Ahead of tonight's big game at Bridgestone Arena, we've got so many good hockey stories for you to read you'll be getting ready to put on your jersey and head downtown by the time you're done.
Follow after the jump, for the tale of a family flying all the way from Jolly Olde England to see a Predators game, a debate over the goal celebration music here in Nashville, and a video that'll cheer up even the most jaded hockey fan...
Sidney Crosby & the Pittsburgh Penguins play the Preds at Bridgestone Arena tonight, and the St. Louis Blues make their first visit to Smashville next Thursday. Use this special offer for OtF readers to save money on Nashville Predators tickets for these, or any other home game this season.
Nashville Predators News
WZTV FOX 17 - Family Travels from England for Preds Game
An awesome story about a family travelling all the way from England to take in a Predators game. Thanks to Tom Callahan for the pointer on Twitter (@PredsRadio).
i like it, i love it…actually, it makes me wanna puke "
Newton runs through some options regarding the Preds' goal celebration song, but Paul Nicholson's comment nails it.
Preds On The Glass: Battered Predators Face Penguins and Thursday Thoughts
Buddy's back on the beat and serving up his morning links.
Fixing The PK: Nick Spaling’s Return To The Big Club - Predlines
Can one guy make that much of a difference to a team's penalty kill? We can only hope...
Paul McCann - Game Night in Smashville
Paul notes that the Penguins are pretty banged-up, too.
Managing Three Games in Three Nights | Admirals Roundtable
It's a hard knock life in the AHL, as the Admirals get ready for a tough stretch this weekend.
Suter's injury forces Predators to shuffle entire defense corps | Nashville City Paper
David Boclair notes that in practice Wednesday, it was Francis Bouillon who stepped up to play alongside Shea Weber.
Predators prepare for tough stretch without Ryan Suter - The Tennessean
Bryan Mullen walks through the likely D pairings, and highlights the opportunity ahead for Alexander Sulzer (who put in a quietly effective performance last season).
Around the NHL
The Hockey News: Shaking hands with the legend, Gordie Howe
Ryan Dixon shares a couple wonderful anecdotes from the one and only "Mr. Hockey", who for my money stands as the greatest player of all time.
Helmets Not an Answer, Conference Told - NYTimes.com
Shh... don't tell this one to Mark Messier and his very public campaign to get players using his M11 hockey helmet. When it comes to concussions, this isn't the first time I've read that helmets don't have near as much to do with prevention as is commonly thought.
James Engquist gives his first interview following the Rick Rypien incident - Hockey Wilderness
The "Rypien fan" gives a video interview to a local TV station.
James Engquist: "I was assaulted, that’s just the bottom line" | StarTribune.com
...and in the least shocking news you'll ever read, the fan who was assaulted is lawyering up.
Will The Wild Use Rick Rypien As A Rallying Point? - The Copper & Blue
Can Minnesota use that bizarre incident to begin turning things around?
Moreau Breaks Hand (Puck-Rakers Blog)
Columbus loses veteran forward Ethan Moreau for quite a while.
The painful truth about the NHL and its pensions - The Globe and Mail
An all-too-common story in today's age of millionaire athletes and billionaire owners - retired players are left with nothing but broken bodies.
Know your Opponent: Nashville edition - PensBurgh
When SBN's Pittsburgh blog wanted the scoop on the Preds, they turned to our very own Chris Burton.
SC Bern takes on the IIHF - Puck Worlds
Roman Josi's club in the top Swiss league is suing for compensation after the IIHF canceled a "Champions League", which would had the top teams from the various European leagues facing off against each other.
Rangers Coach John Tortorella Seems to See the End of the Line Coming - PuckUpdate
Is Mt. Tortorella about to erupt?
Ottawa GM considering a move as team struggles - The Globe and Mail
Bryan Murray's working his way through the Rolodex looking for a solution...
Murray, on Doughty injury " LA Kings Insider
Panic in Los Angeles? Drew Doughty left last night's game with an upper body injury...
Third Is The Word - Anaheim Calling
In light of the upcoming new third jerseys in Anaheim, Arthur & Daniel highlight some of the nastiest 3rd jerseys in NHL history.
Greatest Hockey Legends.com: Hockey's Most Wanted Man: Brad Richards
The Dallas forward is lighting up the scoreboard in anticipation of a big contract next summer.
Red Light District: Part One: Conversation with agent Jay Grossman
Ryan talks with the high-profile agent about the summer of Ilya Kovalchuk, one of the most unusual free agent dramas the NHL has ever seen.
Family of late LA Kings scout gets 1st civil trial from 9/11 attacks - Puck Daddy
The family of Mark Bavis, who was on Flight 175 along with Ace Bailey on that fateful day, gets their day in court to argue that the companies involved in airport security (and a variety of others) failed to prevent the tragedy.
And lastly, Puck Daddy knocks one out of the park here - with "the most adorable youth hockey goal celebration ever". Be sure to click through and read the whole story. If you don't have a chuckle watching this, there's just no help for you:
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