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A reminder for those coming to the game tonight, the Predators are collecting new, unwrapped toys for the US Marine Corps’ Toys for Tots campaign.
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It’s another chilly day in the Music City, another great day for a hockey game, and another division rival is in town. The Detroit Red Wings, fresh off a 3-2 win last night over the Anaheim Ducks, are in town for the second of the six games this season between these two teams. Detroit is playing their second game of a back-to-back.
The story in Detroit is similar to the one on Columbus two days ago... a talented team struggling with inconsistant offense and mediocre goaltending. The Wings come into tonights game 4-5-1 in their last ten and mired in an unfamiliar terrotory for Detroit fans, out of the top eight in the conference and out of first place in the division. Chris Osgood is going through another early season struggle and Jimmy Howard is starting to show he may have the chops to be the Wings future in net.
The Red Wings are struggling with injuries, their IR list could be a first unit for almost any team in the league, but the Wings vaunted depth has been challenged, and so far it has shown to not be up to the task. With Wednesday night's injury to Dan Cleary, the team is even thinner up front. Detroit is either at .500 or better against the other five divisons, they are 3-4-1 against the Central.
The Predators roll has slowed a tad since their torrid November, but they are still 15-5-1 in their last 21 games and 3-1-1 in their last five. Coach Barry Trotz's line juggling seems to have paid off with Martin Erat leading the scoring parade, potting at least one marker in each of the last four games and has 14 points in his last nine games. The team has turned in two excellent efforts in their past two games and seem to be achieving a level of consistency in critical areas.
Big game for both teams tonight. A Nashville win in regulation puts the Red Wings five points back in the division and draws the Preds to within one point of the division leading Blackhawks after their loss to Buffalo last night. Very few tickets remain for tonight's game, puck drop at 7:08pm, coverage on 104.5 the Zone and FS Tennessee in HD.
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I had a rather lengthy piece written about the Tennessean's latest attack on a local business that generates millions of dollars for the city... but that would elevate the status of a floundering entity that is losing readers and money by the minute.
I think Dirk Hogue (the Forechecker) may have summed it up best in a tweet he sent out earlier... "Reading this morning's Tennessean, can't wait to cancel my subscription Monday. A paper that prints 1/2 truths should only charge 1/2 price."
IN addition... a VERY well reasoned blog from Mark Willoughby that helps explain what the Tennessean is too lazy to put in their attack piece... click here
And traditional newspeople wonder why people are so attracted to blogs and online resources...
You are invited to follow me on Twitter. Search for PredPAPaul… Not only will I be updating when I get news or updates… I’ll also be updating during Pred home games in season with information and explanations from the PA box.
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