10/8/09 - Colorado at Nashville: W 2-3

THE GOOD:

Finally letting the guys go through pre-skate helmet optional. I don't know about you but I thought they looked more at ease and relaxed than ever before.

Riders in the Sky singing the national anthem. They totally reminded me of my childhood Saturday mornings. I'm just sad they haven't aged too gracefully.

Jerred Smithson moved to the third line in absence of Joel Ward and Jordin Tootoo. Even if they weren't sidelined, he should be on the third line.

Dan Ellis's play in the first period. He was probably the only redeeming quality about an otherwise bad 20 minutes.

The Miracle Kid video, Preds-style: LOVE IT! (and not just because I want that child).

Ladies and gentlemen, Martin Erat did his first ballerina spin of the season. We can all go home now.

Jerred Smithson taking shots on goal and almost making them.

The third line was by far one of the best lines out there. They might not have scored any goals but they were the one line that looked like they had their crap together.

GREAT push by the first line right after Triston Grant's first penalty. Tons of chances. Now I have to wonder whether we will learn to take advantage of those chances more often this season...

The no goal call actually just made everything better. In the end, it's what won us the game. The fans channeled their energy into vocal support for the team and the team fed off of that and turned it into something positive. This continues to be one of my favorite things about the team. Resiliency.

Patric Hornqvist was on fire tonight and has been since he got here. I am anxious to see if he keeps it up because he did have similar success at the start of the season last year, before he sucked it up and got himself sent back down to Milwaukee.

THE BAD:

The crowd's energy in the building for the majority of the game. It was a little too quiet for my tastes, hence why I got sleepy during the second period.

Ryan Jones skating with Wade Belak and Ben Guite. What a punishment. That boy needs to step up his game if he wants to see some better line action.

Our power play.

And the penalty kill, apparently. I guess we don't have it together as much as I thought we did after Saturday's game against Dallas.

The Triston Grant call up might have been a mistake. He took two bad penalties and those led to both of Colorado's goals. Probably not our best idea, in my opinion.

THE UGLY:

The entire first period and most of the second. We looked awful.

The no goal call by Toronto. That was CLEARLY not a kicking motion. Jason Arnott was stopping himself, although I will say he could have put his stick down in front of him to tap it in.


For the first home game of the season, what I witnessed was not exactly what I was expecting. Yes, there are some key injuries to overcome and I know that played a large factor in the overall success of the team on ice. If they continue to play like this though, it's going to be a rough few months ahead.

The Predators continue their season opener home stand on Saturday as they face off against the Eastern Conference Buffalo Sabres. Tickets are still available; click the Smashville logo on the sidebar. Since the game will not be televised locally (unless you're taking advantage of the free preview of Center Ice), maybe you should pop on by. Puck drops at 7:00pm CST.