The posting around here (and the hockey news in general) will be very light over the next couple days, so I just wanted to take this chance to wish all of you Happy Holidays & a Merry Christmas. Thanks to all of you for what you bring to this community, and spend the next couple days checking out the bounty of Nashville Predators blogs we're fortunate enough to enjoy these days:

Brandon Felder

Paul McCann

Predators Prowl

Preds 101

Preds On The Glass

Pull My (Fang) Finger

Section303

See Puck City

The View from 111

What The Puck

And don't forget our comrades in Milwaukee, Admirals Short Shifts and MilwaukeeHockey.com.

The latest report on paid attendance paints a fairly gloomy picture for the Nashville Predators, with an average of 13,060 through 19 home games reported yesterday by John Glennon, down roughly 3% from a season ago. At risk here is 25% of NHL revenue sharing, worth somewhere in neighborhood of $2-4 million, if the Predators don't achieve the critical 14,000 mark (among other targets required under the CBA).

Do the Preds have a chance at hitting 14K, and why are their numbers down from last season? Let's take a look at the details...

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In case you didn't stay up for all of last night's game in Vancouver (and I can't blame you if you didn't), be sure to check out the highlights, so you don't miss another nifty goal by Patric Hornqvist to break Vancouver's shutout bid.

One special note; yesterday we passed the 500 mark for registered users here at On The Forecheck, so thanks to all of you for participating, whether it's joining in the Game Threads, posting Fan Posts or Fan Shots, or sending me questions via email or Twitter. It's going to be a fun ride during the second half of the season!

After the jump, however, we've got your morning news and notes, which includes a couple recaps of last night's game in Vancouver, an update on paid attendance numbers, and word that the Columbus Blue Jackets are desperately searching for answers to their tailspin down to 14th place in the Western Conference.

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The Sedin twins harassed Predators defenseman Ryan Suter all night long, with a goal and 2 assists each. (via nhl.com) More pics of the green men can be found at Orland Kurtenblog.

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The Nashville Predators ended their hot streak with a resounding 4-1 defeat to the Canucks, as the Vancouver forwards kept the Preds hemmed in their own zone for much of the contest. A 36-21 shot advantage correctly reflected the imbalanced play, but it was more a factor of the Canucks playing well than any particularly poor effort on Nashville's part.

Follow after the jump for the highlights, which include a dandy goal by Patric Hornqvist to break the shutout, along with the advanced stats...

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More photos » by Mark Humphrey - AP

Two weeks ago, Martin Erat tallied a hat trick as the Predators beat the Canucks 4-2 in Nashville. Can he repeat the feat tonight as the two teams meet again in Vancouver?

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Tonight the Nashville Predators (22-11-3) wrap up their 3-game road trip through western Canada against the 20-16-0 Vancouver Canucks. For the Preds, they'll look to build upon the 4-2 victory over the Canucks from two weeks ago, which featured a hat trick for Martin Erat.

It's a late start tonight (9:30 Central) on FS-TN, so until then you can check out the matchup - and while you're reading, you can listen to a segment from this afternoon's Thom Abraham Show, in which Terry Crisp previews the game (MP3 audio), and includes some interesting commentary as to how Barry Trotz turned the Predators around after a slow 2-5-1 start...

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As the Nashville Predators prepare to close out their pre-Christmas schedule this evening, we've got a stocking-full of Preds and NHL news for you to pass the time with.

After the jump, we have a two-part look at how this season's Predators team exemplifies the philosophy of David Poile and Barry Trotz, an interesting stat reflecting Nashville's recent offensive prowess, and video of a save that has to be seen to be believed...

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