Begin your deep breathing exercises now, do everything you can to increase your lung capacity by 7pm tonight because the Calgary Flames are in town and I am expecting a breathtaking display of speed and skill. Calgary has speed to…. burn (sorry, couldn’t resist) and they are pushing to solidify their playoff slot. They currently stand third in the Pacific, just two points behind the San Jose Sharks… but the Anaheim Ducks are only a point behind them… both the Ducks and Flames know that they have to get to that third spot in the division to make the playoffs, as the wild card slots may be too tough to wrest from the grip of the Central.
These two teams have split the season series with the Preds dropping a shootout decision at Bridgestone Arena last November and then shutting out the Flames in Calgary in December. Tonight is the rubber match in the season series.
The Predators have been in a bit of a slump. A little loose on the defense, untimely giveaways, some slow starts, poor defense across the lineup… all of which qualify as a slump… the problem (I should have such problems) is the “slump” isn’t showing in the standings… Arguably, you could say that the Preds haven’t been playing well since the suspension of Filip Forsberg… think back to February 1st… the return of Filip Forsberg and Nashville ices it’s first game with their complete roster… a 5-0 decimation of the Kings, followed up by another dismantling… this time of the New York Rangers. The lines were in place, everyone was playing the role they were made for and all was good.
Then that ridiculous, over wrought, New York media driven three game suspension to Filip Forsberg came along… a suspension that the DoPS should still be hanging their head over… and things have not been right since.
Five consecutive overtime games… two of them overtime losses… play that every man on the team says has been unacceptable. Play that has had head coach Peter Laviolette peeling paint off locker rooms across eastern Canada… Play that has earned the team… well... eight out of a possible ten points.
Wait… what??????
How is that possible? How does a team manage to play poorly for long periods, against decent, if not spectacular competition and still manage to gather points in the way they have? It is often said that good teams find ways… but is this team this good?
It may be… but it would be easier on the coach’s blood pressure if they were to begin moving in that more consistent direction, elevating their play as the last seven weeks of the season pass and get ready for April… and May… and hopefully June again.
This team has shown an uncanny ability to hit the gas, showing in tantalizing spurts exactly what it can do… they did it against Vegas back in January, did it again against St. Louis Tuesday night. Each time it has happened, their opponent just simply couldn’t handle it. You saw it on the faces of every Blues player in the last seven minutes of that crazy game… it was in their eyes, they had no answer for Nashville when they stepped it up in the third.
But this isn't a recipe for spring success... Now it’s time to show that hard forechecking, highly focused, defensively responsible, hard-to-handle team that we have seen flashes of on a more consistent basis… tonight’s a good time to start.
Calgary is finishing a long six game road trip that started ten days ago in Chicago, has taken them through the three New York area teams along with a stop in Boston. They have posted a 3-2-0 record on this trip and would love to finish with a flourish.
I honestly have no idea on the goaltending match up tonight… I can see Coach Laviolette going with Rinne tonight, Saturday and Monday… then going with Juuse Saros in Detroit on the back end of the back-to-back. For Calgary… well… Mike Smith is on IR as I write this and reports in the Calgary media have him out for tonight’s game. David Rittich has posted decent numbers this season, but he did get lit up by Boston in his last start. Jon Gillies was called up from the AHL as backup, do we see him tonight?
Calgary sports three 20 goal scorers and one about to get there… Sean Monihan has 27 on the season, Michael Ferland has 20, as does super-pest Matthew Tkachuk. Johnny Gaudreau cracks the 20 goal level with his next marker.
The Predators come in with an empty IR list again… a rarity this season, Calgary not only lists Smith, but also lists Troy Brouwer and Kris Versteeg on their IR.
This should be a fun one… very limited tickets remain for this Western Conference showdown. Game time is 7pm at Bridgestone Arena. Pregame coverage begins at 6pm on 102.5 the Game, 6:30pm on Fox Sports Tennessee.
See you at the Bridge!
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“Where We Stand” update… a daily tracking of where the Preds are in the standings and the games that impact them most, brought to you by Mark Lonsway - THE real estate professional for hockey fans!
After last night’s play the Predators continue to stand first in the Central Division with 77 points, two points ahead of Winnipeg (2 GIH) and five points ahead of St. Louis (4 GIH) … the Preds lead Dallas (2 GIH) by seven points and Minnesota (1 GIH) by nine points. The Predators trail Vegas (1 GIH) by one point for the Western Conference lead and trail Tampa Bay (2 GIH) by two points in the race for the President’s Trophy.
Impact games tonight (all times Central) – 6:30pm – DET @ TBL. 7pm – WSH @ MIN. 9pm – EDM @ VGK.
Playoff Odds Courtesy SportsClubStats.com - The Predators playoff chances are at 99.9%, they need 19 points in 27 games to get to the 98 point line.
The Playoff Point Line - I look at the point level needed for at least a 75%+ chance to make the playoffs… right now, 97 points gets you at 76.4% chance of making the playoffs, 98 gets you and 88.6% chance.
Playoff odds and playoff point line courtesy of SportsClubStats.com
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Here’s last night’s SlapShot Radio…
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Random Notes
- Nashville points pile up - The Preds have gained points in 15 of their last 16 games going 11-1-4 over that period.
- Komeback Kids - After not winning a game when trailing after two periods the entire season, the Predators have now done it twice in their last five games.
- Pekka doing Pekka Things – Pekka Rinne is 10-0-1 in his last eleven starts posting a .934 save percentage and a 1.95 GAA.
- Mmmmmm donuts... - The next shutout Nashville posts will break the franchise record for shutouts in a season. The 2010-11 season set the standard as they posted eight shutouts… the current team also has eight.
- Century Mark - Ryan Ellis posted his 100th career NHL assist on Tuesday night.
- Eeli Watch – Eeli Tolvanen began his Olympic career yesterday with a stunning 4 point (1g, 3a) performance for Team Finland as they defeated Team Germany 5-2. Team Finland is back in action tomorrow against Norway. Game time is 6:10am Central and will be carried on USA Network.
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SlapShot Radio’s tenth anniversary season is on. As the longest running hockey show in the region, SSR feeds hockey fans what they crave… intelligent, fun, entertaining talk about their favorite sport and we do it from the opening of training camp all the way through UFA day… the only local hockey show that does that.
We are on every Wednesday night at 7pm on the Predators flagship station, 102.5 the Game. Our co-hosts, Dan Keczmer and JP Dumont bring a true insiders perspective to the show. Our next show is Saturday 2/24 at 8am as we step aside for the player’s how on Wednesday.
We have been delivering great hockey talk to the most energetic and engaged fans in radio and advertising with us drives results at a reasonable price. Just ask our sponsors… including day one sponsor
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TurfMasters.com. Also… The Crag… Nashville’s premiere location for indoor rock climbing. Newton Dominey and his awesome crew have a great location in Cool Springs and they have opened a new location in South Nashville at the corner of Old Hickory Blvd and Nolensville Rd. Check out their website at
ILoveRockClimbing.com If you’ve never done it before… you need to try, they specialize on helping first timers.
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Advertisers… reach out to me in order to access our activated listener base though great preseason advertising deals available for our tenth season when you email me at paul(@)slapshotradio(dot)com
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