Shea Weber News

It has been about a month since the Blue Jackets' season ended and two months since contract talks between the club and goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky started, but the sides are no closer to reaching a deal.

A strong argument can be made that hockey players have as great or even a greater appreciation for their sport's history and relatedly, the players who came before them.

That's a question that has been discussed among members of the media, David Poile, and even Barry Trotz.

The Nashville Predators became a team that needed their goalie to keep them in games all season long because they couldn't score on a consistent basis which resulted in the team not making the playoffs and finishing with a 16-23-9 record.

The Nashville Predators saw defenseman Ryan Suter leave via free agency in the summer of 2012, and almost lost Shea Weber as well.

Obligatory disclaimer: "Shea" is a work of fiction that in no way represents the real life of Shea Weber or anybody else who works with or around the Nashville Predators organization or the National Hockey League.

The bottom six forwards are normally the ones that set the tone for the team. They're the scrappy guys who are just trying to earn a job, made up mostly of grinders and PK forwards they do the dirty work and get paid very little doing it.

Asked to evaluate Roman Josi near the end of the 2013 season, Predators coach Barry Trotz gushed about the second-year defenseman.

This was an odd year for Weber, who had to make the difficult adjustment to a new defense partner after riding herd with Ryan Suter for several years.

That might have been the biggest question mark after the Wild signed Suter, the longtime former Nashville Predator who was paired for most of his career with one guy - the hard-shooting, hard-hitting Weber.

The heart of the Nashville Predators has arguably always been strong defensive play.

Exhibit B: the tenure of their most recent former coach, Lindy Ruff. He, too, was hired in the summer of 1997 and was behind the Sabres' bench until Feb.

Editor's Note: Bob and Shea return to Predlines, as this time Shea tries to figure out what all the dreams mean.

When you talk about the Predators goaltending situation, normally there is only one name you think of, at least that is the case as of now.

We were wrong. It's that simple. During the NHL lockout, we posted five predictions for the Predators in 2013 -- and none of the in-season ones came remotely true.

Jack Johnson scored the game-winner as part of a three-goal third period that helped the Columbus Blue Jackets keep their playoff hopes alive with a 3-1 victory over the Nashville Predators on Saturday at Nationwide Arena.

More than 400 people helped raise $14,000 at the fifth annual Best Buddies Gala and Casino Night last month at The Factory at Franklin.

The Nashville Predators have signed forward Patric Hornqvist to a 5-year extension according to TSN.ca . The deal is said to be worth $21.25 million over the five years that will see him receive an annual salary of $5.25 million.

Defenseman Shea Weber inked a 14-year, $110 million contract with the Philadelphia Flyers last summer, but the Nashville Predators ultimately exercised their right to match the contract.

Jack Johnson scored the go-ahead goal with 4:48 left and the Columbus Blue Jackets capped a remarkable turnaround with a 3-1 victory over the Nashville Predators on Saturday.