Downtown packed for Stanley Cup Final debut in Nashville

“If you think you can go up and say something, sometimes you do it”. “You’ve got to give Pittsburgh some credit here because they keep doing it”.

“I know when friends and family come down, they can’t get enough of Nashville”. That’s not bad, but Sullivan said it’s concerning when the Predators seem to generate much of their offense off the draw.

They smash cars adorned with the opposing team’s colors and logos outside the arena.

The owner, Chris Little, expects to be pretty busy the next couple days, busy giving away catfish to Predators fans.

While a loud building can be intimidating, it alone cannot win a hockey game.

The Nashville Predators took a page from that playbook with two goals in 42 seconds early in the second period to take a 2-1 lead on home ice.

During his breakout season with Wilkes-Barre, Rowney earned a two-year stint with the Penguins. However, Laviolette has a history of switching goalies during the playoffs in his previous coaching stops, in Carolina and Philadelphia, so a switch is a possibility.

Starting with the defending champs, the Pens really haven’t had a problem scoring in bunches – they would have had four third-period goals in just about as many minutes in Game 2 if it weren’t for an offside call. Other than that it is all pomp and circumstance. He’s considered a game-time decision, and center Matt Cullen said: “Bones is a huge part of everything we do”. He also said their experience is a reason that none of it will mean all that much.

“Theres been a lot of growth watching Pontus from when he first got here, the North American game, his development physically, his maturity as a player, ” Laviolette said of the 23-year-old. Wilson wouldn’t even entirely rule out playing in Game 3, but it doesn’t look as though that will be the case.

While Pittsburgh, who have five road wins in nine playoff games, are two wins shy of repeating as Stanley Cup champions, they have been largely outplayed in the Final but have managed to take advantage of some brief defensive lapses by the Predators. Rinne, for the record, was in the starter’s net and was the first goalie off the ice this morning.

Nashville will make at least one change with PA Parenteau scheduled to start on a line with Frederick Gaudreau and forward Harry Zolnierczyk.

Tyronn Lue has a new No. 1 priority for LeBron James and his Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2 of the NBA Finals: Stop the ball.

Roman Josi, one of his closest friends on the Predators, talks to Rinne every day.

It was for situations like this one why Predators GM David Poile went out and got Parenteau for the relatively low price of a sixth-round pick in the first place.