On the Forecheck

Drama awaits Devils & Rangers in Game 6: Friday's notes

2012-05-25T12:12:28Z

After a night without action, the Stanley Cup Playoffs will resume tonight with Game Six between the Devils & Rangers, and with New Jersey holding a 3-2 series advantage, echoes of 1994 seem to be everywhere...

Nashville Predators News

Smashville 24/7 - Valuable experience gained by Preds rookies
...and that's why they won't be rookies any more.

Trading with the Enemy: The Conundrum of Ryan Suter | The Predatorial
I find it hard to believe that David Poile will be able to get much for the right to talk exclusively with Suter for a few weeks before free agency opens on July 1.

Nashville Predators job: Legal & Administrative Affairs Coordinator | Hockey Gear HQ
Looking for work with one of the NHL's fastest-growing teams? Take a look at this open position.

Preds in review: Nick Spaling - Predators Insider
Is there much upside left in Spaling's game?

Around the Wide Wide World of Hockey

Devils guarantee they’ll downplay 1994 conference finals for Game 6 vs. Rangers | Puck Daddy
Mark Messier's not walking through that door.

Phoenix Coyotes Injury Report: Post Playoffs - Five For Howling
Apparently Lauri Korpikoski suffered a concussion in the first round, and kept on playing.

Los Angeles Kings Western Conference championship belt; yes, seriously (PHOTO) | Puck Daddy
Incredible!

When it comes to goalie search, Lightning GM Steve Yzerman said he first will try the trade route - Lightning Strikes | Tampa Bay Times
I wonder where he might find one?

Report: Luongo Wants Trade Out Of Vancouver, Vigneault Says - Nucks Misconduct
Hmm...

Player numbers Hockey Canada’s main concern - The Globe and Mail
In the U.S., however, the game seems to be growing.

Canadian fans' complex views on fighting in hockey - The Globe and Mail
Bring up the idea of banning hockey to a hardcore fan, and you'll likely have to drop the gloves.

Burke, Carlyle and the Top Six-Bottom Six Model | Maple Leafs Hotstove
With his new head coach in place, Brian Burke may restructure things a bit in Toronto.

Tomas Kopecky visits Pavol Demitra’s grave with Slovakia silver medal (VIDEO) | Puck Daddy
Zdeno Chara even donned a Demitra jersey during the World Championship medal ceremony.

Ryan Russell Signs 2-Way Contract With Blue Jackets - The Cannon
A depth signing for the division rival.

NHL Awards 2012: SB Nation Bloggers Select Calder Trophy Winner - SBNation.com
And the winner is...

Dodger Stadium Winter Classic? Team Interested In Hosting NHL Outdoor Game - Jewels From The Crown
Not a bad idea, this.

Lastly, as found at Kukla's Korner, here's Gary Bettman talking about the state of the NHL these days:

Will lack of national discussion cause NBA, NHL playoffs to suffer?

2012-05-24T15:59:37Z

Will lack of national discussion cause NBA, NHL playoffs to suffer?

From SI.com.

Pekka Rinne in Final Four for EA Sports NHL13 Cover

2012-05-24T14:14:18Z

By scoring a win over the New York Rangers' Henrik Lundqvist, Nashville Predators goalie Pekka Rinne has made the Final Four in EA Sports' voting for who will grace the cover for NHL13.

Pekka Rinne

#35 / Goalie / Nashville Predators

Height: 6-5

Weight: 209

Born: Nov 03, 1982

Now through Monday, May 28, you can vote AS MANY TIMES AS YOU LIKE at covervote.nhl.com for Peks as he takes on John Tavares of the New York Islanders in one semifinal. The other side of the bracket features Philadelphia's Claude Giroux, and Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin.

So what are you waiting for? Get over there and start clicking!

Devils push Rangers to the brink: Thursday's notes

2012-05-24T12:08:30Z

Thanks to a wild 5-3 victory in Game 5, the New Jersey Devils have taken a 3-2 lead in the Eastern Conference Finals and have a chance to close things out tomorrow night on their home ice. Our hockey notes this morning touch on this game, before moving on to the rest of the hockey world, including two articles from our very own Sam Page appearing in different outlets...

Nashville Predators News

Let's start things off with Pete Weber on satellite radio yesterday talking puck:

Pete Weber on HTM 2012-05-23 (mp3)

PuckCast: Episode 4 – A Call to Action | PuckScene.com
Patten welcomes in Preds game operations guru Ron Zolkower to talk about a very special fund-raiser this Wednesday at the Tin Roof.

Paul McCann - Put on Your Tin Foil Hats...
Paul says the Coyotes should quit howling.

Around the Wide Wide World of Hockey

A Dream to a Nightmare and Back: New Jersey Devils Take Game 5 from New York Rangers, 5-3 - In Lou We Trust
After jumping out to an early lead, the Devils almost blew this one.

American Circus - Sports - Hockey's Moneypuck Problem
Sam argues that without much actionable intelligence to be derived from stats analysis, hockey players and coaches rely on cliché as a bastion of collected hockey wisdom.

Sidney Crosby's Comic Book Death | Overtime
Given all the Marvel movies I've been watching with my sons lately, Sam's other article yesterday is especially apropos.

Eulogy: Remembering the 2011-12 Phoenix Coyotes | Puck Daddy
Sam & Matt do a fine job here: So it's all over now. We no longer will be treated to the uneasy sight of a state with the harshest immigration policies having a "white-out."

Blue Jackets Off-Season Continues: Derek Dorsett Re-Signed - The Cannon
Heads up, boys.

Alain Vigneault Signs Extension - Nucks Misconduct
The alternative would have been really, really dumb.

Spacek on memorable, surreal Habs experience | Hockey Inside/Out
In an all-too-rare bit of candor, Jaroslav Spacek sheds some light on just how nutty the situation in Montreal became last season.

KuklasKorner : Puckin' Around With Spector : Forecasting the PR Strategies for "NHL CBA 2012".
Lyle walks through how things went down back in 2004, and cautions both sides to take the hockey blogging community seriously.

Trendspotting | mc79hockey.com
OK, everybody can stop writing about the shot-blocking trend of this playoff run, as Tyler has the most insightful take on this issue I've seen, and it's not even close.

Canadians open to changes that would make hockey safer - The Globe and Mail
It will be interesting to see if this survey leads the NHL towards a more comprehensive ban on head shots.

Gretzky talks horse racing, hockey and about divided loyalties - The Globe and Mail
The Great One had strong ties to the Kings and Coyotes, and of course Glen Sather & Mark Messier are with the Rangers.

Brent Sutter plays waiting game - Calgary Sun
Is he the next Oilers coach?

CBC announces ‘While the Men Watch Hockey Night,’ sets off backlash over sexism | Puck Daddy
The outrage here is interesting to watch, but just because there are legions of informed, savvy female hockey fans doesn't mean there isn't also an audience for this sort of thing.

Puck the Media is Moving " Puck The Media
SB Nation makes a sweet acquisition here, bringing Steve Lepore's leading hockey media blog within the fold.

Alexander Radulov named KHL MVP for 3rd time

2012-05-23T20:01:42Z

For the third season in a row, Alexander Radulov has been named the winner of the Golden Stick, which goes to the KHL's most valuable player during the regular season. With 25 goals and 38 assists, he also led the league in scoring for the second consecutive year.

In addition, he was awarded a "Golden Helmet", which is basically comparable to an NHL First Team All-Star selection, as the best six-man unit was also selected.

Alexander Radulov

#47 / Right Wing / Nashville Predators

Height: 6-1

Weight: 200

Born: Jul 05, 1986

Contract Status: Restricted Free Agent

Any guesses on how late he'll stay out celebrating this big win?

Brian McGrattan season review: The Knuckle Chucker

2012-05-23T17:20:45Z

We'll kick off our season reviews of the 2011-2012 Nashville Predators with one of the more popular players on the team, the big lug who fills a rather unique role.

Brian McGrattan

#23 / Right Wing / Nashville Predators

Height: 6-4

Weight: 235

Born: Sep 02, 1981

Contract Status: Unrestricted Free Agent

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG		SOG	PCT
2011 - Brian McGrattan	30	0	2	2	-1	61	0	0	0		10	0

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Expectations

Claimed off waivers from Anaheim a few days into the season, McGrattan was brought in to play the role of heavyweight enforcer. Simply put, nobody expected him to put the puck in the net (or do much of anything with it, really).

He filled that job description to a T, entertaining crowds at Bridgestone Arena by not only pounding the snot out of opponents, but demonstrably relishing his work and egging the fans on to voice their support.

Results

In terms of contribution to the results of any given hockey game, McGrattan was a non-factor.

Most of this data is from Behind The Net - "Net Zone Starts" is the balance of Offensive - Defensive faceoffs for which McGrattan was on the ice, so in his example he was on for 3 more Offensive Zone faceoffs than Defensive Zone ones.

GP	5-on-5 TOI	Shots/60	G/60	A/60	Pts/60	Qual Team	Qual Comp
30	5.31	3.8	0.00	0.76	0.76	-3.87	-2.24
		Rel Corsi	Net Zone Starts	Adj. Rel Corsi	Team Shoot	Save	PDO
		+4.10	+3	+2.86	5.4	944	997

Advanced stats only belabor the point about an enforcer's lack of influence on wins & losses. He skated with 4th-line players, played against 4th-line players, and took the fewest shots on goal among the forwards per 60 minutes of 5-on-5.

The best you can really hope for with players like this is that nothing really bad happens during his few minutes of ice time.

Season Highlight

McGrattan's fight with Toronto's Jay Rosehill is a contender for Hockeyfights.com's Fight of the Year honors:

Outlook

As long as the Nashville Predators continue to reserve a roster spot for an enforcer, it would seem like McGrattan has a good opportunity here. He seems popular in the locker room, and among the fans.

Personally, I think the time of the enforcer has long since passed. The "protecting your star players" angle which is often raised in their defense doesn't seem to hold water any more. Rather than engaging the guys who are putting dangerous hits on your stars, modern enforcers tend to only pair up with the other team's enforcer in an agreed-upon fashion. Just think of the opponents who put dangerous hits on the Predators this season:

Mike Fisher knocked out of a game by Francois Beauchemin.

David Legwand rocked by Kings captain Dustin Brown.

Martin Erat goes on IR for 3 weeks after a head shot by Derek Dorsett.

Blake Geoffrion injured on a hard shoulder-to-shoulder hit by Ryan Jones.

Mark Fistric concussed Shea Weber in Dallas.

I'm sure I may have missed one or two in there, but do you recall much bare-knuckle hockey justice being doled out in response? Jordin Tootoo fought Fistric the next time the Preds & Stars played, and Tootoo also took on Dorsett, but McGrattan had pretty much nothing to do with any of these situations.

So what's the point of having an enforcer around, exactly?

Poll

Based on initial expectations, how would you grade Brian McGrattan's season?

Kings crowned Western Conference champs: Wednesday's notes

2012-05-23T11:37:41Z

Late last night the Los Angeles Kings finished off the Phoenix Coyotes to take the Western Conference Final in 5 games, and send L.A. back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1993. So brace yourselves for a lot more of Barry Melrose, folks, and highlight clips of Ye Olden Days when the Mullet paced behind the bench and Wayne Gretzky led the way...

Nashville Predators News

Top five Nashville Predators quotes from 2011-12 - Nashville Predators Examiner
Who says hockey players don't say anything interesting? (OK, almost never)

Gaustad and Gill are Fond of Nashville | ladypreds
I wonder if the article here gets a little ahead of things with how much these two would like to stay with the Preds.

Preds in review: Craig Smith - Predators Insider
For a few months at least, Smith lived up to the considerable hype.

Around the Wide Wide World of Hockey

Los Angeles Kings at Phoenix Coyotes Game Recap - NHL.com
After a series of controversial calls that were (or weren't made) against both teams, Dustin Penner scored the overtime goal which put L.A. over the top.

Coyotes howling with rage after Dustin Brown’s unpenalized knee-on-knee hit on Michal Rozsival | Edmonton Journal
This was a tough pill to swallow for Phoenix, as it came just seconds before Penner's winner.

The LA Kings have released a fantastic infographic | Awful Announcing
The Kings are killing it, not only on Twitter, but with a perfect send-up of moronic TV reporters who confuse them with the NBA's Sacramento Kings.

Edmonton and Seattle both to get new downtown arenas – but Seattle is getting a much, much better deal | Edmonton Journal
This one starts with an eye-popping comparison.

Penn State hockey releases inaugural Div. 1 schedule; Nittany Lions to play in Philly - Broad Street Hockey
Consider this season a tune-up for 2013-14, when the team will move into their new permanent arena, and join the new Big Ten Hockey Conference.

Radko Gudas has a better playoff beard than you | Backhand Shelf
Holy crap, this guy looks like a Norse god.

These Are Not Your Older Brother's Devils | Overtime
This isn't the same old bunch o' trappers.

Brodeur is a Fraud: Mike Smith: Good Season or Good Goalie?
We'll have to see if the Coyotes' goalie can maintain the pace next season.

How Gregory House, Scott Bowman, and Steve Jobs taught us to win - Grantland
An outstanding article here by Ken Dryden, drawing a line between three otherwise disparate figures.

Western Conference Finals Game 5 Thread

2012-05-23T00:00:14Z

Can the Coyotes stave off elimination once again?

Next Game

Los Angeles Kings
@ Phoenix Coyotes

Tuesday, May 22, 2012, 8:00 PM Central (NBC Sports)
Jobing.com Arena

Complete Coverage >

We have to keep in mind that the deal's not done yet to keep the team in Phoenix, so it's entirely possible that this could be the Coyotes last game in Arizona.

WCF: Los Angeles Kings @ Phoenix Coyotes Game 5: Time To Do It Again - Five For Howling
Can Ray Whitney get rolling? That's one key to a potential Phoenix victory.