Today is Thanksgiving in the United States of America and we have so many blessings to be thankful for. All the blessings (and curses) of freedom. Personally, I have many things to be thankful for… family, friends, Pred Nation, great people to work with… things too numerous to mention.
I want to pause and say thanks to every individual that has read this crackpot collection of my ramblings. Thanks to everyone at 501 Broadway who makes it such a joy to be there 41+ nights a year. Thanks to every listener of SlapShot Radio (and yes, we are back on 12/9!)
And most especially, allow me to be the one who says thanks to each and every denizen of Pred Nation that comes out to Bridgestone Arena… “Thanks Pred Nation!…
Now… on to last night’s festivities…
A scoring slump of over 227 minutes of playing time came to a merciful end last night in Nashville’s 3-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres, certainly something for Pred Nation to be thankful for on this holiday. The victory not only snapped a scoreless streak, but also stopped a three game losing streak… the curious part of this win is the method of play, which was merely “meh.… Outshot for the game 32-20, outplayed in the third period…
The irony is so thick you could cut it with a knife.
The relief was palpable when Mike Fisher potted the first goal during a first period where Carter Hutton was the only reason the Predators weren’t down by two. Hutton was excellent last night and well deserving of the first star of the game in his first start in over three weeks.
Craig Smith also experienced the relief of getting a goal, scoring his fifth early in the second period, then Cody Hodgson got just a little revenge, scoring off a sweet feed from Gabriel Bourque to get his second of the year and first against the team that bought him out last June. That Hodgson/Bourque/Jarnkrok line was all over the ice last night and played an outstanding game.
The Sabres put on a push in the third period, especially after Paul Gaustad left the game with the dreaded “upper body injury,… but the Predatorts held on to seal the win and head to Philadelphia for Thanksgiving.
Call it the breaks, the bounces, whatever… it was two desperately needed points in the Central Division race… and speaking of which… I always like to seal in the standings at US Thanksgiving, because it gives you a real sense of the playoffs.
Playoffs (doing my best Jim Mora impersonation)???
Yup… a quarter of the way in, you get a good sense of the playoff mix… heck Elliotte Friedman looks at the standings on 11/1! I wait a few weeks… ïŠ
So… the playoff teams will be… in the East… Montreal, Detroit, Ottawa, Boston, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, Washington, Pittsburgh. In the West… Dallas, Minnesota, St. Louis, Nashville, LA, Chicago, San Jose, Vancouver.
Last season, the playoff teams were set on Thanksgiving in the West, some jockeying around to be sure… but the eight teams in playoff position on 11/27/14 stayed there, and only one team outside of playoff position in the East made it.
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------------------------------------- Season eight of SlapShot Radio is on! Join us every Wednesday night at 7 on 102.5 the Game when Pete Weber and I preview the upcoming week and take a look back at the week that was. Our next show is Wednesday 12/9 as we step aside for a couple of Eric Nystrom Shows and the Thanksgiving holiday.
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