Category: Sports

Pete Weber’s Postgame Report

Goaltender Roberto Luongo made 32 saves to help the Florida Panthers defeat the Nashville Predators 2-1 at Bridgestone Arena on Thursday.

The Panthers (12-9-4) have won four consecutive games, including three straight on the road, where they are 6-4-2.

“You want to get on a bit of a roll and get some points,” Luongo said. “I think, especially this road trip, we’ve had some tough tests and we’ve played some good hockey as a team. We’ve won some gritty road games. That’s the type of hockey when we play here, and that’s the way we win.”

Florida blocked 21 Nashville shots.

“We’ve done a good job I think as far as our systems the last few games,” Luongo said. “We’re really not giving up any breakaways or 2-on-1s, stuff that we were seeing a little bit a few weeks ago. When we do that, it gives ourselves a chance. Even if they get a 3-on-2 or 4-on-3, it’s a bit different than a 2-on-1 and stuff like that. Guys have been working hard and blocking shots and stuff like that. That’s what it takes to win hockey games. You’ve got to pay the price for your team, and we’re doing that right now.”

Nashville goaltender Pekka Rinne made 14 saves. The Predators (13-8-4) are 8-3-2 at home and 2-5-1 in their past eight games.

Quinton Howden gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead at 14:59 of the first period on a wrist shot from the slot. The puck caromed strangely off the boards, which allowed Howden to get around Predators defenseman Mattias Ekholm and shoot it past Rinne for his third goal.

“I think I got a fortunate bounce,” Howden said. “It hit a stanchion, and the [defenseman] kind of turned the wrong way on it. Lucky bounce, but I made sure I connected.”

Jonathan Huberdeau gave the Panthers a 2-0 lead at 11:24 of the second period on a power play. Huberdeau set up in the slot and one-timed a pass from forward Aleksander Barkov past Rinne for his second goal.

“It felt good, but especially with a win like that,” Huberdeau said. “We won a close game. In the third, they were all over us I think. [Luongo] made some big saves. It’s two points that you need to have, and I’m fortunate that I could help the team.”

The Predators have killed 57.9 percent of penalties in the past seven games.

“Tonight I think we could’ve been in better position,” Nashville coach Peter Laviolette said. “We ran out of position a little bit, and we got caught in front of the net. The penalty kill is moving around. It’s never just one thing. Sometimes it’s your pressure, sometimes it’s coverage. It’s different things.”

Nashville defenseman Roman Josi scored to make it 2-1 at 17:46 of the second period. Forward Craig Smith took a shot on the rush, and the puck bounced off Josi past Luongo for his fifth goal.

The Predators had a chance to tie the game late in the third period on a shot by forward Cody Hodgson, but the puck went off the crossbar and kicked away from the goal line, which was confirmed by video review after play was stopped.

“I wasn’t sure [if the puck was in],” Luongo said. “I didn’t feel like it was in, and then I looked at a couple of our guys and they were saying that it wouldn’t go. We got a bit unlucky on the first goal, but got lucky there at the end, so we’ll take it.”

Nashville forward Mike Fisher missed the game with a lower-body injury and will be out at least the next three games. Forward Calle Jarnkrok filled Fisher’s role on the second line.

“We certainly miss [Fisher],” Laviolette said. “He’s a big part of our team from on-ice and in the locker room, but with that there’s the old cliché that there’s always opportunity for somebody else to make the most of it. This is a great spot for [Jarnkrok]. He’s been in a position where he’s, I think, watched and learned and has gained some experience over the last year-plus. Now he’s in a position where he actually gets to take down the minutes on the power play and the big faceoffs. To this point, he’s done a really nice job.”

Nashville plays at the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday in a 6 PM contest.  Thunder Radio will have that broadcast as part of the Fifth Third Bank/Nashville Predators Radio Network.

The Westwood Rockets and Lady Rockets return to Duck River Valley Conference play on Thursday night as Fayetteville visits the Joel Vinson Gym. The night will feature the annual Teddy Bear Toss where new stuffed animals will be donated to the Manchester Fire and Police Departments. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast of that game and the festivities.
The Lady Rockets of Westwood clinched the regular season conference title with their Monday night win with a conference record of 13 and 2. The Lady Rockets will be the #1 seed in the conference tournament that begins on December 12th at Forrest. Westwood won the previous meeting in Fayetteville by a score of 42 to 8.

The floor of the Joel Vinson Gym filled with many of the stuffed animals donated as part of the 2014 Teddy Bear Toss – Photo by Rob Clutter

The Rockets are 8 and 7 in the conference as they continue to battle for position in the conference standings. The Rockets outscored Fayetteville 14 to 2 in the 4th quarter in the previous matchup with the Tigers on October 29th to claim a 41 to 31 win. Westwood will be without the services of Shawn Anderson who suffered a season ending knee injury as they close out the final 3 games of the regular season.
Tonight’s Westwood game can be heard exclusively on Thunder Radio. Tipoff is set for 6, we will be on the air for the pregame show at 5:50.

Holli Smithson of CHS Basketball(Photo by Jay Bailey – Manchester Times)

A loud and passionate crowd at the Joe Frank Patch Gym saw the Lady Raiders and Raiders of Coffee County get a doubleheader sweep on Tuesday in high school basketball over Grundy County. The Lady Raiders raced out to a 12 point halftime lead before dispatching the Lady Jackets 69 to 50. The two teams combined for 50 free throw attempts on the night as the whistle became the theme music for the evening. Despite the numerous foul calls, Coffee County dominated the play in the paint as the Williams sisters combined for 29 points. Alliyah Williams led the Lady Raiders in scoring with 16 points and was named the Gateway Tire & Service Center player of the game. Aerial Williams finished with a hard fought 13 points. Holli Smithson chipped in 12 as Coffee County won their 3rd straight game to improve to 3 and 1 on the year.

Wyatt Day

In the boys’ game, eight different lead changes in the first half set up a grueling second half as the Red Raiders won 64 to 57. After trailing by 5 at intermission, Grundy County tied the score at 38 with 5 minutes left in the 3rd period. From that point, the Raiders built a double digit lead down the stretch in another “whistle stop” contest that saw the officials eject the entire Coffee County student section. Wyatt Day had 13 points in the first quarter and finished with 19 on the night to be named the Gateway Tire & Service Center player of the game. Kohl Young finished with 13 points and Grant Sadler netted 10 as Coffee County improved to 3 and 2 on the year.
Coffee County opens district play on Friday night when they travel to Shelbyville to take on the Eaglettes and Eagles. Tipoff is set for 6 PM and Thunder Radio will bring you all the action, beginning with the Char-El Apartments pregame show at 5:50.

Download the Podcast at: http://www.thunder1320.com/downloads/

Pete Weber’s Postgame Report

Filip Forsberg

Filip Forsberg scored twice and added an assist to lead the Nashville Predators to a come-from-behind 5-2 victory over the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday night.

Calle Jarnkrok, Mike Ribeiro, and James Neal also scored for Nashville, who stopped a two-game losing streak. Shea Weber had three assists.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Kyle Chipchura had the goals for Arizona, who saw their three-game winning streak end.

Nashville lost center Mike Fisher at 7:56 of the second period to a lower-body injury. In the Arizona zone, Martin Hanzal checked Fisher into the left boards. Fisher left the ice without putting any weight on his right leg.

Nashville took a 3-2 lead in the third on Forsberg’s wrist shot. He scored his second at 17:01 and Neal added an empty-net goal late.

Ekman-Larsson scored the game’s first goal at 17:20 of the first.

With Nashville defenseman Seth Jones off serving an interference penalty, Ekman-Larsson sent a wrist shot through traffic toward the Nashville net, beating Pekka Rinne high on the stick side.

Jarnkrok tied it 1 at 12:32 of the second. With Nashville on a power play, Weber faked a shot from the left side before sending a pass toward Jarnkrok in front of the Arizona net. He redirected the puck between the pads of Mike Smith.

Arizona regained the lead at 17:09 of the second on Chipchura’s third goal of the season.

Boyd Gordon had the puck to the right of the Nashville net and slid a backhand pass to Chipchura crashing the net. Chipchura was able to fend off Weber and slip the puck by Rinne.

Entering Tuesday, Arizona was 10-0-0 when leading after two periods.

Ribeiro tied the game at 2:33 of the third when Cody Hodgson got a stick on an Ekman-Larsson pass in the Arizona zone and the deflection came to Ribeiro and beat Smith high to the glove side from the low slot.

Nashville will host the Florida Panthers on Thursday night in a game tha gets underway at 7 PM.  Thunder Radio will join the broadcast of that game in progress following our broadcast of the Westwood Middle School basketball game as they host Fayetteville on Teddy Bear Toss Night.

Aerial Williams(Photo by Jay Bailey – Manchester Times)

Fighting through foul trouble and missed shots, the Coffee County Lady Raiders gutted out a 60 to 53 win over Fayetteville on the road on Monday night. After trailing early, Coffee County scored the last 10 points of the 1st quarter to take a 6 point lead into the 2nd period. Fouls forced coach Herb Horton to get deep into his bench in the 2nd half and prevented the Lady Raiders from getting into an offensive flow for much of the 2nd half. The saving grace for the Lady Raiders was the dominant play of Aerial Williams in the post as the junior finished with 21 points to earn the Gateway Tire and Service Center player of the game honors. Freshman Abby Morgan finished the night with 14 points before fouling out. Alliyah Williams finished with 10 points for Coffee County and junior Holli Smithson handled the ball well in the 4th quarter and hit 3 clutch free throws to finish with 6 points. The win improves the Lady Raiders record to 2 on 1 on the season.

CHS basketball player Grant Sadler

The Red Raiders cut an 8 point halftime deficit to 4 points before the Tigers exploded for 38 second half points to drop Coffee County 66 to 49. Fayetteville carried a 19 point lead into the 4th quarter before Coffee County cut the margin to 10 points with just under 3 minutes remaining. Grant Sadler netted 12 second half points to key the Raider rally which came up short down the stretch. Sadler was the high scorer for Coffee County and earned the Gateway Tire and Service Center player of the game award. Alontae Taylor and LeAundre Graham each finished with 8 points as each had strong 2nd half performances as well. The loss evens the Raiders record at 2 and 2 on the year.
Coffee County returns to the hardwood on Tuesday night when Grundy County visits the Joe Frank Patch Memorial Gym. Tip off for the girls game is set for 6:00 PM. Thunder Radio will bring you exclusive coverage of all the action, beginning with the Powers Storage Pregame Show that begins at 5:50.

Download the Podcast at: http://www.thunder1320.com/downloads/

Jake Hollandsworth of Westwood basketball

The Westwood Rockets and Lady Rockets returned to Duck River Valley Conference play on Monday night with a sweep at Huntland. In the boys’ game, the Rockets fought and clawed their way to an 11 point halftime lead on their way to a 41 to 20 win over the Hornets. Jake Hollandsworth led the Rockets in scoring with 11 points and Roderic Brinkley chipped in 8 points for Westwood. Playing without Shawn Anderson, who will miss the remainder of the season due to a knee injury, the Rockets also got strong contributions from several 6th graders in the convincing win. The win evens Westwood’s record at 8 and 8 on the year.

Morgan Jones of Westwood basketball

The Lady Rockets held off a strong 4th quarter rally from the Lady Hornets to earn a 41 to 37 win in the girls’ tilt. Ashley Starks and Morgan Jones each finished with 19 points to lead the Lady Rockets as each hit crucial 4th quarter free throws to secure the conference win for the Lady Rockets. Beatris Barrera had 2 points for Westwood whose record improved to 13 and 2 on the year. Westwood returns to the Joel Vinson Gym on Thursday night as they play host to Fayetteville. The night will feature the Teddy Bear Toss where new stuffed animals will be donated to the Manchester Fire and Police Departments. Thunder Radio will be on hand to broadcast the game AND the festivities. Tipoff is set for 6, we will be on the air for the pregame show at 5:50.

Bella Vinson of CCMS Basketball

The Lady Raiders of Coffee County Middle School improved their record to 7 and 0 on Monday night with a 68 to 14 win over Morrison at the Coffee County Middle School Gym. Coffee County raced out to a 28 to 3 first quarter lead as every Lady Raider that dressed out saw action in that first 6 minute period. On the night, Julia Duncan led Coffee County in scoring with 28 points. Bella Vinson added 12 points and Jade Arnold tallied 8 points in the win.

Blanton Brown of CCMS basketball

The Red Raiders fell behind early and saw their 4th quarter rally come up short in a 39 to 37 defeat. The visitors from Warren County netted 24 first quarter points to claim a 20 point lead after the first period. The Raiders turned up the defensive pressure and got their offense on track but could not get the crucial free throws to fall in the second half. Coffee County finished 6 of 24 at the charity stripe on the night to spoil the dramatic comeback. Blanton Brown and Brandon Jernigan each finished with 8 points to lead the Raiders. Kyle Farless chipped in 6 points for Coffee County. Coffee Middle is back at home on Thursday night as they return to conference play hosting Harris. The girls’ game tips at 6 PM.

Eight members of the Coffee County Red Raider football team were named to the Region 2-6A All-Region team which was announced on Saturday morning’s Coffee Coaches Show. Five Red Raiders were selected to the 1st team, while 3 players from Coffee County received honorable mention honors.
Sophomore QB Alontae Taylor headlines the Raider selections. Taylor led Coffee County in total offense as he accounted for more than 2,300 yards on the season. Junior Tyrese McGee was also selected. McGee was the 2nd leading receiver and the 3rd leading rusher for Coffee County and accounted for more than 600 yards of offense and 5 touchdowns. Senior fullback/linebacker Mill Harner was also honored as he rushed for nearly 800 yards and 8 touchdowns on the season for the Red Raiders. Senior lineman Jacoby Lowe and freshman lineman Nathaniel Horne were also recognized for their outstanding play. Junior offensive lineman Silas Vaughn, senior cornerback Boone Riddle and freshman lineman Elijah Norton received honorable mention to the squad as chosen by the Region 2-6A coaches.

Pete Weber’s postgame report

Nashville Predators center Mike Fisher

Juuse Saros stopped 20 shots in his NHL debut, but it wasn’t enough as the Buffalo Sabres defeated the Nashville Predators by a 4-1 final on Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena.

Buffalo scored four unanswered to finish the contest, including two goals on a five-minute power play in the second period after Nashville forward Viktor Arvidsson was penalized for cross checking.

“It was tough; it was a low-event game, but we’re holding a 1-0 lead at that point and there wasn’t a lot going on for them up until that,” Predators Head Coach Peter Laviolette said of the Buffalo power-play chance. “I don’t think [Arvidsson] had any bad intentions, he just ran into somebody and the stick got caught a little bit high, but just a tough turn of events.”

The loss was just the second regulation defeat for Nashville on home ice this season, pushing their overall record to 12-7-4 on the season.

Mike Fisher opened the scoring with his third goal in as many games. Fisher’s tally on the power play at 11:42 of the first period was his 250th in the NHL and came courtesy of a slick James Neal feed off the draw to the right of goaltender Chad Johnson.

The 1-0 score held through a majority of the middle stanza until the Sabres received the five-minute power-play chance. Jamie McGinn and Sam Reinhart scored for Buffalo with the man advantage to give Buffalo a 2-1 lead headed into the intermission.

“We were playing a pretty solid game, and then we took the five-minute major; that kind of deflated us,” forward Eric Nystrom said. “It was an opportunity for us to keep the momentum with a big kill, but they scored two goals on that five-minute major. It kind of took the wind right out of our sails.”

Reinhart added his second of the night early in the third and Ryan O’Reilly added an empty netter to seal the victory for Buffalo.

A bright spot on the evening was the play of Saros, who was just recalled earlier in the day from Milwaukee of the AHL. Selected 99th overall by Nashville in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, Saros fought off a number of shots throughout the evening, masking whatever nerves he may have been feeling.

“I had a couple shots at the beginning that got me going,” Saros said. “I felt pretty good with the pace and everything, and it’s nice to get the first game down.”

“He was good; he seemed like everything was really in control,” Laviolette said of Saros. “He had a couple of tough shots early – there were a couple shots that came in real funny and hard and he was able to make those saves, and then I thought he really settled into it after that.”

The Predators will remain at home to host the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday night, and after playing six games in a nine-day stretch, Laviolette is hoping some rest will help lead to a notch in the win column.

“I thought we could’ve had more gas… the energy, maybe the second period had something to do with that,” Laviolette said. “The road trip lasted until tonight, whatever it is – it was a long trip and I’m not making any excuses, but I think we can play at a higher tempo. I think that’s when we’re at our best, and I think we had more to push in that area tonight.”

Philadelphia Flyers captain Claude Giroux could have a future in coaching. He certainly knows how to draw up a winning play.

Giroux had the idea and defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere executed it, scoring a power-play goal with 52.0 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Flyers a 3-2 win against the Nashville Predators at Wells Fargo Center on Friday.

The game turned when the Predators were called for having too many men on the ice at 2:40 of overtime. The Flyers called a timeout halfway through the advantage and that’s when Giroux commandeered the dry-erase board.

“[Assistant coach] Joey [Mullen] is not on the bench but he prepares the guys really well,” Flyers coach Dave Hakstol said. “That’s all the players and Joey. They did a great job.”

Coming out of the timeout Jakub Voracek carried the puck into the Nashville zone and curled to the point on the right side. He sent it to Gostisbehere in the center of the zone inside the blue line and he moved it to Giroux at the left dot. Gostisbehere cut down the middle and Giroux found him above the hash marks. His one-timer went through a Wayne Simmonds screen and past Rinne.

“We’re just trying to get some traffic, move around, make that forward not really see what’s going on behind him,” Giroux said. “Just trying to get some guys open. Whether it was [Gostisbehere or Voracek] open, I was going to try to make that pass. It worked so it’s good.”

Colin McDonald and Michael Del Zotto also scored for the Flyers (8-10-5) and Giroux had two assists.

It was a play almost exactly the same as the one Gostisbehere scored on in overtime Monday to defeat the Carolina Hurricanes.

“It was actually the same exact play that we were trying the first time around [on the power play against the Predators], but we cleaned some things up and we were a little more patient this time I think,” Gostisbehere said. “It was a great play by [Giroux] to draw that up and great entry by Jake and [Simmonds] got [Rinne’s] eyes.”

The goal was Gostisbehere’s third in seven games and second in overtime. He was recalled from Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League on Nov. 14 to replace defenseman Mark Streit, who is expected to miss another month recovering from surgery to repair a detached pubic plate. But Gostisbehere’s play could force the Flyers into some tough decisions when Streit returns.

“It’s a fun ride right now and I don’t have any plans of getting off it,” Gostisbehere said. “I’ve never scored that many [overtime] winners in my life so it’s a surreal moment. But I’m going to keep going and I’m looking forward to New York [Rangers on Saturday].”

Goalie Michal Neuvirth made 33 saves, including a spectacular post-to-post stop on the Predators’ Eric Nystrom late in the second period with the game tied 1-1. Nystrom had an open net from the left slot on the rebound of Mike Fisher’s shot off a shorthanded rush, but Neuvirth leapt across and did the splits to stop Nystrom with 4:50 remaining.

Filip Forsberg had a goal and an assist, and Fisher scored for the Predators (12-6-4). Goaltender Pekka Rinne, who played his 400th NHL game, made 33 saves.

The Predators, in the final game of a five-game road trip (1-3-1), forced overtime when Fisher jumped into the crease and banged in the rebound of a Forsberg shot with 20.0 seconds remaining in the third period.

But the Predators were unable to carry that momentum into overtime.

“It was a big goal for us at the time,” Predators coach Peter Laviolette said. “We were pressing at the end. Had some chances. [Neuvirth] made some good saves. … Was good to get the extra goal and get to overtime, get the point.”

The Flyers took a 2-1 lead at 4:57 of the third on McDonald’s first goal of the season. Scott Laughton held the puck along the left wing boards in the Predators end and got it to defenseman Evgeny Medvedev at the point. His shot hit McDonald in front, and he fought off Nystrom to get to the rebound and slide it past Rinne.

Forsberg opened the scoring 1:44 into the game with his first goal in 17 games, one-timing a Mike Ribeiro pass into the slot past Neuvirth. It was Forsberg’s fourth goal of the season; he was tied for second among rookies last season with 26 goals. Against the Flyers, he had four shots on goal and three that missed the net, including a shot off the crossbar with the game tied late in the second period.

“I think it was only a matter of time,” Laviolette said. “He had lots of chances and looks in New York; Thought he played a real strong game versus the Rangers [on Monday]. Tonight he was shooting the puck well also. Was good for him to have a good first shift, they were humming in the offensive zone and were able to generate.”

The Flyers tied it at 4:00 of the first on Del Zotto’s first goal of the season. It was their first even-strength goal since the third period Nov. 17 against the Los Angeles Kings, a span of 261 minutes, 58 seconds.

It was the first time six games that the Flyers scored more than one 5-on-5 goal in a game. The Flyers entered Friday 30th in the League at 1.73 goals per game.

Nashville forward Gabriel Bourque missed the final two periods because of an upper-body injury.

The Predators return to Nashville on Saturday night for a 7 PM contest with Buffalo.  Thunder Radio will bring you that broadcast on the Fifth Third Bank/Nashville Predators Radio Network.