Tuesday's notes: Smashville waits on Weber word

Last night's 4-1 loss to Detroit would be hard enough to bear for any Preds fan, but the uncertainty hanging over the status of captain Shea Weber makes things even worse. While there was some reason for excitement over the NHL debut of Ryan Ellis, this team can ill afford to be without its All-Star defenseman for a significant stretch of time.

Stay tuned for further updates after practice where Marc will be on the scene, but until then, jump into your morning hockey notes...

After-Christmas Hockey Sales Offer Huge Savings | Hockey Gear HQ
If you got some Christmas cash this year and are looking for hockey gear, there are a number of great sales going on which you should jump on before they disappear.

Nashville Predators News

Paul McCann - Special Tuesday Shots and Why???
Paul is wound up this morning over the lack of supplementary discipline for Mark Fistric after his hit on Shea Weber.

Hockey Night in Nashville: Josi plays on top defensive pairing in 4-1 loss to Detroit
He needs to develop some snarl to his game in the defensive zone, but man can this guy move the puck.

Mike Babcock impressed with Ryan Ellis’ NHL debut - Nashville Predators Examiner
The Red Wings coach heaped praise on Ellis and his work on the power play in particular.

Postgame ponderings - Predators Insider
Josh raises the question of whether the Honey Badger is slowing down a bit due to the grind of the NHL schedule.

Admirals Score Five On Power Play, Cruise To 7-3 Win | Admirals Roundtable
Milwaukee lit it up, going 5-for-7 on the PP.

Nashville Predators' Jordin Tootoo celebrates one year sober - The Tennessean
As well as he's been doing on the ice, it's off the ice where Jordin Tootoo has taken his biggest step forward.

Video man lets Preds know where to improve - The Tennessean
Meet Lawrence Feloney, the man behind the scenes who performs video analysis for the Preds. It takes a colossal amount of work just to properly catalog a single game, let alone all 82 for a team. Even then, you've really only covered a small fraction of the entire NHL season.

Around the Wide Wide World of Hockey

Disgrace: ESPN SportsCenter Year in Review snubs hockey tragedies - Puck Daddy
As if you needed any further evidence that that "news" part of the ESPN acronym is a complete joke... If it doesn't happen on ESPN, then it just doesn't happen according to them.

How to Start a Hockey Blog | Jerseys and Hockey Love
Wise words here for any of you aspirants.

2011 NHL Review " Hockey Analytics
Alan Ryder, one of the progenitors of hockey stats analysis among the hockey bloggers, releases a comprehensive review of last season. Prepare yourself for a long, interesting read.

A Shot Differential Christmas present for y'all - adding on to Ben's brilliant idea from yesterday... - Arctic Ice Hockey
Sexy, sexy stuff here...

Down Goes Brown: Scouting the World Junior Championships
Everything you need to know about the World Juniors.

The World Junior Championship Is Here | The Sleeping Giant
Stoked to watch the World Juniors? Use this tournament as a prompt to make a charitable donation, then...

Habs to blame for coaching situation - CBC Sports
Elliotte Friedman provides a dose of common sense for the Montreal Canadiens, who seem to take one wrong step after another lately.

The 7 hockey toy commercials to brighten your holidays - Puck Daddy
Did you find any of these under the tree this year?

The Quebec Goaltender advantage - Habs Eyes On The Prize

Chris takes a deep dive into the rise to prominence of a number of NHL goalies from La Belle Province.

Video: Oscar Moller and the incredible flying stick pass - Puck Daddy
OK, this is really cool.

2012 World Juniors Preview: Team America - Puck Worlds
Here's your overview of the boys in red, white & blue.

Ron Wilson Gets A Contract Extension, Is Total Jerk About Announcing It - SBNation.com
I don't know, I thought it was pretty funny.

Burke: With Leafs improving, no need for a Plan B - Toronto Sun
Brian Burke sees plenty to be confident about with his Maple Leafs, which led to the Ron Wilson extension.

Founder of Hockeydb.com rules Internet from Springfield | masslive.com
The story behind one of the most-visited hockey sites around. I prefer Hockey-Reference.com for most stuff, but Hockeydb.com has a broader base of player listings, particularly for international players.

Wings Bounce Back, Beat Predators 4-1 - Winging It In Motown
Here's the Detroit perspective on last night's game.

A Line Drive In The Box Score: Hawks 4 - Jackets 1 - Second City Hockey
Just another win for the Blackhawks over the Washington Generals of the NHL.

On to the next one: Blues beat Stars, head to Detroit - St. Louis Game Time
Ken Hitchcock knocked off another former employer as the Blues topped the Stars 5-3.

Avalanche at Wild Recap: Here's a New One...The Avalanche Win on the Road, 4-2 over the Mild Wild - Mile High Hockey
The Avalanche are really rolling these days, while the Wild are rapidly falling back into the pack.

Carolina Doubles Up Jersey: Hurricanes 4, Devils 2 - Canes Country
Cam Ward (yup, the goalie) got credit for a goal in the Hurricanes' win.

Oilers At Canucks Recap ; Be Of Good Cheer (5-3W) - Nucks Misconduct
Well, look who's on top of the Northwest Division now.

Rangers Vs. Islanders: Rangers Take First Place In East With 3-0 Win Over Islanders - Blueshirt Banter
The New York Rangers are getting tuned up for the Winter Classic, by shutting out the Islanders.

And lastly... this is oustanding stuff here: