After much consternation, Pred Nation watched a win yesterday afternoon. The Predators took down Colorado 4-1 on the strength of the play of Pekka Rinne, Nick Bonino and Viktor Arvidsson. The win was head coach Peter Laviolette’s 600th career win. Bonino’s goal was the 100th of his NHL career.
This game did have it all… outstanding goaltending, timely scoring, outstanding responses… you had to like the way that the Predators responded to a couple of poor efforts. This is the team that Pred Nation wants to see more of. Well… except for the 0-fer on the power play. The 6th consecutive game without a power play goal. That’s an 0 – 26 stretch that goes all the way back to the second period of the Chicago game on January 9th. That is 373:34 of playing time… but who’s counting?
If there is something to worry about with this team, besides their consistent inconsistency… it the power play. Coming into Tuesday’s play… it is at an anemic 13.3% conversion rate on the season, tied for 30th in the league with Philadelphia. Not too far ahead of the 12.6% being posted by Montreal. Are there other teams in playoff position in the neighborhood? Well, Columbus is at 28, the New York Islanders are at 24… but this isn’t a place you want to be.
Can the team survive without a power play? So far the answer has been yes, but come springtime? When the chances become fewer and more valuable? Besides, you don't want to just survive, you want to thrive.
Is there cause for major concern yet? Not really… but the runway is growing shorter. Last season, the team cruised through as the President’s Trophy winner and really didn’t see any adversity until the playoffs hit. This season has certainly been different... and I am willing to look to February and March as the team returns to full staffing, but time and effort needs to be invested in this power play. It is predictable and tried to be way too cute.
This team has responded to challenges well… Pred Nation is hoping they step up to this one the same way. The Predators head to Las Vegas today in preparation for tomorrow’s showdown with the Golden Knights. It’s the last game of January as the All-Star break and the bye week combine for a nice long break.
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The
Where We Stand section
As play begins today, Nashville is in the second slot in the Central Division, two points behind the Winnipeg Jets, Winnipeg holds three games in hand over Nashville. The Preds lead Minnesota by nine points, Colorado and Dallas by ten points.
Nashville currently holds the 5 seed in the Western Conference playoff race and has a 99.3% chance of making the playoffs according to SportsClubStats.com… the “85% chance” line stands at 90 points right now.
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Random Notes
- Milwaukee Update –The Admirals are back in action tonight at home against the San Antonio Rampage.
- Spread it Around - Four different scorer’s in yesterday’s win.
- Milestone – Laviolette’s 600th win makes him the 20th head coach in NHL history to reach that mark and only the second US born head coach to achieve that feat.
- Breakdown of the numbers – Laviolette has 211 of his 600 wins with Nashville, this is his longest tenure as a head coach as he is at five seasons and counting.
- Down on the Farm – Join us for SlapShot Radio tomorrow night at 7pm on 102.5 the Game. We are going “Down on the Farm” with the voice of the Milwaukee Admirals, Aaron Sims… brought to you by Farmers Insurance and the Patrick J. Brown Agency in Mt. Juliet.
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SlapShot Radio’s 11th 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. We are on every Wednesday at 7pm, our next show will be leading you up to pregame for the Vegas game. Please join Brent Peterson, Zack McCann and me on 102.5 the Game.
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