The resiliency of the Nashville Predators is simply amazing. After a tough win over Detroit on Saturday night, the Predators got on a plane for Buffalo, for a 4pm face off the next day. That means the Predators had to play two games in less than 24 hours, with travel in between. After huge wins over Boston and Detroit, you could almost forgive the team if it came away with a loss in this back half of this most difficult back-to-back.
Instead the Predators scored two goals in the last two and a half minutes of the game, then the game winner just 27 seconds into overtime and came away with one of the most memorable come from behind wins in franchise history, led by an unlikely hero.
When Tennessee native Blake Geoffrion was selected in the second round of the 2006 entry draft, a lot of pundits called it a stunt pick. A team overreaching for a hometown player, designed to get press. Well… after four years of development, steady improvement, year-over-year-over-year-over-year, Geoffrion looks to be right where he belongs, helping an NHL team during a playoff push.
Geoffrion’s hat trick in last night’s game was not pretty, it was the result of work and going to the hard areas, the result of doing the fundamental things right. His performance earned him the first star in the game and the first star of the night on nhl.com. Give full marks to Anders Lindback for a solid performance in his first start since early February and also to Martin Erat, who has simply been playing excellent hockey over the past few weeks. Credit Barry Trotz as this team seems to be putting it together at exactly the right time.
Another four game homestand awaits, starting tomorrow against the Edmonton Oilers.
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The last fifteen…
Games 13-15 – Minnesota (W), Colorado (W), Los Angeles (L) – 2-1-0
Games 10-12 – Boston (W), Detroit (W), @Buffalo (W) – 3-0-0
Games 7-9 – Edmonton (Tue), Anaheim (Thu), Dallas (Sat)
Games 4-6 – Vancouver (3/29), @Colorado (3/31), Detroit (4/2)
Games 1-3 – Atlanta (4/5), Columbus (4/8), @ St. Louis (4/9)
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On February 14th I wrote the following…
Mario Lemieux has done some incredible things for the sport of hockey, on the ice and off. He has saved the Pittsburgh franchise multiple times both as a player and as an owner, he is to be commended for that. If he truly believes what he has written in his statement, and I have no reason to doubt that he does, then it’s time for him to step up once again and save the sport of hockey.
He can start in his own backyard.
The rubber meets the road today after Matt Cooke’s blatant elbow in front of a national TV audience in yesterday’s Penguins/Rangers game. The NHL will suspend Cooke, that is for sure… but what Mario Lemieux and Penguin GM Ray Shero does after that will tell all.
Do they supplement the league’s discipline with more of their own? That would not be unprecedented, and frankly, given the strong words this organization has used, they should send the message to their own employees that they mean it.
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Random Notes
- The standings update… the Predators are 7th with 86 points, tied with 5th place Chicago and 6th place LA, three points behind 4th place Phoenix. The Preds lead 8th place Anaheim and 9th place Dallas by one point, but the Ducks and Stars both have a game in hand. They lead 10th place Calgary by two points, the Preds have a game in hand over the Flames.
- Tonight’s impact games – Calgary @ Los Angeles.
- The Predator’s playoff chances stand at 72.4% (according to SportsClubStats.com) after last night’s action. Who to root for tonight? LA… in regulation.
- I’ve been saying all along that 96 points should be the point level to get you in the playoffs in the Western Conference. Given the number of three point games over the past few weeks, that number may be growing. According to SportsClub Stats, the chances of making the playoffs at 96 points is now below 90%, where 97 points gives a team a 97% chance.
- If the playoffs started today, the Predators would be playing… yup, Detroit.
- The soap opera in the desert has taken another turn as the prospective new owner of the Phoenix Coyotes has made a major concession to the gang of dummies threatening the Coyotes sale. Matthew Hulsizer was a between period guest on last night’s Coyotes broadcast and guaranteed 75% of the bonds being offered to complete the sale. The Goldwater Institute, who would rather see an empty arena sucking up tax dollars, has been painted into a corner.
- I hope you got the chance to see “Coming Home” last night. The show was in Nashville a few weeks ago to film the reuniting of a couple whose wife was returning from Afghanistan. It was one of the more memorable moments of the season at Bridgestone Arena. The show will repeat throughout this week on the Lifetime network or you can watch it online at...
http://www.mylifetime.com/shows/coming-home/video/full-episodes/episode-3-the-hat-trick
- The Pittsburgh Penguins got some good news as Sidney Crosby is skating and taking part in no-contact drills in practice.
- The New Jersey Devils are at 72 points, seven points out of a playoff spot in the East with ten games to play. They will have to go undefeated to get 92 points and a 95 chance of making the playoffs.
- Who’s Hot – In the East it’s the New York Rangers, picking a very good time for a four game win streak and solidifying their hold on a playoff spot. In the West it’s the Anaheim Ducks, currently the owners of a three game win streak and winners of eight of their last ten.
- Who’s Not – In the east, the Tampa Bay Lightning are barely holding on, winners of two of their last ten. Their playoff spot is most likely assured but they are not playing good hockey right now. In the West, it’s the Columbus Blue Jackets, 2-5-3 in their last ten and will miss the playoffs again, you have to wonder what is going on in Columbus as this team just can’t seem to get any kind of consistency.
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You are invited to follow me on Twitter. Search for @PredPAPaul… Not only will I be updating when I get news or updates, but we are having a bit of fun by getting your input on Gnash introductions, weigh in on Twitter and who knows, we may use your introduction for the best mascot in the NHL at the next Preds game!
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COMING UP ON THE NEXT SLAPSHOT RADIO…
This week’s show is live from the Flying Saucer as we chat with ESPN.com’s EJ Hradek and preview the upcoming weekend of hockey.
After a technical glitch, last week’s podcast is fixed and posted. Check it out at
the SlapShot Radio website.
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