from Josh Cooper of The Tennessean,
It resembled game night at Bridgestone Arena, in miniature.
Several hundred Nashville Predators season ticket holders and staff, led by team mascot Gnash, marched rowdily into Franklin’s A-Game Sportsplex as 11-year-old hockey players looked up in wonder.
Coach Barry Trotz and his staff jumped behind the bench. The Ice Girls danced. Music blared. There were cheers. The event was billed as a “Smashmob,” a play on the team’s “Smashville” brand.
While the goal was to give kids a unique hockey experience, a closer look showed the Predators trying to help out their sponsors and business partners as the NHL lockout rolled into its second month.
The season ticket holders were lured under the guise of a pizza party. Hunt Brothers Pizza, a team sponsor, supplied the food. After the game, Trotz and some players took questions in a fake media scrum in front of a banner prominently featuring Xfinity, also a sponsor.
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