There’s a new star in Nashville and who would’ve thought it would be a hockey player? P.K. Subban blew into the Music City on Sunday and within 60 minutes, he was on stage at Tootsie’s singing Johnny Cash and taking pictures sporting Predator Gold throughout downtown. All while flashing that 1.21 Gigawatt smile of his. Yup… Subban is going to fit Nashville like a glove.
Nashville’s newest defenseman was officially introduced at an afternoon press conference yesterday and a few things struck me right off the bat…
Blow Us All Away – General Manager David Poile was positively giddy introducing Subban to the assembled mass at Bridgestone Arena. It is very rare to see the Preds GM that visibly excited when introducing a player, he is clearly thrilled
Talk Less, Smile More - OK… maybe the talk less part might not happen, but P.K. Subban is clearly happy to be here and the talking he is doing is hitting all of the right notes. He spoke of “listening first and getting all the information… … not exactly the picture painted by some in Montreal… Subban obviously wants to learn as well as lead and that will be a powerful combination.
The World is Wide Enough - A consistent message in yesterday’s press conference was that PK was welcome to be PK. His big personality is being embraced and welcomed in Smashville.
The clarity of message at yesterday’s event was crystal clear. This team is all in for a Cup, the addition of Subban gives the Nashville Predators a top four group of defensemen all hitting their prime at the same time, all at 27 or younger, all with speed and among the best puck movers in the game. Combine this with a young and talented group of forwards and you have a window open for a championship. This team comes into the 2016-17 with the highest expectations in franchise history.
The pressure of expectations can be good for a team… there is no “just happy to be here… being spouted at all. Notice has been served to the fanbase, the coaching staff and the players. Progress is now being measured on a different scale after the deepest playoff run in team history, success now has only one metric… it’s now being measured in championships.
#SummerSucksDropThePuck
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Random Notes
- Interesting that the name Brandon Pirri keeps coming up. The 25 year old center wasn’t qualified by the Ducks so the RFA became a UFA. Wondering what the dollar request is from this player, but, 36 goals over the past two seasons is something to consider…
- Good article in the Tennessean from Sunday regarding Ryan Johansen… Adam Vingan doing his normal excellent work.
- Next dates Pred Nation may be looking at? Potential arbitration dates for Calle Jarnkrok and Petter Granberg.
- Outstanding article on Kevin Fiala on Admiral’s Roundtable… check it out here.
- Now things really start to quiet down in the NHL… after school gets back in session come the beginning of August, you will start to see the players coming back and scheduling regular informal sessions at Ford Ice Center…
- Tampa Bay has extended Alex Killorn for seven years, GM Steve Yzerman is “locking up the core… of this team long term.
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