Archive for May, 2012
Press release: Predators sign Joonas Jarvinen to entry-level contract
11 months ago
by Amanda DiPaolo
in Uncategorized
Nashville, Tenn. (May 30, 2012) – Nashville Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager David Poile announced today that the club has signed free agent defenseman Joonas Järvinen (YOH-nuhs JAHR-vehn-en) to a two-year, two-way con
tract.
Järvinen, 23 (1/5/89), played his first season with Pelicans Lahti of the Finnish League (SM-Liiga) in 2011-12, ranking second among all league skaters in plus/minus rating (+28), fourth in penalty minutes (125) and among the League’s Top 20 defensemen in points (5g-18a-23pts). The 6-3, 220-pound blueliner posted six points (3g-3a) in 17 2012 playoff games, helping Lahti reach the SM-Liiga Finals and earn a silver medal. The native of Turku, Finland spent his first four professional seasons with his hometown team, TPS Turku, helping them claim the SM-Liiga title in 2010.
Järvinen participated in his first World Championship tournament earlier this month, recording three assists in 10 games for Finland. He has also represented Finland on the international stage at the 2008 and 2009 World Junior Championships, and the 2007 World Under-18 Championships.
Press release: Rinne still in hunt for cover of EA SPORTS NHL 13
12 months ago
by Amanda DiPaolo
in Press Release
May 24, 2012 – EA SPORTS™ and NHL.com announced today that the semifinals matchups for the EA SPORTS NHL®13 Cover Vote, sponsored by BlackBerry®,
will be Philadelphia Flyers forward Claude Giroux versus Pittsburgh Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin and New York Islanders forward John Tavares against Nashville Predators goalie Pekka Rinne. Fans have cast more than 19.5 million votes to date.
Beginning today at http://www.nhl.com/covervote, fans can vote an unlimited number of times for their favorite player to advance to the finals. The winner of the cover vote campaign will be unveiled as the EA SPORTS NHL® 13 Cover Athlete at the 2012 NHL Awards™ on June 20 at the Wynn Las Vegas (7pm ET on NBC Sports Network in the U.S. and CBC in Canada).
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NHL®13 Cover Vote Semifinals Breakdown |
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Bracket A |
Bracket B |
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Claude Giroux vs. Evgeni Malkin |
John Tavares vs. Pekka Rinne |
NHL 13 Cover Athlete Voting Schedule:
- · May 24 – May 28: Semifinals
· May 29 – June 4: Finals
The NHL 13 Cover Vote campaign, gives fans the opportunity to select the face of the EA SPORTS NHL® franchise. Fans can create awareness for the campaign and their favorite player by using #NHL13Cover on Twitter.
The first ever cover vote campaign for the EA SPORTS NHL® franchise has been embraced by NHL fans, teams and players who have utilized social media platforms to campaign. Recent outstanding examples of team and player engagement include:
Sergei Kostitsyn looks for multi-year deal with Predators
1 year ago
by Amanda DiPaolo
in Features
“Of course, I want to come back here.”
Sergei Kostitsyn, a restricted free agent come July 1st, was adamant about his desire to return to Smashville next season, preferably with a contract that is for more than one season.
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In a time when the KHL tries to lure Eastern European players away from the NHL, Kostitsyn not only wants to return to the Predators in the fall, but he wants to solidify the relationship for the long-term.
For the past two seasons, Kostitsyn has been signed to one-year deals with the Predators.
“My agent is going to talk to [General Manager David Poile] and [Barry] Trotz. We will see what is going to happen in the summer. I would like to stay here more than one year. We are going to talk about more than one year.”
Kostitsyn, a 7th round draft pick of the Montreal Canadiens in 2005, never seemed to fit in with the Habs. He wanted more playing time, ran into behavioral problems by missing a bus to a pre-season game in 2009, and was suspended by the team when he refused to report to the Canadiens’ AHL affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs. (more…)
Gill, Gaustad both interested in re-signing with Nashville
1 year ago
by Amanda DiPaolo
in Features
Ryan Suter and Shea Weber are not the only players in need of new contracts from the Nashville Predators. There is an entire slew of Nashville draft picks who are set to become restricted and unrestricted free agents come July 1st.
Two of the more interesting players without contracts for next season, however, did not develop from within the organization, but instead were involved in mid-season trades that saw the Predators retain their services for the playoff push.
Hal Gill and Paul Gaustad, traded from the Montreal Canadiens and Buffalo Sabres respectively, were brought into Nashville before the trade deadline to fill holes in the Predators roster. Gaustad is a specialist in the faceoff circle. Gill is a veteran stay-at-home defenseman, and 2009 Stanley Cup winner with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Both players quickly felt welcome in Smashville. (more…)
Many Nashville roster decisions depend on Suter’s intentions
1 year ago
by Amanda DiPaolo
in Features
Predators General Manager David Poile spoke to the media on Thursday morning about the status of contract negotiations with defenseman Ryan Suter.
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The two met on Wednesday to discuss what Poile called a “game plan” for moving forward in contract negotiations.
“He knows how much we want him, how big a part of our team he is. Getting [Suter] signed will give us a clearer direction where we are going,” Poile said.
After Suter meets with his agent and discusses the matter with his family, Poile and Suter’s camp are expected to meet again no later than the first week of June. (more…)
An emotional Suter spoke about future with Predators
1 year ago
by Amanda DiPaolo
in Features
Ryan Suter fought back tears as he talked to the media outside the Predators locker room on Wednesday night.
“Wherever I sign, I want to be there for the rest of my career. That affects my family, my wife, my kid, if we have more kids, everything goes into it,” Suter said.
The U.S. Olympian is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, 2012. General Manager David Poile has previously made it clear that Nashville wants to re-sign the defenseman to a long-term contract.
The Predators were at Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday to clean out their lockers and have their end-of-season physicals. (more…)
An uneasy off-season begins for Predators with Nashville’s 2-1 loss to Phoenix
1 year ago
The Nashville Predators did all they could but score in a 2-1 loss on Monday night to the Phoenix Coyotes. The Coyotes win the series 4-1 and move on to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in team history. Phoenix will play the Los Angeles Kings for a chance to compete in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Two second period goals were enough for the Coyotes to get past Nashville in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals. Derek Morris and Martin Hanzal picked up the tallies for Phoenix. Colin Wilson scored his first goal of the postseason to cut the Coyotes lead to one late in the third period, but Nashville was unable to find the equalizer.
The Predators entered the postseason as one of the Western Conference favorites. The handshakes were barely finished before the ‘what ifs’ began.
“We had some great chances,” Head Coach Barry Trotz said. “We rang one off the post, we had a secondary chance off the side. [Alexander] Radulov pushed it over the other side of the net and there was an open net. I think [Roman] Josi shot it into their guy sliding. So, it’s sort of the way the series went, we just couldn’t bury our chances.” (more…)
Nashville tries to stave off elimination on Monday night
1 year ago
by Amanda DiPaolo
in Preview
The Los Angeles Kings have already punched their ticket to the Western Conference Finals when they swept the St. Louis Blues on Sunday afternoon. Monday night, the Phoenix Coyotes will try to join the Kings when they look to close out their series against the Nashville Predators.
At practice on Sunday, Wilson practiced on the top line with Mike Fisher and Martin Erat.
After winning both games at home to open the series, the Coyotes traveled to Nashville and earned a split in Music City.
Now, the Predators find themselves on the brink of elimination heading into Monday night’s Game 5.
During their tenure in the desert, the Coyotes have never won a game at home when they could win the series, sporting an 0-5 record in those contests.
If Phoenix is going to take out the Predators in five games, the Coyotes will need to do so without defenseman Rostislav Klesla. After grabbing Matt Halischuk’s jersey and throwing him into the boards during Game 4, Klesla has been suspended by the League for Game 5.
“I didn’t really see it in real life, because I was blocked out with the TV crews between the benches and people standing up, but when I looked at it on film, I thought it was a very dangerous hit,” Predators Head Coach Barry Trotz said. (more…)
The morning after: Predators, on the brink of elimination, need fast starts moving forward
After taking Game 3 of their Western Conference Semifinal series against the Phoenix Coyotes on Wednesday night, Nashville Predators head coach Barry Trotz decided to stick with the same lineup in Game 4 as the team looked to even their series on Friday night at Bridgestone Arena.
Trotz motions to the referees to review the no-goal call late in the third period Friday night.
While the team got another solid goaltending performance from Pekka Rinne in nets and were able to limit the Coyotes scoring chances throughout the night, the Coyotes took the lead late in the 1st period and relied on Mike Smith and a no-goal call down the stretch to win Game 4 by a 1-0 final, taking the series back to Phoenix for Game 5 on Monday night looking to eliminate Nashville and move on to the Western Conference Finals.
Slow Start - Getting off to a quick start and establishing their forecheck early was a key to success for the Predators in Game 3 that they hoped to replicate on Friday night. Having to go on the penalty kill just 1:30 into the game was not what they wanted to do and gave Phoenix early momentum in the contest. (more…)
Waved-off goal leaves Predators trailing 3-1 in series against Phoenix
1 year ago
by Amanda DiPaolo
in Game Recap
The Nashville Predators find themselves in a familiar situation, down 3-1 in the Western Conference Semifinals. A season ago, Nashville was eliminated from the postseason by the Vancouver Canucks in 6 games during the second round of the playoffs.
Mike Smith, and the Phoenix Coyotes, shut out Nashville by a 1-0 score to push the Predators to the brink of elimination.
Phoenix Captain Shane Doan scored the game’s only tally at 14:25 into the opening frame. The puck deflected off of rookie defenseman Roman Josi and into the Predators net.
The Predators thought they had tied the game late in the third period, but for the second time in consecutive games, a Nashville goal was called back by the referee.
The puck was shoved past Smith during a scrum in front of the net, but the referee immediately called the goal off. (more…)
