NASHVILLE - After several months of bouncing around outside the playoffs anywhere in the 9-12 positions in the standings, the Nashville Predators have begun to turn up the heat, and it couldn't have been timed any better.
With a Nashville impacted All-star weekend behind them, the Predators have gone back to business. Vincent Lecavalier earned an assist in the game on Sunday and Tomas Vokoun disproved critics who said his .500 record wasn't enough to deem him an all-star. Vokoun led the West to victory with an amazing 3rd period stopping 16 of 17 shots he faced to prevent the game from going to overtime. However, the fun and games stopped on Wednesday when the rival Detroit Red Wings paid a visit to Smashville, in a game highly regarded as crucial in potentially deciding the 8th and final playoff spot.
In their first game back from the All-star game, the Predators defeated their division rivals in a 4 point game for the second time in a row after losing the first 4 contests. Frantisek Kaberle had 3 assists, Mikael Samuelsson netted a hat trick to up his season goal total from 5 to 8 and Tomas Vokoun stopped 30 shots to earn himself his 3rd shutout of the year.
As has been the case in their recent winning ways (which includes their current 3 game winning streak), Tomas Vokoun has been stellar and guys like Mikael Samuelsson and the recently acquired Mariusz Czerkawski have played excellent. The recent turnaround has brought the Predators from nearly 10 points out of the playoff picture to just 2 points out with a game in hand on the Red Wings, the team that sweeped them out of the playoffs less than a year ago.
"Our big three have been terrific for us, the two Vinny's [Prospal and Lecavalier] as well as Tomas [Vokoun] have taken us to where we are. We're winning the big games recently, Phoenix and Detroit are huge games for us and that span of three games has done much more for us than we expected. We're happy with the amount of depth we have behind our big guys with guys like Hall, Hartnell and Samuelsson. We're not a necessarily top heavy team but it's our depth that can take us places and if we can't get the production out of those guys, we'll end up in a disappointing place in the standings" - said Coach Barry Trotz when asked what has been the key in turning this team around.
Vincent Lecavalier, acquired earlier this season in exchange for Pavel Datsyuk and Chris Pronger, has proven critics of the trade wrong with 64 points this year, 14 more than Datsyuk. Unlike either Datsyuk or Pronger, he can claim to have played in the OTHL All-star game this past weekend, and has been a large reason for the success of all-star snub and fellow linemate, Vaclav Prospal.
Despite the recent surge, there are several holes that remain in the Nashville organization. Behind Lecavalier, captain Greg Johnson is the only legitimate center, and with him potentially leaving for Unrestricted Free Agency, the Predators may be in trouble. Additionally, Dick Tarnstrom has been a disappointment since being acquired in a deal that saw Martin Erat and Jan Bulis leave for rival Detroit. While Kaberle, Dan Hamhuis, Jassen Cullimore and others have done more than their share on defense, a legitimate #1 defender is still missing after the departures of Chris Pronger and Ed Jovanovski earlier in the year.
"We're not blind. We are aware that our defense on paper is weaker than we'd like it to be. But when guys are playing as well as they have been, you don't worry about what's on paper. We're not too concerned, we'll find a way to help our defense if it becomes a problem. At the moment, we're confident in Kaberle, Tarnstrom and the pack, and confident in our last line of defense, Mr. Vokoun." responded GM Tom Poraszka when posed questions regarding the holes in the lineup.
In the midst of the playoff chase, the Predators have also been making attempts negotiating contracts with pending free agents. After talks neared a deal with captain Greg Johnson, it appears the negotiations have reached a dead end with neither side willing to budge. The club has also issued statements that they do not expect to sign either Mathieu Dandenault or Mariusz Czerkawski, who despite having Polish roots in common with GM Tom Poraszka, was unable to reach a deal with the Predators and has said officially that he will test the market.
Regardless of these pending unfortunate departures, the Predators assert that their future is not something they feel they have to concern themselves with. Their youth is strong and the team's prime awaits them. For now, the Predators will try to retain focus on the present and fight their way into the top 8 of the Western Conference. With the league's worst team, the St. Louis Blues up next on the schedule, the Predators need to prove they are a contendor by not allowing two points slip away.