FanHouse Predators

Every Friday, FanHouse sifts through the rubble and picks the best NHL fight, with the help of HockeyFights.com.

A light week on the card, but there was a relatively surprising bout and some pretty good ones to choose from. Highlighting it is our favorite former Princeton player, a gentleman who has made a name for himself by being a really good fighter. Of course, the big news of the week involved a team captain dropping the gloves with a random defenseman.

Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our weekday look at the previous night's action and some of the story lines taking place around the league. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

Devils 4, Rangers 2: With a shutout on Thursday night at Madison Square Garden, New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur would have tied Terry Sawchuk's record for most career shutouts. While the future Hall of Famer will have to wait for another night to reach his next milestone, he still managed to stop 29 shots to help lead the Devils to a 4-2 win.

Zach Parise scored a pair of goals -- and assisted on another -- as New Jersey handed the Rangers their second straight loss. The Devils, meanwhile, have won five of their past six.

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Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our weekday look at the previous night's action and some of the story lines taking place around the league. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

Bruins 3, Predators 2: Entering play on Wednesday, the Nashville Predators, as a team, had scored as many goals (nine) as the league's leading goal-scorer (Alex Ovechkin). They have yet to score more than three goals in a game this season, and haven't scored more than two since October 8. That streak continued on Wednesday thanks to their 3-2 loss in Boston.

Through its first eight games, Nashville has scored just 11 goals, and because of their 0-for-3 showing on the power play, the Predators are now just 1-for-27 with the man-advantage.

Ouch.

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Every Friday, FanHouse sifts through the rubble and picks the best NHL fight, with the help of HockeyFights.com.

Some weeks, this job is just too easy. Our search for the best hockey fights includes a couple dandies this week, including a classic heavyweight battle in Toronto. It's the kind of bout that makes Brian Burke smile. Check out our runners-up, along with video of this week's best fight, after the jump.

Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our Weekday look at the previous night's action and some of the storylines taking place around the league. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

Oilers 6, Predators 1: Unlike the Calgary Flames, the Edmonton Oilers were able to build a 5-0 lead and hold on for a win, as they crushed the Predators on Monday night. The 6-1 score is impressive for Edmonton as it was outshot by a 2:1 margin (41-20) over the course of the game. Jeff Drouin-Deslauriers stopped 40 shots for the Oilers, while Zach Stortini scored a pair of goals in the win.

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The Predators were part of the mad scramble for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference last season, but failed for the first time in five years. So going into Saturday's season opener at home against the Stars, the team is bent on preventing another near-miss.

Though Nashville made little news in the offseason, the Predators enjoyed a good preseason, winning four of six games, and head coach Barry Trotz likes what he sees.

Dany Heatley has now been traded, but Phil Kessel is on the market. Here's a look at where the latter could end up by the start of the regular season.

Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our daily look at the previous night's action. During the offseason, it's our link dump that looks at some of the storylines and moves taking place around the league three times per week. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

The Vancouver Canucks have, arguably, the best goaltender in the NHL in Roberto Luongo, and they now have just under three weeks to sign him to a long-term contract extension or they risk losing him. Luongo is set to become a free agent following the season, and while the two teams have had talks, a deal has yet to be reached. According to the Globe and Mail, Luongo has set a deadline for September 13 for a new contract to be signed as he will not negotiate once training camp begins.

Shea Weber is one of 46 players -- and 16 defensemen -- selected to take part in team Canada's Olympic camp in an effort to suit up for the 2010 winter games in Vancouver. Weber, a native of nearby Sicamous, British Columbia, is looking forward to the opportunity to represent his country.

We had a chance to speak with the 23-year-old on Wednesday afternoon about the Olympics, playing in Nashville, the possibility of a defenseman ever reaching the 100-point plateau, and being the No. 44 player on the FanHouse Top 50 -- something that seemed to leave him surprised and excited.

FanHouse's Adam Gretz takes a look at his top 50 players in the NHL. No. 44 is Nashville Predators defenseman Shea Weber.

The 2003 NHL draft is shaping up to be one of the best classes ever, and I don't think that's an exaggeration. Take the first round for example, where 27 of the 30 players selected have already played at least 100 games in the NHL. Hugh Jessiman, selected 12th overall by the New York Rangers, is the only player that has yet make his debut.

With four of the top 50 picks that year, the Nashville Predators emerged with two building blocks along the blue line -- defensemen Ryan Suter in the first round (seventh overall) and Shea Weber in the second round (49th overall). Weber has already established himself as an elite defenseman, finishing fourth in the voting for the Norris Trophy in 2008-09, while he's combined with Suter to form one of the better defensive pairings in the league.

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