The Nashville Predators play in the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). This year, All-Star defenseman Kimmo Timonen, All-Star goaltender Tomas Vokoun & newly acquired marquee left wing Paul Kariya look to ignite Nashville on a return to playoff action.
The Name: Predators was chosen to complement the team logo, an image of a saber-toothed tiger. In May of 1971, excavation began at the downtown Nashville site of what today is the 28-story First American Center. Construction workers drilled through 20 feet of solid rock before coming to a soft muddy area. Further digging revealed a cave containing the nine-inch fang and a foreleg bone of a saber-toothed tiger, extinct for at least 10,000 years! The team colors are orange, gold, silver, and blue.
History: On June 25, 1997, the Predators joined the NHL when the league announced that four cities had been awarded expansion franchises: Nashville; Atlanta, Georgia; Columbus, Ohio; and Saint Paul, Minnesota. Businessman Craig  Leipold is the majority owner of Goalgirlsthe Predators and serves as the team’s chairman and chief executive officer. Davie Poile, former general manager of the Washington Capitals, is the team’s general manager.
Coach: Barry Trotz is the Predators’ head coach. Previously, Trotz coached the Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League to the Calder Cup during the 1994-95 season. That same year he was named AHL coach of the year.
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