What a better way to keep the momentum way up for the road trip! The Sharks wanted to make a statement by saying, “We may have lost but we can still kick your ass!” And the Preds may have been saying, “We won this game and we will take it to your house and kick your ass!” Hey, it’s the playoffs! And it’s hockey! That the way they roll (as the kids are want to say nowadays).

Another thing about the fans here (and probably anywhere there is a gimmick like this) chanted, “WE WANT TACOS! WE WANT TACOS!” WTF?!?! I was informed by my arena neighbor that everytime the Preds score 5 goals in a game you can take your ticket to Taco Bell to get a free taco. They may want tacos but I wanted the Preds to win more than I want a free Taco Bell taco. When I said this out loud my kind neighbor said “It’s 4-1 we got this.” Need I remind you that it was only the 2nd period and in Game 1 the Preds came from behind to tie it up ultimately losing in double OT. This is hockey! Anything can happen and when it does it happens quickly! Plus, Taco Bell tacos are pretty crappy.

**If my buddy Jeff reads this I kindly ask him to make comments on the game of hockey in my comments section. I always look to him for a different perspective on the game. Not only is he Canadien but he also used to referee in the Junior League (I believe). So, Jeff write something insightful or referee-like in the comments! Anybody else for that matter, too. What do you think?**

Goodbye GEC(H) . . . HelLOOO NA

I’m very greatful for the decision by Nashville’s Metro Sports Authority to approve the proposal* by the Nashville Predators to drop the name that has caused people all over Nashville to spew spittal in my face when pronouncing GEC(H). I have always had a problem with that abbreviation since before I moved here. Even more so lately, when the Elder Extroverted Holy One is working on her Hebrew pronounciations.

When working for the, what was once, Raleigh Entertainment and Sports Arena (now the RBC Center) we never called it the RESA (reesah). We just simply called it the Raleigh Arena or the arena. Affectionally also known as ‘hell hole’ because it seemed like that the first year we opened but now I reserve that nickname for my current place of employment.

Hopefully, the nice residents of Middle Tennessee won’t resort to shortening the Nashville Arena down to NA (nah). You could even just say ‘arena.’ Because, hey, it’s the only real arena in town. At least the only place the Preds play.

So, I wish I could say I’m running down to the Nashville Arena to watch a hockey game tonight but I have to work. Sigh. In honor of the most appropriate, even if it’s temporary, name I’m going to say that I am going down to the arena to catch a hockey game soon!

*read the article here or here

Black Mountain Ramblings

I’m sitting here in the fine home of our dear friends, currently stealing someone’s wi-fi (thanks whoever you are!) and enjoying the scenery here in Black Mountain, NC. I have certainly missed this quaint town on the verge of being surrounded by gated communities spoiling the ridge tops of these Blue Ridge Mountains. I’m not really sure if it’s B.M. or just the area because we really enjoy Asheville too. Whenever the Elder Extroverted Holy One graduates I’d really like to be back here.

It’s not that we don’t like Nashville. We really do enjoy being there. I think it’s the community feeling that we miss the most.  As we pulled into the Ingles parking lot to pick up some wine* for our host family the EEHO saw and greeted three or four people she knew. I only see one person that I know when I go into the Inglewood Kroger every couple of weeks and that doesn’t guarantee they’ll speak to me (or me to them . . . what can I say? I AM an introvert!).

Just driving from one place to another in this place we have seen people that we know going about their business. It’s comforting to experience that kind of thing. In East Nashville it’s more like, “Hey!  There goes that kid who broke into my car last week!”  Definitely not the warm and fuzzy feeling that one gets from a small, mountain community.

I guess the one thing that’s going for Music City is that we wouldn’t have to pack and move again. Plus, the hockey team. Oh and the museums and concert venues. Add to that the fact that I have a job that is year round. Oh well, maybe we’ll stay. I swear to you out there in the blogospherical universe I will have seasons tickets to Predators hockey if we stay!

*It is SOOOOO nice to be able to buy wine at the grocery store and not some nasty liquor store.

The Adventures of Pete and . . . well, just Pete

So, the Nashville Predators added Peter Forsberg to their roster. At first I was excited and then it kind of spiralled down from there. Not quite despair. It seems that David Poile is building a team for Lord Stanley’s Cup. Nothing wrong with that but what about the future?

Now, I’ll be the first to admit I haven’t been following hockey as avidly as I used to when I had DirecTV‘s Center Ice package (insert longing ‘sigh’ here) so my observations aren’t as educated as they used to be. But, Forsberg is getting old. He’s on the tail end of his wonderful career. Is he still as spectacular as he was 7 or 8 years ago? Probably not. So, I’m not so sure this was a wise choice.

Selfishly though, it’s pretty awesome. As long as I can get some tickets and see some games! Which is probably why Poile made this call. Butts in the seats. Which kind of pisses me off. Nashville has this kick ass team and no one is going to see them. Plus, if you were a hockey fan you’d recognize the talent (both old and new) on this team. If I had the opportunity I would be there every night.

I miss hockey so much.