Thanksgiving Thoughts

Nashville Predators fans have much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving Day;

• A team on the ice that has rebounded convincingly from early season woes to go 8-2-2 over their last 12 games;
• A group of local investors who worked out a deal with city government and stand ready to take over the franchise in just a few weeks;
• An outgoing owner in Craig Leipold who patiently waited for the locals to get their deal, rather than taking the quick money that would have sent this team packing;
• A coach in Barry Trotz who, even after all these years, has this team playing hard every night;
• A GM who, despite having to slash payroll, made sure that the players brought in were able to fill specific roles;
• Players like Radek Bonk, David Legwand, and Alexander Radulov, who, among others, are providing offense through a genuine team effort. This team doesn't rely on a single star;
• A defense corps that has buckled down in the face of injury;
• A fan base that is rallying behind their team and their city;

All this, of course, and much, much more. Happy Thanksgiving, folks.

NOTES
Unfortunately I'll miss tonight's Predators/Red Wings tilt. The Wings toyed with the St. Louis Blues last night, so it will be interesting to see how Nashville handles them.

Too bad for Glen Hanlon, who just got the boot in Washington, where the Caps are struggling. Some coaches are particularly suited to certain teams and certain times, and while "Hacksaw" did a solid job the last couple years, the expectations have been upgraded along with the roster in D.C. and Hanlon just hasn't gotten things to click so far.

Happiness is flipping by a Canucks/Oilers game and seeing two of my fantasy hockey wingers, Marcus Naslund and Dustin Penner, trade power play goals within a matter of minutes. Mirtle's Merry Men, you're going down!!!