drsingle

For those that are happy (and the vast majority are), congratulations! Hilarious seeing twelve separate threads on Bert, though. David

A little further insight into the growing rivalry between the Predators and the Red Wings. Thanks. David

In fairness, in this case, they are responding to a post started by a Preds fan. That said, they are not always arguing with you, I, or some other Preds fan either. David

The host is having some router issues. They hope the site is back up within the hour. Thank you all for your patience.

This is a really, really great post. David

Thanks for spotting those errors. I have made the appropriate corrections. Is it a rivalry, or not? Well, it's pretty obvious that from Nashville's standpoint it is. It's also pretty obvious that many of the posters at LGW are coming around to the notion that it is as well. You all know that I've been on these boards a long time, and I've noticed that there is an ever increasing air of excitement on this board when these two teams play. Legionnaire, fifthandbroadway, and I contribute some to that by being regular posters who happen to be Preds fans. However, that excitement is showing on both sides now. That said, I do expect that the more you consider it a rivalry as a Detroit fan, the younger you are- and that's OK. The other aspect is this "forced" rivalry notion. I understand this concept as being introduced by the addition of the extra two games against each divisional opponent. In theory, it wasn't too bad of a concept with the exception of losing the games against the eastern conference. I do understand why it was tried, and don't consider it foolish to have done so. There's nothing wrong with trying to have an exciting regular season and post season. It's shaping up to work nicely this year with Detroit and Nashville. After saying that, I still would prefer to go back to the original schedule just prior to the lockout. However, most discussions I see on this topic are along the lines of "I don't want to see <team x> eight times in the regular season." Unless you're a relatively new hockey fan, that argument doesn't make much sense. Back in '67 there were 12 teams and 74 games played- how many times did one play a divisional opponent? Again, I prefer the pre-lockout schedule as well in order to play every team. However, if your sole argument is that eight games against one team is too much, it seems to be a flawed argument- especially if you also favor contraction because I can guarantee the number of games will not lower. Thanks again for all of the comments. David

This will really be a fun thread, and series, for the rest of this season. David

Did Nashville sell their souls for Forsberg? Depends on your point of view. If you were to look at the deal by equating that to what Detroit (or any other team) would have given in that deal, like NN did, then one might think so. However, consider that Nashville is one of the youngest teams in the league and did not lose a single regular roster player. Upshall could not play his way onto the team. As for Parent, he is most definitely a blue chip prospect ,but Nashville has Hamhuis, Weber, and Suter now and still has Klein, Franson, and Laasko in the pipeline (as well as Zidlicky locked up for three more years). There's also a very late first round pick involved and a third round pick if Peter re-signs with Nashville (I think). This deal doesn't hurt Nashville for at least three years. Of course, Forsberg could go down with an injury, but the team has done fairly well to this point. From our point of view, it isn't that big of a deal. It was very affordable for us at this point in time. Initially, he will probably center Hartnell and Radulov on the "third" line, while also working on the first PP unit. This allows him to slowly work his way into the team while not disrupting the exceptional chemistry that the first (Kariya-Legwand-Erat) and second (Sullivan-Arnott-Dumont) lines have. Hopefully, this trade is a win-win. David

While I won't deny that problems exist in Nashville, they really exist in every market to some degree. The primary problem with this league is marketing- as in it is non-existent. Here are two articles (which many have probably read already) I wrote discussing this problem specifically at the local level: Rink of Dreams and Rink of Dreams- The Aftermath. Along the lines of marketing, can one guess what team is the worst draw on the road? You would be correct if you said the Predators. A division rival is the wrong audience, but how well do you think a fan in New York knows the Predators and the type of game they play? One of the top teams in the NHL has one national TV game. Another great article by John Couture over at PredNation. The latest is the Al Strachan article as well as the article in the Tennessean. Paul McCann does a pretty good job of countering Mr. Strachan's comments (as was pointed out previously). Here is my attempt at addressing the article in the Tennessean particularly. Again, not denying that there are issues. Many of the issues the league have could be fixed with better marketing. I can also say the NHL marketing office hasn't been too stable since the lockout. Thanks. David Singleton

Now, with Grand Rapids and the Ads set to begin a series, it's like Detroit vs. Nashville Lite. Congrats to the Griffins for their play to this point. David

Now that I'm done laughing at how quickly you came up with those stats, that data makes me very very sad. If it makes you feel better I messed up and we are 31-2-2 scoring 3+ as opposed to 30-2-2? peace Isn't Ottawa in the same boat as us in that catergory? And what movie were you talking about just seeing for the first time? Ottawa is winless (or was a few days ago I'm not sure if they pulled out out though I don't think so) when they don't score at least 3. And yeah M*A*S*H. Harold, Yeah I liked it. Took some times to get into some of the different actors but it worked. Corporal Walter "Radar" O'Reilly was always my favorite character. I was pleasantly surprised they kept the same actor for the tv show (I can't for the life of me come up with the name, he's the only hold over that I noticed though). peace Gary Burgoph (sp?)

what'd ya think of it? I think it's one of Altman's better movies. I always liked Radar more in the movie and in the early t.v. episodes when he was much sneakier. He got a lot more naive as the show went on. *ahem* sorry for the threadjack. Where were we? Oh yah. Wings suck! bad goalie! defense play bad and whatnot... Don't get me started on the greatest TV shows of all time as well as a great, great movie. M*A*S*H and Batman in one thread!!! GREATEST - THREAD - EVER !!!

Where do you get those wonderful stats? I love Batman wordplay.

when nashville wins their 3rd cup, get back to me. in the interim, they're nobodies who have proven nothing. zip. nada. oh, hell: when they make it to the second round of the playoffs--which i'm sure will be a banner-raising time in country city--get back to me. thats right...we will raise a banner to show our appreciation of our team...unlike detriot fans who are so cocky after we raise our 3rd stanly cup huh? haha wow u are hilarious... hmm lets see, how many years have the preds been in the league and how many has detriot... and guess what, the past is the past. it means nothing now so your argument is ridiculous good try though Be careful H4L. Talking hockey on an opposing team board is great as you get both sides of the debate and less homer talk about the team you support. That said, it sucks to read "trollish" posts no matter what team that post seems to support. Rivalries are fun, but always have respect for your opponent- the team itself and its fans. I'm off my soapbox now. David

Manny played outstanding for Detroit tonight, regardless of this fetish everyone has of bashing him (or any other Detroit goalie for that matter). He may be a career backup and may never be consistent enough in the eyes of his coaches and/or front office to be an every day #1 goalie. However, even career backups play outstanding games every now and then- and tonight, Manny played very well. Detroit lost because Nashville got behind the defense twice, and plays an aggressive penalty kill, as well as having a goalie play just as outstanding. That's it. Good game. Three good games and it does look like a great series is definitely in store for us all. David

Erat is out with a strained hip (hurt last night). Upshall was recalled from Milwaukee (where he assisted on Greg Johnson's goal last night against the Wings). David