News Article: The Players Tribune - "Nashville" by Pekka Rinne

[Drake744]

I'll just leave this here for everyone to read.

https://www.theplayerstribune.com/pekka-rinne-nashville/

Click to read more...

 

[Yukon Cornellis]

Great read. Thanks for putting up the link. Got shivers down my spine a time or two, reliving the playoffs.

 

[Jonesey]

There's water in my eyes, and it's not rain.

 

[Gh24]

Amazing piece that reflects so much of what you guys have been telling about the team, the city and the journey from the perspective of long time fans. Also loved the part about P.K. and his personality. Puts so much of the locker room speculation behind.

 

[belle]

Thank you for providing that link. A must read.

 

[predhead1]

Great article - captures a lot of the emotion of the playoff run. Getting a little misty in here . . .

 

[Roman Yoshi]

No, you have dirt in your eye.

All the progress I made getting over game 6... boy it feels like it was yesterday again. I hope we win a cup for Pekka next year.

 

[Hockey POTUS]

Great read. Thanks for posting.

 

[JustaFinnishGuy]

Now that whole piece made me just want us to win so bad for Peks
Feels bad getting to know how he felt instantly after the game and how much he loved playing this season

 

[FossilFndr]

I was hearing Pekka's voice in my head as I read that.

Lets Go Preds

 

[Datsyukian Deke]

A very good read, indeed.

 

[Adz]

Okay, this cold, calculating, cynical* woman is tearing up and has a lump in her throat. We were in this together and we'll be there again. I wanted the team to achieve this for Pekka, and you can bet I want it even more now. What good guys we have on this team. I'd like to see us get Neal back somehow. He deserves to be a Pred.

Peks is right. This city has embraced hockey. Little love affair going on with the newbies. It's cute!

I'm still sad because of the way this season ended, cute little girl video be damned. I'm struggling with how the summer has been condensed. I'm just not ready emotionally or mentally. I didn't watch the awards. I did keep up with the draft but I didn't make it to the prospect game like I usually do--it was just too soon to go to the arena again for me.

But come September, I'll be back there for Preseason and I can't wait to see that banner hung on October 10. I am so proud of this team!


*a former boyfriend called me that, but to be fair we weren't talking about hockey at the time.

 

[TitansVolsPreds615]

I started actively keeping up with the Preds about the time Pekka came up and made his first start. I remember him bouncing up and down between the AHL and NHL and battling with Dan Ellis for the starting job. I remember the year I finally convinced by dad to get the 7 game ticket package that really solidified my love for the team as a young teen. I have since moved back to Nashville and have been a full STH for 3 years and signed on for 3 more. Pekka to me feels like the Preds family dog and I'll be sad to see him go.

 

[cynicalcitizen]

I go to a few Predators games per year from out of town, some years more than others. I have always thought it was cool that I was in the arena the night Pekka made his Nashville debut. Pekka just took that interesting fact and made it special by writing what he put forth here. Wow!

 

[BonMorrison]

I cried reading this, ****.

 

[sparkle twin]

What a great article.

I love Pekka, he's genuinely one of the nicest people I have ever met and I'm glad he's a Predator.

 

[KurtAngle]

"And you’d hear about how the team was never really a contender — and no one seemed to mind."

I never bought into the notion Nashville had to "become" anything, like "we are a hockey town" or being a "big league" city nonsense.

But, one thing I do hope we are getting rid of is the Plaster influence we've had for decades. The old "hey, he's good in the community/good guy" notion that kept Trotz, Fisher, and so many other here for way too long.

And, I do hope we get to the point of true fandom and less "Preds as a party" people who just want to hang out just because.

 

[hockey diva]

Kurt, every fan base has that element. Where do you think all the new Hawks fans came from?

 

[Drake744]

"And you’d hear about how the team was never really a contender — and no one seemed to mind."

I never bought into the notion Nashville had to "become" anything, like "we are a hockey town" or being a "big league" city nonsense.

But, one thing I do hope we are getting rid of is the Plaster influence we've had for decades. The old "hey, he's good in the community/good guy" notion that kept Trotz, Fisher, and so many other here for way too long.

And, I do hope we get to the point of true fandom and less "Preds as a party" people who just want to hang out just because.

As for the first part he's saying it from a purely player's perspective. If it bothers him/them there were probably other circumstances surrounding why, especially the long term players here.

As for the last part, I agree, but I think it's an inevitable clash of the in-arena show the team puts on, the natural live excitement of the sport itself, and the ever-rising influx of new residents, many of them young professionals. However, to your point, I can get behind the notion that a lot of these new people are either A.) casually interested in hockey from past experience with no real rooting interest (yet) or B.) people who know almost nothing about hockey and treat it the same way people treat going to a Sounds game. The aforementioned "here for the party" crowd. I do think, though, that the numbers of people who fall into category A are increasingly caring about the team (even though it may not always look like it) and the people in category B are decreasing. But, as the post above said, there's almost always going to be that element no matter what team or sport it is. In the grand scheme of things I think we have it pretty damn good compared to most teams.



But I digress, bless you Pekka.

 

[Enoch]

Great article. Fantastic.

 

[KurtAngle]

Kurt, every fan base has that element. Where do you think all the new Hawks fans came from?

Maybe I came off a bit too negative, and I agree, same with Bama football, Duke basketball, Cowboy fans, etc.

On second thought, you are right and at least it generates interest.

 

[Gnashville]

I find it strange that he had not heard of Nashville when he was drafted. When in hindsight it seems that we were the only team interested in drafting him. He was surely interviewed by the team and scouts before the draft. I guess I just assumed draftees are asked "what do you know about Nashville?" during the interview process.

The PK stuff was eye opening. I make no bones about my love for Weber and how the trade hurt me personally (Since it literally almost killed me! When it popped up on my phone I was driving on I40 and nearly wrecked!!!). I never held it against PK and was wowed at his talent and leadership. Now I wonder what the heck Montreal was thinking with that trade.

 

[Preds Partisan]

Don't read too much into the no one seemed to mind about winning comment. It was probably as simple as people he interacted with were genuinely polite and wouldn't berate him like Toronto or NY or wherever would of if they met him on the street.

 

[Cashville]

It's so, so great; read it after the link was posted on the main boards this afternoon. Peks will go down as one of my all-time favorite players when all is said and done, just a kind and amiable guy who has been a critical component of so many great memories for this franchise.

 

[Drake744]

I find it strange that he had not heard of Nashville when he was drafted. When in hindsight it seems that we were the only team interested in drafting him. He was surely interviewed by the team and scouts before the draft. I guess I just assumed draftees are asked "what do you know about Nashville?" during the interview process.

The PK stuff was eye opening. I make no bones about my love for Weber and how the trade hurt me personally (Since it literally almost killed me! When it popped up on my phone I was driving on I40 and nearly wrecked!!!). I never held it against PK and was wowed at his talent and leadership. Now I wonder what the heck Montreal was thinking with that trade.

Considering how late he was drafted, I doubt there was much interaction between the team and Pekka if any at all. They blindly took a chance on him. I think it's also highly possible that he had heard of "the Predators" but not Nashville itself.