{"id":12377,"date":"2021-12-10T04:05:12","date_gmt":"2021-12-10T04:05:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/?p=12377"},"modified":"2021-12-10T04:05:12","modified_gmt":"2021-12-10T04:05:12","slug":"pekka-rinne-smashville-legend-earns-300th-win","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/?p=12377","title":{"rendered":"Pekka Rinne, Smashville Legend, Earns 300th Win!"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Nashville, TN, United States \/ The Game Nashville<\/div>\n
Ryan Porth<\/div>\n
February 23, 2018 06:41 am<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n
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Thursday was just an ordinary night for Pekka Rinne standards, as he made 33 saves in the Nashville Predators\u2019 convincing 7-1 win against San Jose. The night didn\u2019t feature any highlight-reel saves that will end up on SportsCenter. The performance was one we\u2019ve seen over and over again from Number 35 throughout the years.<\/p>\n

But what the win meant was more than ordinary \u2013 to his teammates, his peers and his fans.<\/p>\n

Thursday night, Rinne became the 34th goaltender in NHL history to win his 300th career game.<\/p>\n

As Rinne was announced as the game\u2019s No. 1 star inside Bridgestone Arena for his milestone victory, the cheers were deafening. When asked what the achievement meant to him, Rinne was speechless and had to gather himself emotionally.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou guys have been a big part of it. Thank you,\u201d he said to the crowd.<\/p>\n

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Being named the number one star of the night after securing his 300th NHL win,\u00a0#Preds\u00a0Pekka Rinne displays some raw emotional in his chat with\u00a0@KaraHammer\u00a0down at Nashville\u2019s bench postgame. What a guy!\u00a0pic.twitter.com\/TUVJsK8g0D<\/p>\n

\u2014 FOX Sports Tennessee (@PredsOnFSTN)\u00a0February 23, 2018<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

To say the 35-year-old Rinne has been a big part of the Predators\u2019 success over the last decade would be an understatement.<\/p>\n

Since taking over the Nashville crease for good during the 2008-09 season, Rinne has been the one constant on a team that has experienced a lot of change in his tenure. He\u2019s the longest-tenured Nashville Predators and has backstopped every one of the franchise\u2019s marquee moments:<\/p>\n

\u2013 The Preds\u2019 first-ever playoff series win vs. Anaheim in 2011.
\n\u2013 The defeat of Detroit in the first round of the 2012 playoffs.
\n\u2013 The NHL All-Star Game at Bridgestone Arena in 2016.
\n\u2013 The Preds\u2019 first-ever Game 7 victory in 2016, discarding Anaheim in the first round.
\n\u2013 The clinching of the Preds\u2019 first-ever Western Conference title in 2017.<\/p>\n

There was a time when 300 wins may have looked like a monumental task for Rinne, when he missed the bulk of the 2013-14 season with a major hip injury. But with a clean bill of health, Rinne will likely surpass Miikka Kiprusoff (319 wins) next season as the all-time winningest Finnish goaltender.<\/p>\n

Rinne\u2019s legacy in Nashville goes beyond his on-ice success. He\u2019s a consummate pro, the definition of class, the fans love him \u2026 and he loves them back. Following public practices, Rinne takes time to sign autographs and take pictures with fans. He\u2019s been heavily involved off the ice with the 365 Pediatric Cancer Fund, which was created by Rinne and former teammate Shea Weber. The 365 Fund works with Monroe Carell Jr. Children\u2019s Hospital at Vanderbilt to raise funds and awareness for cancer research.<\/p>\n

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Following Thursday\u2019s milestone win, Rinne told the media Nashville is his \u201csecond home,\u201d which says a lot about a guy who was born in Kempele, Finland, a town with a population about the capacity size of Bridgestone Arena.<\/p>\n

Now, the former eighth-round draft pick has reached legendary status with the No. 1 franchise in all of sports, in a vibrant, ever-growing, hockey-crazed city like Nashville.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy goal was to play in the Finnish pro league and all of a sudden, here I am,\u201d Rinne said in an October interview. \u201cThis city means so much to me. This organization has been my family for a long, long time. That means a lot to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Between his achievements on the ice and likeable personality off it, it is no wonder why Rinne has always been a favorite with the Smashville faithful. And he always will be.<\/p>\n

Two hours before puck drop Thursday evening, about a dozen Predators fans stood on the corner of 6th and Demonbreun outside the arena. Over half of the people waiting at the crosswalk were donning No. 35 jerseys.<\/p>\n

In a lot of ways, Rinne is to the Nashville Predators as to what Steve McNair was to the Tennessee Titans in their heyday.<\/p>\n

McNair was \u2018The Man\u2019 in Nashville while quarterbacking the Titans. He took the Titans to the Super Bowl in 2000, falling one yard short of forcing overtime. He was tough as nails. He was the heart-and-soul (along with Eddie George) of the team\u2019s most iconic era. Titans fans will one day tell their grandkids about McNair.<\/p>\n

Like McNair, Rinne plays his sport\u2019s premium position at a high level. He took the Preds to the Stanley Cup Final in 2017, falling two wins short of the ultimate goal. He has been a pillar between the pipes, the backbone of many good teams in Smashville. Preds fans will one day tell their grandkids about Rinne.<\/p>\n

Even 12 years after McNair last played for the Titans, you find No. 9 jerseys scattered around Nissan Stadium on gamedays. For years to come, even after Rinne has retired from hockey, No. 35 will still be a popular jersey choice inside Bridgestone Arena.<\/p>\n

Aside from having longevity of being a great goaltender for one team, perhaps the biggest reason why Rinne is so beloved by Preds fans is his commitment to the franchise.<\/p>\n

Entering the 2011-12 season, Rinne, Weber and Ryan Suter \u2013 considered Nashville\u2019s \u2018Big Three\u2019 \u2013 were all in the final years of their respective contracts. Weber signed an offer sheet with Philadelphia (which was ultimately matched by Nashville) in the summer of 2012 to get his lifetime, frontloaded contract. Suter left altogether, deciding to sign as a free agent with Minnesota.<\/p>\n

But in November of 2011, months before Suter left and Weber played hardball, Rinne actually committed to Nashville by signing a 7-year extension worth $49 million \u2013 the largest contract in franchise history at the time. He will likely start and finish career with the Predators.<\/p>\n

Six years and many wins later, Rinne cemented his legacy in Smashville last spring by putting the underdog Preds on his back and carrying them to a Western Conference championship \u2013 from dominating Chicago and St. Louis, to standing on his head against Anaheim.<\/p>\n

Rinne was so good in the playoffs that if the Predators had won the Cup, he would have been the frontrunner to win the Conn Smythe Trophy.<\/p>\n

After the memorable playoff run, Rinne wrote a memorable letter to Preds fans and the city of Nashville in\u00a0The Players Tribune, where he penned the following:<\/p>\n

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Right up until Hagelin\u2019s empty-netter, I thought we would win. Honestly, I\u2019m still having a hard time accepting that we didn\u2019t. It just felt like \u2026\u00a0man<\/em>. It just felt like \u201cour\u201d season. Until the very end \u2026 it just really did feel like it was our destiny to lift the Cup this year. And so to have to watch another team do it \u2014 in our city, in front of our fans \u2014 that was a tough pill to swallow. And it probably won\u2019t stop being tough for a while.<\/p>\n

But now it\u2019s a couple of weeks later, and I\u2019ve been able to distance myself a little from that feeling \u2014 and from this season. I\u2019ve been able to get a little more perspective on it all. And the first thing that came to mind was that I wanted to write this letter to our fans. Because I wanted to let them know that the amazing journey we\u2019ve been on during these playoffs, and this season, and these last few years, and even this last decade \u2014 it\u2019s cut both ways. It\u2019s been our journey, but it\u2019s been everyone\u2019s journey. It\u2019s been about our growth as a hockey team, but it\u2019s been about our growth as a hockey city, just as much.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been a Predators thing. But it\u2019s been a Nashville thing.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Later on in the piece, Rinne guaranteed a Stanley Cup victory for Nashville \u2013 eventually. It\u2019s unknown how much longer Rinne will be able to play at a high level. When his current contract ends at the end of next season, he will be 36 years old. Time is running out to win for Rinne to get his name etched on hockey\u2019s Holy Grail.<\/p>\n

But if in the next few years Rinne helps deliver the city its first-ever pro sports championship, he will own the title of Nashville\u2019s Greatest Athlete of All-Time \u2026 for a long, long time.<\/p>\n

Pekka Rinne is the best player in team history and owns all of the franchise\u2019s major goaltending records. The No. 35 should be the first Nashville Predator number retired. If they win a Cup with Rinne in net, a statue of him should be erected outside Bridgestone Arena years down the road.<\/p>\n

To quote the baseball movie\u00a0Sandlot<\/em>: Heroes get remembered, but legends never die.<\/p>\n

Pekka Rinne will forever go down as a legend in Smashville.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    Nashville, TN, United States \/ The Game Nashville Ryan Porth February 23, 2018 06:41 am Thursday was just an ordinary night for Pekka Rinne standards, as he made 33 saves in the Nashville Predators\u2019 convincing 7-1 win against San Jose. The night didn\u2019t feature any highlight-reel saves that will end up on SportsCenter. … <\/p>\n

Read more “Pekka Rinne, Smashville Legend, Earns 300th Win!”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12377","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12377","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12377"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12377\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12377"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12377"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onhee.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12377"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}