Music City Correspondant

This little blog entry is written to introduce you to a good friend named Sage Confucius. While Sage isn't her real name, it is her well-known name on the Uni Watch blog site, as well as being a regular commentor here. Sage has become my Music City Correspondant as she has just moved to Nashville, Tennessee. She also was at the Nashville Predators' jersey unveiling/BBQ party the other night, and has come back with some pretty solid photos. I'll post her captions with the appropriate photos, and make some comments of my own. All in all, I am very glad to have Sage onboard as a correspondant, and look forward to her contributions as always. And yes, those are her legs standing over Jordin Tootoo's skates and a Kimmo Timonen stick which she bought at the used equipment sale. Good purchases, if you ask me.

"They were trying to get as many people onto the floor as possible. It was very difficult to get good pictures so I eventually moved up to about the 6th row." Teebz - probably a good idea. I'm not big on mosh pits, but it looks like the Predators are. You'd think, in keeping with being a fan-friendly event, that you'd provide some quality seating for the fans in attendance. But, hey, what do I know?

"These are the people they had on stage. The only ones I know for certain are are the two on the far right. They are Phil Bredesen, the Governor of Tennessee, and his wife, Andrea Conte. They apparently were instrumental in getting the Predators to Nashville and have been season ticket holders each year. Having lived here only for 6 months, I have very little knowledge about anything political. Also note the chick in the pink jersey. ARGH!" Teebz - I don't know who any of those people are, but that pink jersey has got to go. The guy beside her in last season's Predators jersey looks sharp. The girl in the pink looks stupid. As for Mr. Bredesen and Ms. Conte, good on them for being season ticket holders. If they cannot attend games due to obligations, I'd hope they would donate those tickets to an appropriate charity for usage by those who may not be able to afford the same luxuries.

"The parking lot for the Sommet Center is in the back, so I had to walk around the entire building to get in. As I turned the last corner I saw this. I found a big cat butt sticking up in the air to be amusing." Teebz - I fail to understand why a cat's butt would be a draw for any fan. Who came up with this idea? Is this someone's idea of telling us that the Predators are the cat's ass?

"Before I even got to the entrance I came across this. Don't people
care what colors their team actually wears?" Teebz - pink jerseys are the most hideous way to support a team. It is actually nauseating. If I were a player and saw a girl wearing a pink jersey, I don't care how hot she is, I'd jersey her and lay a few Inglewood Jacks on her. And you can quote me on that.

"I'm certain this was staged, but it still made for a bit of fun." Teebz - the comma in the above sentence separates the two different photos. I suppose the Predators can poke a little fun at the Red Wings. Why? I'm not sure, actually. The Red Wings have made winning their lifestyle, and you'd think that the Predators would want to emulate that tradition. In any case, a pie to the face never hurt anyone.

"This is a display of gold pucks that listed the names and years of initial purchase of season ticket holders. There were a lot of these displays throughout the concourse." Teebz - a nice display of the people who have kept the Predators somewhat afloat so far. Season ticket holders are the life-blood of NHL teams, and I'm glad to see teams honouring those who put their hard-earned dollars into this kind of entertainment.

"The front of the Sommet Center with an inflatable hockey guy." Teebz - just like last season's Predators: soft, easy to push off their feet, and far too full of hot air. Or is that just Jim Balsillie?

"This is the view of the floor from the seats I found. I was able to get much better pictures of the stage from this aspect." Teebz - the photos of the jerseys are next from this seat location!

"Fiddler was looking a bit bored about halfway through." Teebz - does he have somewhere better to be? If I were David Poile, I'd be a little steamed at his laisser-faire attitude at this event. And what the heck is Legwand doing with his face?

"The boys waiting for something to happen. This is the best view of the side panels I was able to get. I was never able to get a shot of the left side though." Teebz - I guess Fiddler noticed Gnash up in the rafters. Great job at staying focussed, Fiddler. Perhaps you could listen to the person doing the speech? Bring that kind of intensity to the ice next season, and you'll get great seats in the press box.

"Legwand was looking up at Gnash. He must have sat up there on the rafter for a good 20 minutes before he actually rappelled." Teebz - I'm guessing the guys on stage were discussing which restaurant they were heading to after the event.

"Fiddler looks like he's about to yawn and the other two just look bored. Next time they need to hold the rally on a golf course so the boys will have something to amuse themselves with." Teebz - if I were a Predators fan, I'd be highly unimpressed with Fiddler right now. I don't expect the guy to be jacked up for an event like this, but the least he could do is crack a smile once in a while.

"Gnash has apparently been doing some rappelling this summer and decided to show off for the crowd. Personally, I was hoping for a bungee jump." Teebz - any sort of aerial/trapeze show to take the spotlight off Fiddler should be seen as a positive.

"This is not the best shot obviously, but it's the only one I got of the back of the jerseys. As you can see, the fonts have not changed." Teebz - it's better than nothing. I had yet to see the font being used, but now we know it's the same as last season's font.

So there you have it. A quality picture gallery from the Music City Correspondant, Sage Confucius. If any of you want to be correspondants of this blog, feel free to drop me a comment or an email. If you live in an NHL city where there is going to be an unveiling, please contact me. I certainly would appreciate you going and taking some photos, much like Sage did at the Sommet Center.

Thanks again for all your hard work, Sage, and your pictures are great!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!