Weekend notes: Reaction to the Kessel trade, and a sour Predators prediction

by Dirk Hoag on Sep 19, 2009 1:18 PM EDT

It's a good time to look forward, Preds fans - sure, it would have been nice to add a dynamic sniper to the wing in Phil Kessel, but tonight brings another preseason game at home (against Columbus, no less), and there is plenty of reason to get excited about the guys currently in uniform.

After the jump, we've got a boatload of Predators and NHL news for you; including some reaction to the big trade, an opportunity to break into the Sports & Entertainment industry hosted by the Preds, and one national columnists overly dour forecast for Nashville hockey this fall. It'll get your blood boiling here on a soggy Saturday morning!

Predators News

Red Light District: Thoughts on the Kessel trade
Ryan shares his disappointment over Phil Kessel's trade to Toronto.

Canes Drop "Practice Game" to Predators, 4-2 - Canes Country
Here's the Carolina perspective on last night's exhibition win by the Preds.

2nd Annual "Breaking Into Sports" Workshop and Career/University Fair
The Nashville Predators are hosting another "Breaking Into Sports" workshop, designed for individuals interested in joining the sports & entertainment industry. It takes place at the Sommet Center on Saturday, November 14, and GM David Poile will be one of the speakers.

Predators try to do more with less - Yahoo! Sports
Ross McKeon thinks the Preds are headed into the NHL's toilet. Don't worry, he already predicted the team would finish 29th in the overall standings, so that tells all you need to know about his "expertise".

Elsewhere

Better Know a Blogger: SBNation.com's Chris Mottram - Blog Huddle
Get to know the editorial force behind the new SBNation.com, and how it will help bring together this vast network of sports blogs in an exciting, innovative way.

Lester Patrick Trophy Recipients Announced - KuklasKorner
Mark Messier, Mike Richter, and Jimmy Devellano are the latest recipients of the Lester Patrick Trophy, awarded for outstanding service to hockey in the United States.

Future Is Bright: East's Top Prospects -- NHL FanHouse
Bruce Ciskie takes us on a tour of the Eastern Conference's top prospects, including Tampa Bay's Dustin Tokarski, who was a big rival of Nashville's Chet Pickard in the Western Hockey League.

Future Is Bright: West's Top Prospects -- NHL FanHouse
Bruce Ciskie reviews the top prospects for Western Conference teams, saying of Colin Wilson, "the Predators are so starved for offensive depth that it makes practically no sense to stash him in the AHL for any part of the season."

Howe about that Fleury? - FlamesNation.ca
Jean Lefebvre sets the Theo Fleury comeback in context with greats like Gordie Howe, Guy Lafleur, and Michael Jordan.

QMJHL player convicted of on-ice assault - The Globe and Mail
In what is always a touchy subject (when does on-ice violence cross the line of legality), a teenage hockey player has been convicted for assault after cross-checking an opponent in the face.

Melnyk offers more thoughts on Balsillie - From The Rink
The Ottawa Senators owner offers up more criticism of Jim Balsillie, and drops the tidbit that Balsillie's legal representative, Richard Rodier asked about buying and relocating the Senators back in 2003.

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Comments

Ross McKeon's article

Does anybody else hate that guy? I saved the article in a file so I can email him some hate-mail at the end of the season.

by KentS on Sep 19, 2009 3:23 PM EDT reply actions

several comments

1st concerning mckeons article. while i think 29th is harsh, as was the tone of the article, he has SOME valid thoughts. we are in argueably the best division in hockey and added nothing of note from last seasons end. note i said seasons END. what we added is basically role players that we had lost. therefore we are relying on the “youngsters” again and we know where that got us last year. i’m somewhat optimistic about a few, but that still leaves us dangerously thin when those inevitable injuries occur. 2nd regarding kessel. i think we did what we could. 2-1sts and a 2nd is probably better than our offer due to the unknown( read radulov), but we were at least in the conversation.i hope we are still looking, or at least prepared to make a deal along the way. 3rd and maybe most important. kessel wanting to go to the leafs rather than nashville is getting old, but understandable. while negative canadian press certainly doesnt help our cause thats not really their job. i do wish they were a little more objective. heres the problem. a few years ago we had begun to get the kariyas and arnots and dumonts, then leipold sold. now the instability here is a factor. the media does seem to live in the past , but the truth is we still have boots issues and while i appreciate the local group stepping up, we haven’t recovered yet. it took several years to get to that point before and it appears we have all that work to do again. the kessel deal would have been huge… on ice and for credibility as well.

by predswilrule on Sep 20, 2009 2:30 PM EDT reply actions

Thanks for the comments

Much food for thought there. However, I have a major question after reading John Glennon’s report indicating the Predators would never have paid Phil Kessel’s asking price. The question is: David Poile was negotiating with Boston without knowing what Kessel wanted? If I buy this, then I’m thinking one of two scenarios had been unfolding: 1) The Bruins played Poile like a fiddle to drive up the Leafs’ offer; or 2) Poile was in league with Boston to extract a higher price for a fellow GM. Either way, I sadly conclude that we Preds fans were taken on a bus ride; our highest hopes were falsely raised. The disappointment is compounded by the fact that this supposed drama played out on the very eve of the new season after a summer’s worth of general inactivity in the Nashville front office, at least in terms of adding real offensive firepower. It’s not the first time the Predators have “come close,” in Poile’s words, to landing an NHL-quality scorer (remember last year’s scenario, in which the Predators “almost” obtained Jonathan Cheechoo), but it is one of the hardest failures for Preds fans to swallow to date.

by Hockey Hillbilly on Sep 20, 2009 5:07 PM EDT reply actions