Good night, Nashville. There will be no encore.

The Predators' longtime anthem singer, Dennis K. Morgan, says the team hasn't asked him to return to his role and he wouldn't accept an invitation anyway after being replaced by a slew of country stars this spring.

"No one has contacted me from the Predators," Morgan told The Andrew Walker Show on Sportsnet 590 The FAN on Friday. "My contract expired last Friday, and I assume I'm done, in fact I know I am, because even in the unlikely event I was invited back, I don't want to have an association with the organization any longer just because of this."

He first expressed his disappointment with the club back in May, as the Predators were in the midst of a playoff run that culminated in the franchise's first-ever trip to the Stanley Cup Final.

During this time, the club summoned several big-name acts to handle anthem duties, including Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, Trisha Yearwood and Kelly Clarkson, thereby upstaging Morgan, who lamented being replaced by A-listers - particularly "the captain's wife."

Morgan insisted Friday he's not interested in taking aim at the organization and just wanted to tell his side of the story, while letting other teams know that he's available for hire.

"I'm not trying to drag the Preds' name through the mud like mine has been dragged through the mud," he said. "I just want a chance to clear my own name (and) let people know I'm not the evil, arrogant jerk I've been portrayed as, and (I'd) love to fill in for teams elsewhere in the NHL if they have an anthem singer who can't make it one night."

Morgan performed the anthems at Bridgestone Arena more than 185 times over the years, according to The Tennessean's Kirk A. Bado.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

It was a reunion of former Montreal Canadiens defensemen at Andrei Markov's wedding in Russia on Friday.

P.K. Subban was in attendance, and posted a photo of himself, Alexei Emelin, and Markov with his wife on Instagram, offering a heartfelt message to the groom, with whom he played for several seasons in Montreal.

The caption reads:

@marki79red (Markov) has been one of the most influential people in my career - wouldn't be where I am without him. Today we celebrate life and love... not a power play goal! I love you marky and couldn't be happier to be here for your special day!

Subban and Emelin both now play for the Nashville Predators, while Markov remains an unrestricted free agent.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

It was a reunion of former Montreal Canadiens defensemen at Andrei Markov's wedding in Russia on Friday.

P.K. Subban was in attendance, and posted a photo of himself, Alexei Emelin, and Markov with his wife on Instagram, offering a heartfelt message to the groom, with whom he played for several seasons in Montreal.

The caption reads:

@marki79red (Markov) has been one of the most influential people in my career - wouldn't be where I am without him. Today we celebrate life and love... not a power play goal! I love you marky and couldn't be happier to be here for your special day!

Subban and Emelin both now play for the Nashville Predators, while Markov remains an unrestricted free agent.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Colorado Avalanche are taking Semyon Varlamov back to his roots in announcing the hiring of Jussi Parkkila as goaltending coach.

According to the Avs, Parkkila - who spent the past 12 seasons coaching in various leagues across Europe - began his pro coaching career with Yaroslavl Lokomotiv (KHL) in 2007-08, where he tutored Varlamov.

Back in May, Colorado fired goalie coach Francois Allaire, who had been with the team since 2012. Varlamov has been dealing with groin issues in recent years and registered a career-low .898 save percentage through 24 appearances last season.

The Avalanche concurrently announced the hiring of Ray Bennett as an assistant coach. He had been with the St. Louis Blues in the same capacity for the past 10 seasons.

Goaltending will be key to any turnaround for head coach Jared Bednar's club next season, and Varlamov will be counted on to return to peak form. A familiar face might just help toward that end.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Dan Girardi was expecting to be back with the New York Rangers next season.

Instead, with three years left on a contract that carried a salary-cap hit of $5.5 million, Girardi was bought out by the Blueshirts on June 14, allowing him to sign with the Tampa Bay Lightning as an unrestricted free agent on July 1.

He's happy where he landed, but it took some time to come to grips with the Rangers' decision.

"I gotta say I was surprised," Girardi told Jim Cerny of Sporting News on Friday. "Obviously, it's a (salary) cap era and my contract did not help, but at the end of the day, after a decent year and good playoffs and the (exit) meetings, I just started working out, preparing for next season. When I first heard the news it was disappointing and it hit me pretty hard, but that's part of the game these days."

Girardi appeared in 788 regular-season games and an additional 122 playoff games since signing with the Rangers as an undrafted free agent in 2006.

But New York was looking to free up cap space and get younger, according to Cerny.

The veteran defenseman inked a two-year, $6-million contract with Tampa Bay, and Girardi said he's ready to move on with his new club.

"I have no hard feelings towards the Rangers. They gave me a great chance to play for 11 years, and as time went on, it's helped me to heal a little bit - it's not the end of the world," he said.

"Once other teams started showing interest, I was like, 'OK here we go, turn the page, start a new chapter.' And now I feel really good about the season coming up."

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Regardless of who the defending champion is, no one - not even Tom Brady - is going to pass up a chance to touch the Stanley Cup.

However, many fans of the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins also support the Steelers, and understandably do not want a hated rival touching their team's prized possession.

After Philip Pritchard, the official Keeper of the Cup, posted a photo of Brady with Lord Stanley's mug on Friday, several fans were not pleased that the New England Patriots quarterback's ring-holders smudged the silver.

Salty.

- With h/t to CBS Sports

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Timothy Liljegren is beginning to understand his place at the team's development camp.

The Swedish defender - who the Maple Leafs nabbed with the 17th overall pick in last month's draft - was on hand Thursday to speak to the media sporting a new Lou Lamoriello-approved hair cut, and gave some insight into his perceived timeline with the club.

The 18-year-old appears well aware of the team's history of easing its top prospects into the lineup - Auston Matthews was clearly an exception this past year - as he doesn't expect to challenge for a roster spot next season.

"I think one more year to develop and I’ll try the NHL," Liljegren said, according to Sportsnet's Luke Fox.

Liljegren is a smooth-skating defenseman whose biggest strengths are in his offensive game, even garnering lofty comparisons to Ottawa Senators captain Erik Karlsson. That being said, Liljegren admits Nicklas Lidstrom is the type of player he would like to be someday, which could be in the cards judging by how he describes his game.

"I skate good. I like to have the puck in the offensive zone and make plays and score points," Liljegren said.

The Maple Leafs would be thrilled if that's the type of player Liljegren becomes at the NHL level, and if they have to wait an extra year before they get a real taste of what he can do, they'll likely be just fine with that.

Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.