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Clueless Ken

May 19, 2011, 1:02 PM ET [ Comments]
Paul McCann
Nashville Predators Blogger •Predators Radio Network • RSSArchiveCONTACT
Thanks for all the PM’s, Tweets and email I got from my post on the Atlanta / Winnipeg situation. Considering I got hate mail from both sides I guess I hit it right down the middle. :-) Now... on to my rant.

I have to call out Ken Campbell for the swill he trowels out in the current issue of The Hockey News. From his ivory tower, Ken looks down upon us poor unwashed masses and pontificates about what a hockey city is and how he believes… nah, how he is convinced (all evidence to the contrary be damned) that Nashville isn’t one. Ken... I ask you. How would you know?

Pay no attention to the legions of media that came to Nashville and saw for themselves… Mr. Campbell knows better. Nashville isn’t a hockey market because… well… because Ken says so. Never mind that Mr. Campbell didn't bother to join his journalistic brethren as part of the 140+ credentialed media that came to Nashville to see for themselves. I guess Mr. Campbell doesn't want to let anything get in the way of his clear bias.

Time for me to have some fun… Here's most of the salient points of his article, and the reality that Ken doesn't want you to know.

Mr. Campbell says that Nashville “tries to convince us it should be taken seriously.” No such thing came from Nashville, but it did come from those media outlets that have traditionally been so kind to the Music City (sarcasm /off) … TSN, CBC and most Canadian newspapers… heck, even the freakin’ Globe and Mail was upbeat about hockey in Nashville, because they came here and experienced it for themselves... Where were you Mr. Campbell?

Mr. Campbell says that “they suddenly refer to themselves as ‘hockeytonk.’” Ummm… sir… the rink at 5th and Broadway has been referred to as such since the first year of the franchise… even had a song written about it before the first puck was dropped, it even was used as the title of a book by the previous owner about starting the franchise, you can still find it on Amazon… Ken, I thought you were knowledgeable about the history of this league.

Mr. Campbell says that there were “1000 tickets remaining for game three of the second round” four days after winning the first round series. He forgets to say that many of those tickets were league returns that were made available to be sold… and sold they were. Every playoff game was a sellout. Ken, I’m looking for the stat that measures the quality of a sellout... hmmm... it doesn’t seem to exist.

Mr. Campbell kvetches about the Predators being 21st in attendance. That is using the number of tickets through the turnstiles… not taking into account the capacity of the arena. If you use the same number as a percentage of seats available, the Predators rise to 19th at 94.3% capacity, right behind the Kings, Red Wings, Sabres and Senators. He also intimates that only southern markets give away tickets to their games… yup, that stuff never happens anywhere else. The radio stations and newspapers in non-southern markets use their cash and buy all the tickets they use for giveaways on air and, of course, no advertisers are ever comped tickets in any other market… Do you realize how uninformed that makes you sound Mr. Campbell?

Ken then goes from the sublime to the ridiculous. After complimenting the Predators organization for its stability, calling it a model of franchise development. Complimenting the game presentation (thank you!) and the general fan-friendliness of the front office, he then contradicts himself two paragraphs later actually saying that the development of the franchise may have been “accelerated if they decided to shake up their hockey department.”

Huh? ... Really? ... Ken… now you’re just being silly.

While I appreciate that Mr. Campbell states it took twelve tries to win a playoff series in Nashville, I can only recall six seasons that the team made the playoffs, but who am I to question the all-knowing, all-powerful Ken Campbell? He neglects to mention that the team made the playoffs six out of the last seven seasons, including during a time period where the franchise was destabilized by forces from outside the market. According to Ken, that means nothing. No mention of the burgeoning youth hockey program, or its first product to make the NHL in Blake Geoffrion. No mention of the stability in ownership since 2007, no mention of the debt paydown, or the re-purchase of a larger chunk of the team. No mention that the team is making money! Nah... that would take away the story he's trying to sell.

I will add that the work in Nashville continues... and the organization is clearly aware of it. Continuing to foster the fanbase, support youth hockey, get creative in sales, improve the sponsorship base are all important things that need to continue.

Ken Campbell is rapidly becoming the new Al Strachan, and the old Al still has that job. He wants it his way… a small league to match his small vision… facts be damned. Congratulations Ken, you've sacrificed any journalistic credibility you had left to pander to your rapidly diminishing audience.

I will say… Mr. Campbell is right about one thing, one playoff run does not turn Nashville into a legitimate hockey market. A strong local ownership group, a profitable franchise, a growing, passionate fan base and six playoff runs already have done that.

Stick Tap to “On the Forecheck” for the tweet on this…

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Random Notes

- The Boogie Man is heading back to Windsor. After a single season as Assistant Coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets, former Pred favorite Bob Boughner is going back to Windsor to continue his role as president of the Spitfires.

- An interesting story broke after I posted my blog yesterday. It appears that True North is doing more that negotiating with Atlanta for the purchase of the Thrashers. They also seem to be negotiating with city and provincial governments for support in carrying the debt load for the MTS Centre. According to the Winnipeg Free Press, True North is “looking for help to manage the debt load it carries on the arena … in order to free up money to help cover the costs of relocating an NHL team to the city." James Mirtle has a nice examination of this on his Globe and Mail blog.

- This story comes on the heels of news that Thrasher fans are gathering to support their team this Saturday prior to the team’s “Select-A-Seat” event at Philips Arena and may give some hope to the Atlanta group striving to keep their franchise.

- The Vancouver Canucks simply put the boots to San Jose last night. The Sharks simply don't have the defense to run with Vancouver. This one could be a sweep.

- Another one of those terrible hockey markets (at least according to Ken Campbell) hosts their first conference final game in a a few seasons tonight. The Tampa Bay Lightning are in a good spot right now, gaining the split they needed in Boston and cracking Tim Thomas for ten goals in two games. The Forum will be rockin' tonight.

- Tonight’s playoff schedule – Boston @ Tampa Bay – Series tied 1-1 – 7pm CDT (Versus, TSN)

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You are invited to follow me on Twitter. Search for @PredPAPaul… Not only will I be updating when I get news or updates, but we are having a bit of fun by getting your input on Gnash introductions, weigh in on Twitter and who knows, we may use your introduction for the best mascot in the NHL at the next Preds game!

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COMING UP ON THE NEXT SLAPSHOT RADIO…

The podcast for last night's show is posted. We spoke to Mike Santos, Terry Crisp, Bobby "Chief" Taylor and Dan Rusanowsky. The reunion of a couple of Broad Street Bullies brought out some great stories...

You can get check out our podcasts at the SlapShot Radio podcast page.
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