Here I Go Again: More Random Hockey Thoughts

Hey Canada...how you like us now?

The Preds have just taken a lot of crap from Canadian hockey fans. I'm sure there are tons of Canadians who either like our team or don't care one way or another. But those Canadians are silent. The vocal fans, and the Canadian media (even Canadian-born NHLers) have taken lots of pot-shots at our club over the last couple years. They suggest hockey struggled because of overexpansion to non-traditional hockey markets such as ours. Many think our team should have been contracted. It really burned them that a Canadian like Kariya would sign with our country-hick team.

I just want to say...how you like us now? We are two wins away from tying your beloved Maple Leafs for the longest season-opening winning streak in hockey history. Man, how much will they hate us if the Preds beat that record?

Ultimately it doesn't matter what they think about our market, because our team is kicking butt. We still haven't really hit our stride, though last night was close.

The Preds winning streak is paying off for the club

I can't think of a better way to achieve the goal of selling more tickets than to have this winning streak at exactly this time.

The Titans are pretty awful. Vandy football reverted to normal. UT is performing well below expectations.

If you're a sports fan in this town...you're following the Preds winning streak. And if it continues much further...you're buying tickets to see them.

I had two friends call me last night who have, in the past, been rather passive Preds fans. Both these guys want to buy tickets to Saturday's game so they can witness the potential record-tying victory.

Let's also not forget how great an accomplishment this is

Do you know how incredibly hard it is to win 8 hockey games in a row? However hard it is for Vandy football to go 4-0 (which got this town buzzing)...what the Preds have done was even harder. Hockey is a long season, like baseball, but there's much more parity in the league (especially now) than there is in the MLB. Crazy bounces, injuries, goalie hot streaks...all these things add to how tough it is to put together a string of wins. Even the best teams in their best seasons typically lose one game for every three wins or so. It's just not common.

In fact, there are only two other teams in NHL history who have done what the Preds have accomplished this season.

This is a sign of how good our team is (and is capable of being). This puts us on the map. It lends us more credibility as a franchise. It gets fans excited and sells tickets. You think fans were excited at the playoffs? Wait until you see how excited they are to be in the Cup Finals...or to see the Preds get the #1 seed! Sure, that may not happen this year...but we are good, and we are going to be good for 5-10 years. It's not a fluke.

Hartnell to Line One Paying Dividends

A few games back, Trotz moved Hartnell to line one in place of Erat. Erat was struggling. Hartnell provided line one with a big body in front of the net.

Last night, there were two goals where all three line-one forwards played a role (assisting or scoring). Line one is humming boys.

Also, good to see Erat get a goal and assist. We need him to step up while Walker's out, and he's doing it.

Kariya is a stud

That's all. No more. Kariya is a stud. So far he's everything we hoped he'd be and more.

Sullivan, by the way, is also a stud, and the chance to be a leader here has elevated his game beyond even what he did in Chicago.

Pete Weber and Terry Crisp are a gift

I think we sometimes take them for granted. They have to be one of the top game-callers in the league and we should thank our lucky stars we have them.


That's all I got right now. Should probably be doing some work anyway. More thoughts another time.

Go Preds!!