Nashville Predators

Nashville Predators defenseman Shea Weber escaped a suspension on Thursday when he was fined $2,500 by the NHL after he slammed Detroit Red Wings star Henrik Zetterberg's head into the boards as Game 1 between the two teams ended on Wednesday night.

Via an official release from the NHL:

"We felt this was a reckless and reactionary play on which Weber threw a glancing punch and then shoved Zetterberg's head into the glass," said NHL Senior Vice President of Player Safety and Hockey Operations Brendan Shanahan. "We reached out to Detroit following the game and were informed that Zetterberg did not suffer an apparent injury and should be in the lineup for Game 2. 

"This play and the fine that addressed it will be significant factors in assessing any incidents involving Shea Weber throughout the remainder of the playoffs."

A fine of $2,500 is the most allowed under the current collective bargaining agreement.

So, since Zetterberg is not injured and should be in the lineup for Game 2, everything's OK? The NHL seems to be acting like nothing happened here.

This tweet from ESPN NHL writer Scott Burnside perfectly sums up this decision from the league.

League continues to talk about player safety but fails to prove they are serious about it. Failure to suspend Weber shameful.

— Scott Burnside (@ESPN_Burnside) April 12, 2012

Here is the video of Weber slamming Zetterberg against the boards.

Not suspending Weber is a very poor decision. He was trying to injure an opponent by slamming a player's head into the glass when the game was over. That's a terrible action that has no place in hockey.

This ruling has set a really poor precedent going forward in this year's playoffs. What's going to stop players from delivering illegal hits when they know that someone can shove an opponent's head into the glass on purpose and not be suspended?

The NHL really dropped the ball on this one, but after it has botched so many disciplinary decisions already this season, we really can't be too surprised that the league got this one wrong also.

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Nicholas Goss is an NHL Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He was also the organization's on-site reporter for the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals in Boston.

Shea Weber has been fined $2,500 by the NHL for his hit to the head of Detroit's Henrik Zetterberg in the waning moments of their Game 1 playoff matchup, the league announced today.

Many thought Weber would be suspended at least one game, but the league thought differently, releasing the following statement via NHL.com:

"We felt this was a reckless and reactionary play on which Weber threw a glancing punch and then shoved Zetterberg's head into the glass," said NHL Senior Vice President of Player Safety and Hockey Operations Brendan Shanahan.

"We reached out to Detroit following the game and were informed that Zetterberg did not suffer an apparent injury and should be in the lineup for Game 2."

With 5.1 seconds left in the third period and the Predators up 3-2, a faceoff took place just to the right of the Nashville net. The puck was won back to the corner by the Predators' Paul Gaustad and was pinned against the boards by Weber.

Zetterberg converged on Weber in an attempt to free the puck, and that's when Weber delivered two blows to his head. The first can be described as more of a "punch," while the second was a "slam," as Weber grabbed the back of Zetterberg's helmet and thrust it into the glass.

The Red Wings star seemed a bit dazed, resting on one knee for a short period after the hit, but he did not appear to suffer an injury on the play.

Surprising, considering the size of the two men—Weber measures 6'4", 232 pounds, while Zetterberg is 6'1" and 195 pounds.

When asked about the hit and whether it warranted a suspension, Weber told reporters (from Fox Sports Tennessee), "It’s playoffs," Weber said. "I don’t know, he hit me from behind, so we’ll see."

Weber was given a two-minute roughing penalty for that hit, but pundits from coast to coast expected more supplementary discipline to be handed down.

As for the game itself, Nashville received two goals from rookie Gabriel Bourque, one from the newly acquired Gaustad and 35 saves from goaltender Pekka Rinne for the 3-2 victory.

Nashville leads the series 1-0, with the second game scheduled for Friday evening in Nashville.

Ryan O'Leary is a writer and researcher for Bleacher Report's Video Production Department with seven years of experience in sports media. 

The Nashville Predators may have defeated the Detroit Red Wings in Game 1, but with only five seconds remaining, Shea Weber may have seriously harmed the team's chances of winning Game 2.

The above hit could very well lead to a suspension for the team's star defensemen, which would take away one-half of the NHL's best defensive pairing alongside Ryan Suter. It would also remove Weber's rocket of a shot from the point on the power play.

In my book, Weber deserves at least a one-game suspension for that hit. It was dirty, it was blatantly intentional and it seemed very much like an attempt to hurt Henrik Zetterberg.

That being said, it's possible that Weber may get by without a suspension. Greg Wyshynski of Yahoo's Puck Daddy blog suspects only a fine is coming.

Hearing nothing concrete decided on Shea Weber yet; could be a fine, no susp. But Bitz hit on Clifford's going to get something from NHL.

— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) April 12, 2012

Meanwhile, NHL disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan has already said he'll dole out punishments differently in the playoffs than he would in the regular season.

From Craig Custance of ESPN:

The hit would probably garner a suspension during the regular season, but during the recent GM meetings in March, Shanahan indicated that the postseason might be different.

“The standard of what is illegal or legal doesn’t change. ... When you suspend a player during the regular season, you’re suspending him over 82 games,” Shanahan said at the time. “[In the playoffs], you’re looking at things in seven-game clumps. It’s a seven-game season each series.”

If Weber doesn't get at least a one-game suspension for that hit, it will be a joke. If the NHL truly wants to clean up the game, removing hits like that by punishing the culprits—even in the playoffs—would be a good place to start.

Hit me up on Twitter—my tweets are growing a playoff beard.

Shea Weber is a bonecrusher on the blue line for the Nashville Predators.  On Wednesday night he was a bonehead as he tried some skull crushing at the end of a 3-2 victory over the Detroit Red Wings in Game 1 of their Western Conference quarterfinal series in the Stanley Cup playoffs.  The action should cost him dearly. 

While on a power play in the closing seconds of the third period, the Detroit Red Wings had pulled goalie Jimmy Howard from his net and were skating with six men in a desperate attempt to tie the game and force overtime. 

After Nashville won a defensive zone face off with 5.1 seconds left in the game, the puck bounced into the corner to the right of Predators goalie Pekka Rinne.  Weber was against the boards trying to tie up the puck and close out the game.  Detroit's Henrik Zetterberg came flying into the play near Weber and seemingly went right after the puck, but Weber thought otherwise and was angered by something he thought Zetterberg had done.

As the puck moved on down the boards along with Zetterberg's attention, Weber became enraged by this apparent transgression and punched Zetterberg in the back of the helmet.  Shockingly, Weber then grabbed Zetterberg by the back of the head and shoved him face first into the glass, stunning the Swedish forward as he fell to the ice.  One linesmen was a perfect eye witness to the blatant violation, and separated Weber from his victim as time expired. 

A two minute roughing penalty was called on the play, but the game had already ended.  No penalties from a previous game can carry over into the next game.  So the referees cannot make Weber start Game 2 in the penalty box. 

NHL Senior Vice President of Player Safety Brendan Shanahan should make Weber start Game 2 in the owner's box instead.  In my opinion, Weber should not play again for the Nashville Predators until Game 7, when this series would return to Bridgestone Arena for the final game, if necessary. 

Weber's action was not a hockey play. Weber was not attempting to simply check Zetterberg. as if they were in a playoff game. It was a malicious act.  Weber appeared to be attempting to injure Zetterberg.

Luckily, Zetterberg did not appear badly injured.

Shanahan and the NHL have enough problems dealing with concussions and other serious injuries caused by blatant elbows, errant knees, and hits to the head.  They shouldn't have to worry about injuries caused by heads being slammed into the glass.

Shanahan needs to hit Shea Weber with an attention grabbing suspension.

The Nashville Predators have come a long way since their inaugural season in the NHL. They placed fourth in their conference this season five points behind division rivals the St. Louis Blues. It was a good enough season to give them home ice advantage in the first round of the postseason against another division rival, the Detroit Red Wings.

While they are favored to win their first round matchup, the Nashville Predators need to win the Stanley Cup for more than just team pride.

Over the years, Nashville’s playoff runs have been disappointing to say the least. Having only made it past the first round once, which was last year. While this year they are overall a much stronger team both offensively and defensively than they have been in past years. They will need to dig deep to make it to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Nashville will have to make it past some tough teams to get to the Stanley Cup, but it would not be the first time an underdog team has done so. With Vancouver looking to ease breeze by LA and St. Louis facing San Jose, a team they should also defeat it will leave two of the top seeded teams in the West between the Predators and the Cup Finals.

Nashville is in a similar situation to many of the southern teams, they need victories to keep their fanbase. Like the other southern teams, their fanbase fluctuates each season. When they are doing well, as Nashville has been over the last few years, the numbers grow. When these teams have poor showing it affects their television ratings and as well as their attendance.

If you look at a few of the other teams in the south, this trend is extremely prevalent . Last year, Florida's team television ratings were lower than even those of children's shows and infomercials, and their attendance had also dropped significantly.

This season, Nashville's attendance is above most of the other southern teams, but is still only ranked 20th overall.

The major competition for fans in the south comes in the form of football, both at the professional and collegiate levels. If Nashville wants to hold on to their slowly increasing attendance, they need to have a big showing in the finals.

A Stanley Cup victory for the Predators would be the first for any Nashville professional sports teams. The only other professional team being the Tennessee Titans of the NFL who have only been to the Superbowl once but have also had lacklustre postseason performances since then.

On the collegiate level, Nashville is in the middle of the SEC (Southeastern Conference), a tough division that produces some great teams. The Predators will only be a blip on the radar of sports fans until they can make a Stanley Cup run.

With football being the largest sport in the south, it is far more important for the southern teams to make the postseason. As Nashville has done this for a number of years, they need to step up and perform well in the postseason this year.

Also like the other southern teams, Nashville has seen its share of financial instability. Before the 2007-08 season began, the financial woes in Nashville decimated the team, by either trade away or release into Free Agency.

During that summer there were also rumors of potential buyers for the team, two of whom wanted to relocate. The first was Canadian Jim Balsillie and the other, who would end up part owner of the Preds regardless was William “Boots” Del Biaggio. The later is a name that many Predator fans currently dislike as he was recently charged with fraud and lost his shares, placing uncertainty around the team ownership.

While the ownership may have settled over the last couple of seasons, it won't last long with lower attendance and failing to produce in the postseason.

For Nashville, the Stanley Cup is more than a prize at the end of the season, it could mean the longevity of their franchise. A Cup victory for southern teams has shown large growth in the fanbase and ticket sales. These factors would help raise the finances for the Predators group of owners, and would see an increase in television and merchandise revenue as well.

Unlike St. Louis, the Predators do not have the 30-year history to rely on when trying to appeal to fans. Nashville is still new, but has performed admirably in their short tenure in the NHL.

With the Predators consistently making the postseason as they have over the last three seasons, a Cup victory will cement them as the premier professional sports team in Tennessee.

The Nashville Predators won their first game in the opening-round playoff series against the Detroit Red Wings, but it could come at a price.

At the end of the game Nashville would go on to win 3-2, Nashville captain and perennial James Norris Trophy candidate Shea Weber took an unnecessary penalty involving Detroit's Henrik Zetterberg.

The penalty was officially called a two-minute minor for roughing, but could certainly have more serious ramifications for a valuable member of the Predators.

With five seconds left in the game and the Red Wings down by one goal, a key faceoff took place. It was won cleanly by Nashville, but Detroit forwards skated after the puck in a desperate effort to create a last-second scoring chance.

As Zetterberg worked for possession of the puck against the end boards against Weber, the Nashville defenseman first threw a punch at Zetterberg, then grabbed the back of his head and pushed it directly into the glass.

This was absolutely not a hockey play.

It was not an accidental push into the glass from Weber as he attempted to jostle Zetterberg in an effort to win the cup.

It was not even a retaliatory play, or something that Weber had any reason to do to Zetterberg; the game was essentially over, and Zetterberg was not doing anything extraordinarily rough or dirty to Weber that would have made such an action understandable.

What the play comes down to is a momentary lack in self control by Weber that did nothing positive for his team, but could seriously hurt it.

Most teams are different without their captain in the lineup, a fact that is especially true for Nashville considering Weber's value.

Supplementary discipline is certainly a possibility, considering the only point of that play by Weber was a direct intent to cause harm to his opponent.

NHL fans should not be surprised if Weber is out for Game 2. This type of unprovoked cheap shot is not something the league needs in its game.

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B/R Featured Columnist Jason Sapunka covers the NHL. He is available on Twitter for updates and analysis.

Follow @moreSapunka

Without question, a lot is on the line this postseason for the Nashville Predators. If they don't win the Stanley Cup—or at least make a deep run in the playoffs—will pending free agent Ryan Suter return?

Losing one-half of the NHL's elite defensive pairing alongside Shea Weber would be a crushing blow to the organization.

Luckily for Nashville fans, they won't have to worry about appeasing either player's championship aspirations because I believe the Predators will win this year's Stanley Cup.

Quite simply, the Predators are one of the most balanced team in the NHL. Alongside Suter and Weber is one of the game's elite goalies, Pekka Rinne, who led the NHL with 43 wins this season while compiling a .923 save percentage and 2.39 goals-against average.

The team added Hal Gill at the trade deadline, who is excellent on the penalty kill and bolstered the team's defensive depth.

Last season's weakness, scoring, seems to be a non-issue this year. The team is solid offensively, finishing ninth in the NHL in goals scored, with 10 players scoring 10 goals or more. Plus, the return of Alexander Radulov from Russia has given the team a potential playmaker and game-breaker.

If the more-mature Radulov continues his solid adjustment back to the NHL game and can be a factor in the Stanley Cup playoffs, Nashville will be scary.

They're already scary on the power play, leading the NHL by scoring on 21.7 percent of all power play opportunities.

Oh, and they have the 10th-best penalty killing unit in the league, turning aside power play opportunities 83.6 percent of the time.

The road to the Cup won't be easy. A first-round clash with the Detroit Red Wings could be brutal and a possible match with the Vancouver Canucks could be looming in Round 2.

But Nashville's depth, balance and basic lack of weaknesses makes them my pick to win this year's Stanley Cup. They've been building up to this moment for several years and the pieces seem to be in place for a championship this season.

Get ready to party, Smashville—this is the Predators year.

Hit me up on Twitter—my tweets are growing a playoff beard.

After nearly a decade of solid regular-season play and playoff mediocrity, the Nashville Predators are finally in a position to make their run at a Stanley Cup. 

It all begins with their big-money goaltender, Pekka Rinne. Rinne has been one of the best goalies over the last three years in the NHL, and he's remained in top form even after the Predators made him one of the highest-paid ones. 

The Preds have one of the most balanced scoring attacks in the NHL. Despite leading the team with 58 points, saying Martin Erat is the team's most valuable forward would be a disservice to many players such as Mike Fisher, David Legwand, Patric Hornqvist and Sergei Kostitsyn, who all get on the scoring sheet frequently.

It's hard to say that Nashville would be where they are today without Shea Weber and Ryan Suter. The defensive combo is among the best in the league, capable of shutting down explosive forwards game after game. They also get in on the scoring sheet, with 95 combined points between them. 

The Predators feature the NHL's best power play at 21.6 percent.

This is far from the same Predators team that we saw in the opening game of the 2011-12 season. Since then, they've added Andrei Kostitsyn, whose added 13 points in 19 games and has played motivated hockey thanks to his brother, Sergei.

Perhaps the biggest off-ice moment of the season for Nashville was re-acquiring KHL-star Alexander Radulov. Radulov has been widely considered the best non-NHL player, and he has fit in well with Nashville's system and adds explosive scoring ability.

They also added veteran defenseman Hal Gill and face-off expert Paul Gaustad through trades, adding to their depth at both positions.

Less than a year ago, they were on the verge of rebuilding yet again after losing veterans and long-time producers like J.P. Dumont, Steve Sullivan and Joel Ward. 

But the young talent has flourished in Nashville this year, as first-year skaters like Gabriel Bourque, Ryan Ellis and Roman Josi have contributed much more than expected.

There's no bigger opponent Nashville could have drawn in the first round than the Detroit Red Wings. Detroit has been Nashville's most fierce rival since the franchise's inception, and 2012 marks the first year that the Preds have finished above them in the standings. 

Despite the big-time matchup in the opening round, the Preds' fanbase is looking much further. They want a Stanley Cup, and they finally have a team capable of bringing it to Music City. 

With the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs set to begin, and nearly all of the most explosive offensive stars emerging on hockey's biggest stage, great goaltending is at even more of a premium.

This year's playoff field is littered with top-notch goaltenders who can carry their team toward a Stanley Cup.

Let's take a look at the best goalies in the playoffs who could win a Stanley Cup for their respective team.

Pekka Rinne - Nashville Predators

Rinne's season has been overshadowed by some goaltenders with career seasons, but he's been more productive than ever for Nashville and isn't talked about enough for their success.

The talk of the Predators this year has been centered around the uncertainty in the future of Ryan Suter and Shea Weber, as well as building the team for more offensive production, but Rinne is the rock in between the pipes that has kept them contending this year.

His 73 games played are the most in the NHL among goaltenders.

Rinne leads the league in wins with 43 and has made more saves than any goalie in the league, which notes his consistent play and ability to stop onslaught after onslaught of shots, something he'll face against Detroit in the first round.

Henrik Lundqvist - New York Rangers

The Rangers wouldn't be close to the top of the NHL without stud Swedish goalie Henrik Lundqvist.

This season, Lundqvist became the first goalie to win at least 30 games in each of his first seven seasons. His consistency and unbelievable play will take the Rangers deep in the playoffs. 

His ridiculous 1.97 goals allowed average is second among goalies who have played 60 or more games. 

Jonathan Quick - Los Angeles Kings

It's hard to understand how a team who finishes 14th in the Western Conference in goals scored can make the playoffs.

That is, until you look at their goalie. 

Jonathan Quick has had an unbelievable year and seems to be leading the Vezina Trophy race. His 1.95 goals allowed average is best in the league and he follows that up with a .929 save percentage.

No team will rely on their goalie more than the Kings will lean on Quick in this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs.