Once the logo was unveiled, the franchise held a vote among fans to choose a name. The logo was a reference to a partial Smilodon skeleton found beneath downtown Nashville in 1971 during construction of the First American National Bank building, now the UBS Tower. On September 25, 1997, Leipold and team president Jack Diller held a press conference where they unveiled the franchise's new logo, a saber-toothed cat ( Smilodon fatalis). Portland Pirates' head coach Barry Trotz was named the franchise's first head coach on August 6. One month later, Leipold named former Washington Capitals general manager David Poile as the franchise's first general manager. Of the four cities, Nashville was the only one with a completed arena and therefore began play first. The Nashville team would begin play in 1998 if they met the NHL requirement of selling 12,000 season tickets before March 31, 1998. In June, the league granted conditional franchises to Nashville, Columbus, Ohio, Atlanta, and Minneapolis–Saint Paul. When Bettman and league officials visited Nashville to tour the arena, thousands gathered on the arena plaza to greet them. In January 1997, a group led by Wisconsin businessman Craig Leipold made a formal presentation before the NHL requesting an expansion franchise. The arena was opened in 1996, and after an attempt to bring the National Basketball Association's Sacramento Kings did not materialize, the city instead went after a hockey team.
In August 1997, Barry Trotz was named as the first head coach of the Nashville Predators.Īfter the failed attempt to land the Devils, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman stated Nashville would probably be considered in upcoming expansion. Nashville offered a $20 million relocation bonus to any team that would relocate, and the Devils attempted to terminate their lease with the NJSEA before ultimately restructuring it to stay in New Jersey. In late 1995, rumors began to circulate that the New Jersey Devils would relocate to the planned Nashville Arena.
The Predators are currently affiliated with one minor league team: the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League (AHL). Their television broadcasting rights are held by Bally Sports South, and the Nashville Predators Radio Network flagship station is WPRT-FM. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and have played their home games at Bridgestone Arena since 1998.
Nashville predators logo professional#
The Nashville Predators (commonly referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee.
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