Report from Nashville: Game 6 and the Off-Season

Marie Meisel is a Nashville Predators season ticket holder and a guest contributor to Lisa's Lounge. Read along as she wraps up with the final Preds game this post season, and looks ahead to the summer...

by Marie Meisel

After the nail biter that was game 5, the Predators were welcomed Sunday May 8th by several hundred fans at the airport. It was great to see the guys smiling and enjoying their welcome home. http://video.predators.nhl.com/videocenter/


Monday was game night. Game 6, do or die time. We had our towels, we had our vocal cords and we had our passion for our team. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough and the Predators Magical Playoff ride ended in a 2-1 loss. We stayed for the traditional handshake and saluted our team with one last “Let’s Go Predators”.

It was sad to see the season end. No more trips to the arena, no more comparing notes with fellow fans between periods, no more overpriced concession stand pizza. All that was left was a round of hugs and wishes for a good summer to the various members of my hockey family.

But this playoff run was a huge step for the team and for us as a fan base. The team finally got over the first round hump. They took the best team in the regular season to 6 games, five of which were 1 goal games. Pred Nation finally received a measure of respect from many fans around the league for our passion and knowledge.

The Canuck fans who posted on our message board were respectful and appreciated our online version of southern hospitality. And many Canadians got to see what many of us already knew, hockey is alive and well in this part of Dixie. How about calling Nashville a new traditional market? We’ve borrowed a few traditions from other teams and put our own twist on them. We took Detroit’s octopus and made it our own by using a catfish. We have used the rally towel that Vancouver started. And we have our chants and the well known TV timeout standing ovation which are uniquely ours.

Now it is off season for the citizens of Pred Nation. We will enjoy the warmer weather. Get around to all those things that got neglected during the season. Get reacquainted with non hockey loving family members. For myself, I am in the process of buying my first home. I will be doing some traveling. I will catch up on my professional reading by going through the pile of nursing journals on my bedroom floor. I will drop by Lisa’s Lounge periodically to add columns on road trips and playing fantasy hockey. And perhaps even read a non hockey related book or two.

I will be checking various message boards though perhaps not as frequently. I will follow the playoffs as they progress towards the awarding the Stanley Cup. Good luck to Lisa’s Canucks. I will get together with my friend Robin to watch the NHL Awards show to check out the players all cleaned up. And see if any our guys: David Poile, Barry Trotz, Shea Weber and Pekka Rinne get an award.

Then the NHL Entry Draft in late June, though there is less excitement this year since we don’t have a first round pick. Wait to see what players are re-signed (especially our captain, Shea Weber) and who is let go. In July, there will be prospect camp. And as the calendar rolls around to August, training camp will start.

Until we meet again, in the words of Paul McCann our arena announcer...

Good night and good hockey!

Report from Nashville: A Hockey Franchise Grows Up

By Marie Miesel

Let’s rewind 72 hours. It’s Easter Sunday in the buckle of the Bible belt. A day usually spent at church and with family. But this Easter was also a high holy hockey day. Game 6 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals. After a dramatic Good Friday OT win, the Preds came home with a 3-2 series lead. A chance to win a playoff series for the first time in 6 tries. Having exorcised the ghost of last season’s Game 5 meltdown in Chicago, we were ready to watch hopefully a handshake on our home ice where we were the winning team. Such dread and such hope mixed together. The crowd was large for the pregame warm-ups. Questions loomed. Could we contain the Finnish Flash and the Perry Express one more time? As a previous year’s playoff slogan went Questions Will Be Answered. With our gold rally towels in hand and Pierre Maguire Inside the Glass, we settled in.

We got off to a rocky start with Teemu Selanne scoring his 6th goal in 6 games. I have always liked him as a player, was happy when he finally won a Cup in 07 but man did he make our team look silly. In the previous 5 games, the team that scored first won the game. Nerves were wound a little tighter. Nick Spaling a 3-4th line guy and PKer extraordinaire put a pass from Jordin Tootoo in the last minute of the first to knot the score at 1-1. In the second, the 2 old men and kid 4th line (Steve Sullivan, J P Dumont and Blake Geoffrion) put us up 2-1.

We give the Ducks a PP (very bad idea) near the end of the second period. Jason Blake makes it 2-2 going into the third. It looked like we had gone up 3-2 when Patric Hornqvist appeared to score on a deflection. It was waived off due a high stick. Nick Spaling and Jordin Tootoo team up again and the Preds go up 3-2. Hope was getting a little stronger. But then, (cue music of doom) Mike Fisher goes off for tripping at the 8 minute mark. It was one of the longest 2 minutes I’ve ever experienced. After that, it was holding on for dear life and watching the clock wind down.

Anaheim pulls their goalie. But Saku Koivu gets called for interference on Sergei Kostitsyn in the last minute. The countdown was on. David Legwand, our very first draft picks and EN expert, put home the final nail, 4-2 Preds. It was a very emotional moment. People were crying, hugging and cheering their hearts out. We have waited so long and endured so much to get to this moment. A shout out to the Day One fans who stuck with it through the horrible expansion years, the Balsille takeover attempt and the aching disappointment of 5 first round exits.

Lisa’s Canucks are now on our dance card. They will be favored, as they should be, being the best team in the league this year. But don’t count the Preds out. We are led by Shea Weber, Ryan Suter, Pekka Rinne and cast of mostly unknowns who play their hearts out every night. And a fanbase who’s passion can no longer be overlooked.

Many hockey elitists have wanted us moved, have called us uneducated rednecks, have put down our city and our state. To all you, have a nice day because the Preds are playing in May!

Pierre McGuire from TSN comments on Nashville...

 "It was a spectacular event and I have to tell you guys this right now. What blew me away more than anything else was post game. The amount of people that were crying because they were happy. The amount of people that said thank you for supporting our franchise. The amount of people that said we really appreciate your network covering our games. I was blown away by the hospitality, by the humbleness, by the polite nature of the fan base here and it’s not just me. There were so many Canadian people at this game. A lot of people obviously view Nashville as a destination type area where you come and you watch … go to museums … you go to the Grand Ole Opry … you listen to country music. It’s just a destination location. And it’s a lot of fun. I was blown away by how many people enjoy this team, by how many people care about the future of this franchise, and by the passion of their fan base. This is a winner. Nashville is a winner. Hats off to Gary Bettman. He had the vision to let this thing play itself out. It’s playing itself out right now. This is one of the better franchises in the league in terms of talent on the ice. This is a very positive thing for the league. Very positive".

Report from Nashville: The Agony and the Ecstasy

Games Four and Five

by Marie Miesel

Game 4 was also in Smashville. Good crowd though a little nervous. Could the Preds take a 3-1 series lead? Would our Vezina trophy candidate goalie get back to his regular season form? Would our D hold up under the onslaught of the Perry Express and the Finnish Flash? For two periods we held on, but in the third the flood gates opened starting with a shorthanded goal from Corey Perry. When it was all said and done the Ducks came away with a 6-3 win. Visions of previous playoff failures danced in our heads that night.


Game 5 was back in Anaheim. We scored the first goal; a pretty pass from Jordin Tootoo to Kevin Klein put us up 1-0 after one. The Ducks Jason Blake scored on the PP to even things up in the second. Poor Shane O’Brien. He’s taken a penalty in every game and the Ducks have scored on the ensuing PP each time. Love his toughness but his hockey IQ perhaps isn’t the highest. Tied 1-1 going into the third, Pred Nation held it’s breath as the period began. Forty seconds into the period, Bobby Ryan, back after a two game suspension, scored what many consider to be the goal of the playoffs so far. Poor David Legwand, he was still looking for his shorts on the way to the plane. And can I just say that I really hate it when our team ends up being on someone else’s highlight reel.

We fought back. Joel Ward tied it up. The Ducks re-took the lead on another Jason Blake goal. Most of us figured oh well we’re done. Another playoff failure. But something magical happened. History was made. With 38 seconds left, with our goalie on the bench, Mike Fisher wins the faceoff in the Ducks zone. The puck makes it way to our Captain Shea Weber who wrists it past Ray Emery. Tie Game! Less than 2 minutes into the overtime period, Jordin Tootoo fishes the puck out from the left half wall and puts it on Jerred Smithson’s stick. Jerred buries it for a 4-3 win. The first Game 5 win, the first OT win, and the first time we have been up 3-2 in a series. NHL.com even has a “History will be Made” commercial for us now. History believes in firsts.



Now for fans like Lisa Ovens and Jan Snyder, Game 5 wins and first round series wins are old hat. They’ve been there before. We haven’t. We’ve watched the handshake with the winning team on our ice five times. We are a blue collar, non superstar team from a small non-traditional market. As I said in a previous column, these guys are our family. We rejoice and mourn with them. We fought tooth and nail to keep the team here when everyone outside of Nashville wanted them moved. And to be this close to breaking through and proving that we do belong is exciting and terrifying all at the same time.

 But at 5 pm CT today, the Bridge will be rocking once again. And I and my fellow citizens of Pred Nation will be there, hoping that history will be made once again.

Report from Nashville: Game Three in Smashville

by Marie Meisel

Unlike Lisa and Jan, my boys started their quarterfinal series in Anaheim, California. Game 1 was a 4-1 Preds win. Our captain, Shea Weber scored on the power play and they bore down after that. Game 2 was a 5-3 loss with the last goal being an empty netter. They got behind the 8 ball in the first 5 minutes by putting the Ducks on the power play. Two goals later and the Preds were fighting for their lives. They pulled back to within 1 at 4-3 but couldn’t force the overtime. The Ducks definitely play with an edge and sometimes they cross the line. Late in the game Bobby Ryan stomped on Jonathan Blum’s foot trying to get the puck away from him. This was a costly decision as he is now suspended for the 2 games in Nashville.

Which brings us to Sunday and Game 3 at the Bridgestone Arena and TSN was in the house. The area in between the team benches are usually sold seats but we got Pierre Maguire Inside the Glass instead. The team put on a pre game party on the plaza in front of the arena. But at 5 pm CT, we were ready to rock the Bridge. I hope the folks watching the game on TV got a sense of the intensity of the crowd. Hopefully, it will put to rest some of the critics who say we don’t “get” hockey down here. You better believe we do. We were loud from the player intros on. It was amazing to be a part of such passionate crowd.

Jerred Smithson took a penalty in the first 5 minutes and the Ducks dangerous power play went to work. We managed to kill it off and got on the board with our first goal on the power play. We have had a power play goal in each of the 3 games which is amazing considering our power play has been an Achilles heel for us all season. Jordin Tootoo put a puck home mere minutes later. In fact, our arena announcer (Paul McCann) was announcing Erat’s goal when Jordin scored. We were up 2-0 after one and feeling pretty good. The second period saw the parade to the penalty box continue. Then the ducks went on the power play again and Teemu Selanne made us pay. He scored again 30 seconds later when the puck took a funny bounce off our boards and popped right onto his stick. We took the lead back with a goal from David Legwand. The ducks tied it up. Mike Fisher scored the game winner and the last 8 minutes were tense as we held off the Ducks. The relief and joy that roared through the building when the final buzzer went off was awesome.

Many citizens of Pred Nation were hoarse, nursing upset stomachs and feeling their heart rates return to normal on Monday after such a game. But you can be sure that we will be back loud and proud again on Wednesday night for Game 4.

The Life of a Fan in a Non-Traditional Market

The Nashville Predators are about to launch their sixth campaign in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Yet, many hockey fans are still in the dark when it comes to all things hockey in Nashville. And that's about to change once you read the following guest column from one of the Predators most passionate fans...

by Marie Miesel

As I look out my apartment window, I can see a magnolia tree. Not in bloom but will be in a month or two. I am a Nashville Predators fan and this about what it’s like to live in a non-traditional market.

I actually got into hockey because I had a massive crush on guy who was a Blackhawks fan. This was back in the 80s and ESPN was carrying games. I got to see Wayne Gretzky and company work their magic. I was also friends with guys who were fans of the Bruins, Rangers and North Stars. I got away from hockey when I moved to South Carolina for graduate school and bounced around after that. Fast forward to 2006. I had gotten a day job had a little extra money and decided to rekindle my love of this great game. I ended up going to 20+ games and the playoffs by the time that season was done. The summer of 2007 was gut wrenching with the Balsille affair and all that surrounded it. I got a full season ticket after the team was saved. The standing ovation at our last home game against St. Louis that season was a thing of beauty and power. All the pain, tears, and uncertainty came pouring out in one spontaneous roar.

Fans in Nashville are always getting ragged on because we didn’t grow up with hockey, we don’t get snow or ice (false by the way, we had over 10 inches of snow this winter), and we don’t care like our brethren north of the border do. Bull. We may be small in number but we are big on heart. You see southern hospitality is not just a phrase, we live it. We say hi in the grocery line, we help when there is a need (May floods and We Are Nashville) and we respect people’s privacy.



Many country music stars make their homes here year round. You learn very quickly to treat them with courtesy and let them go about their business. We treat our hockey team the same way. Steve Sullivan, Shea Weber, Ryan Suter etc don’t have to worry about being harassed by an angry fan when they are just trying to have a family dinner. More over, these guys are family. They are our brothers, sons, cousins etc. We take them into our hearts and embrace them as our own. Steve Sullivan plans on retiring here and JP Dumont and his family stay here year round. Retired Predators, Wade Belak and Stu Grimson, also are now full time residents of Music City. We have no state income tax and the guys have plenty of opportunities to work on their golf game because of our mild climate.

The flip side of course is that this is football country and the Predators often get the short shrift in the mainstream media. However, the Predators have been very forward in promoting social media, credentialing bloggers and allowing them access. We grow new fans by breeding them or introducing them to the game by taking them to one. We are building a tradition here. Youth hockey participation has tripled since the predators were founded and we have even been able to draft one of our own, Blake Geoffrion.

On most nights our barn is loud. The Canadian media and fans love to point out all our empty seats, forgetting the empty seats in the United Center and other places when those more traditional teams were not so successful. Opposing fans, however, are amazed at how much our fans really get into the games. No sitting on hands in our house. We have a repertory of chants usually led by Cellblock 303. Woe to an opposing goalie when we score, a ref who makes an egregious error, or just a player who’s universally disliked. And our newest tradition, the standing O during a TV time out. No megatron, no music, just 17k fans screaming, whistling and clapping for their boys.

Amazingly enough this little team that the pundits look down on, has made it to the post season 6 out of the last 7 years. We have yet to win a playoff series but hope springs eternal in the land of dogwoods and azeleas. And I will be there with my fellow citizens of Pred Nation when the puck drops for Game 3 on April 17th.