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 If the Edmonton Oilers had to do it all over again, they may have waited another two days before they traded Denis Grebeshkov to the Nashville Predators.
Jason Arnott scored the tiebreaking goal 5:02 into the third period, lifting Nashville to a 4-3 victory over Edmonton on Tuesday night.
Grebeshkov had a goal and an assist while making his Predators debut against his former team, one day after being acquired from the Oilers in exchange for a second-round pick in this June’s NHL draft. Colin Wilson and Shea Weber also scored for the Predators.
On the game-winner, Arnott threw the puck in front of the Edmonton goal from behind the net and it bounced off the right skate of Oilers defenseman Jason Strudwick into the net.
“We’ve seen those a lot this year, we’re not handling the front of the net,” Edmonton coach Pat Quinn said. “We don’t get those kinds of goals at the other end. We’re too busy with the drop passes and the lateral plays, all that pretty stuff that doesn’t end up in the net.”
It was the Nashville captain’s 15th goal of the season.
“We came out strong, but a little rusty,” Arnott said. “The first period, we were getting our legs under us just getting back into the game skating in a game. You can practice all you want, but you need to get out there and play in games.”
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Matt Field
Nashville.com Sports Editor
 John Jenkins scored 18 points, A.J. Ogilvy added 16 and Vanderbilt (No. 19 ESPN/USA Today, No. 13 AP) beat the Gators 64-60 on Tuesday night, delivering a blow to their NCAA chances.
Jermaine Beal chipped in 13 points for the Commodores, including two free throws that sealed the victory with 6.2 seconds remaining.
Vanderbilt (23-6, 12-3 Southeastern Conference) swept the season series for the first time since 1997 and stayed in the hunt for the league’s regular-season title. The Commodores need No. 3 Kentucky to lose its remaining two games to have a chance.
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Matt Field
Nashville.com Sports Editor
 Vanderbilt coach Kevin Stallings had never won in Bud Walton Arena before the Commodores (No. 20 ESPN/USA Today, No. 16 AP) beat Arkansas 89-72 on Saturday.
He had brought teams to Fayetteville five times with the same result, giving extra meaning to Vanderbilt’s second win in Fayetteville in school history. Stallings even got a high-five during his post-game news conference from Jeffery Taylor, who led Vandy with 18 points.
“I asked them if they’d get me off the schneid here, and they did it,” Stallings said.
Taylor led a balanced offense that helped the Commodores (22-6, 11-3 SEC) move within one game of first-place Kentucky in the Eastern Division. A.J. Ogilvy scored 14 points, John Jenkins and Brad Tinsley each had 13, and Darshawn McClellan added 11.
Vanderbilt scored the first six points of Saturday’s contest — the Razorbacks committed turnovers on their first three possessions — and led from start to finish.
The Commodores shot 53.3 percent from the field, including 65.4 in the first half, and led 45-35 at halftime. Vanderbilt also hit 20 of 23 free throws.
“They got on a quick run and that gave them a lot of confidence early,” Arkansas’ Rotnei Clarke said. “They executed really well, and we could’ve been better on the defensive end. They moved the ball well, ran the motion offense well and they just hit shots.”
Matt Field
Nashville.com Sports Editor
 J.P. Prince and his Tennessee teammates watched No. 2 Kentucky erase a 19-point lead and knew they might also be watching a shot at a second major upset slip away.
But, the Vols’ senior leader wouldn’t let that happen. With 90 seconds left, he scored on a broken play and added four clutch free throws down the stretch to lift Tennessee (No. 17 ESPN/USA Today, No. 19 AP) past the surging Wildcats 74-65 on Saturday.
“That was a mature win,” Prince said. “We had a big lead, let them come back, but didn’t panic.”
No, in fact the Vols (21-7, 9-5 Southeastern Conference) seem to be growing accustomed to knocking off the giants of college basketball this year. Last month, they also handed top-ranked Kansas its only loss.
The Wildcats (27-2, 12-2), who had won eight in a row since their only other loss last month to South Carolina, had trailed by 19 early in the second half but managed to tie the game at 65 with just over two minutes left.
“When they tied it up, I’m saying to myself, ‘We worked too hard,’ ” said Tennessee guard Bobby Maze. “We believed in ourselves.”
Matt Field
Nashville.com Sports Editor
 Vanderbilt’s chances at its first SEC regular-season title since 1993 are fading away, but it still has an opportunity to make the upcoming conference tournament a little easier.
A visit from one of the league’s worst teams would seem to help the 16th-ranked Commodores, but Georgia has proved too tough to handle in the past two matchups.
Vanderbilt will try to avenge those defeats Thursday night by keeping the Bulldogs winless on the road this season.
The Commodores (20-6, 9-3) had their 18-game home win streak snapped Saturday in a 58-56 loss second-ranked and SEC-leading Kentucky.
John Jenkins’ 3-pointer got Vanderbilt within a point with 14 seconds left, but the Wildcats blocked his go-ahead attempt with three to go. A.J. Ogilvy also missed a runner in the lane as time expired.
The loss put the Commodores two games behind Kentucky with four games left, but they also face a challenge for the No. 2 spot in the SEC East. The top two teams in each division receive a bye into the conference tournament quarterfinals.
Vanderbilt is one-half game ahead of Florida, who will host the Commodores on March 2. That makes Thursday’s game and Saturday’s trip to Arkansas crucial.
Matt Field
Nashville.com Sports Editor
Tennessee has gained control of its SEC East rivalry with Florida in recent seasons, but the gap may be narrowing after the Volunteers needed a last-minute comeback to earn a home win over the Gators three weeks ago.
A seventh straight victory in the series may be even tougher to get Tuesday night in Gainesville, where the 19th-ranked Vols hope to deny Florida a prime opportunity to bolster its NCAA tournament resume.
The Gators won five in a row against Tennessee from 2001-03, but they’ve beaten the Vols (20-6, 8-4 SEC) only once in nine meetings since Bruce Pearl took over as head coach in Knoxville before the 2005-06 season.
Florida had an opportunity to avoid a sixth consecutive loss to the Vols on Jan. 31, but Tennessee’s Scotty Hopson hit a go-ahead jumper with 21 seconds left and the Vols held on for a 61-60 win. Gators forward Alex Tyus missed a chance to answer at the other end.
In order to avenge that loss Tuesday, Florida (19-8, 8-4) will likely have to improve its performance on the glass. Tennessee outrebounded the Gators 41-32 last month, grabbing 18 offensive rebounds to help overcome 38.5 percent shooting.
“We’re going to have to do a better job as it relates to loose basketballs, block-out situations,” Florida coach Billy Donovan said. “Hopefully that was a game we learned from and have gotten better from. Our guys know the importance of rebounding now.”
Although the teams are tied for third place in the SEC East behind Kentucky and Vanderbilt, this game probably has more tangible meaning for Florida, which is trying to reach the NCAA tournament for the first time since winning its second consecutive national championship in 2007.
The Gators are 0-3 against ranked opponents since a 77-74 win over then-No. 2 Michigan State on Nov. 27, and they would be helped by another win over a team that’s likely to make the tournament.
“I don’t think a year ago we were capable of beating high quality teams,” Donovan said.
“In this game right now, our guys understand what goes into winning,” the coach added. “What’s in the past is in the past.”
Florida won 64-61 at Mississippi on Saturday despite shooting 36.5 percent, riding 22 points from junior Vernon Macklin, who was 8 of 11 from the field. The rest of the team was 11 of 41.
Macklin is one of five Gators averaging at least 10.0 points, but leading scorer Kenny Boynton has struggled lately. The freshman was 2 of 12 from the field against Ole Miss, totaling six points, and Tennessee held him to four points on 2-of-11 shooting. In the last seven games, Boynton is 9 of 42 (21.4 percent) from 3-point range.
Like Florida, the Vols will be going for a third straight victory. They improved to 4-4 in true road games Saturday at South Carolina, winning 63-55 behind a team-high 14 points from senior guard Bobby Maze.
“As the clock ticks down, I want people to remember me here,” Maze said of his dwindling collegiate career. “That I gave it my all on the floor and against the best players, I rise to the occasion.”
Maze held SEC leading scorer Devan Downey to 4-of-18 shooting and the Gamecocks shot 31.7 percent as a team, with Tennessee improving to 15-0 when limiting opponents to 40 percent or worse. The Vols also locked up a fifth straight 20-win season.
“That’s a big milestone,” senior forward Wayne Chism said. “Now, we’ve got to work on number 21.”
 The Tennessee Titans agreed to terms with veteran guard Eugene Amano on a multi-year contract, the team announced Wednesday.
Keeping Amano is a key piece to maintaining the Titans’ offensive line — considered one of the best in the NFL. The Titans still must sign veteran centre Kevin Mawae to keep the unit together.
Over the last two years, the offensive line has ranked second in the league in rushing yards (4,791) and is tied with Indianapolis for the fewest sacks allowed (27). Last year, the offensive line paved the way for running back Chris Johnson to become just the sixth player in NFL history to gain 2,000 yards in one season.
Additionally, the Titans became the first NFL team to allow 15 or fewer sacks and average more than five yards per carry.
Entering his seventh season, Amano has started 41 games, including 31 in the last two years.
Eugene has come in to his own as a starter for us on a talented line,” Titans general manager Mike Reinfeldt said. His signing gives us some flexibility moving forward in a couple of different areas, so it was good to get this done and feel good that the play this line has shown over the last couple of years will continue.”
Amano was to have become an unrestricted free agent March 5. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The team also announced Wednesday offensive lineman Mike Otto and linebacker Colin Allred agreed to terms on exclusive rights contracts. Both are reserves.
Matt Field
Nashville.com Sports Editor
 Titans linebacker Keith Bulluck will become a free agent on March 5. He might or might not return to the Titans in 2010.
Asked in an interview with MusicCityMiracles.com regarding his thoughts regarding the team’s defense for 2010, Bulluck was blunt.
“I honestly don’t think anything of next year’s Titans defense. I’m not on their roster right now so it doesn’t concern me.”
He also said he’s be open to the application of the franchise tag, which would pay him a one-year salary of $9.68 million in 2010. “I’m not holding my breath though,” he said.
One possible candidate for Bulluck’s services would be the Lions, whose head coach was Bulluck’s defensive coordinator for several years in Tennessee.
Matt Field
Nashville.com Sports Editor
 Rookie Colin Wilson scored the go-ahead goal on a second-period power play, Dan Ellis made 37 saves and Nashville Predators snapped a five-game road losing streak with a 2-1 victory over the New York Rangers on Wednesday night.
The game was played in front of a surprisingly large crowd of 13,128 at Madison Square Garden despite a daylong blizzard.
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Matt Field
Nashville.com Sports Editor
 Tennessee’s perfect home record was spoiled last month when Vanderbilt won at Knoxville, but Bruce Pearl’s team has looked good since the loss to its in-state rival.
Delivering some payback in Nashville would make it look even better.
The 12th-ranked Volunteers can position themselves for a shot at first place in the SEC East if they can earn a fourth straight victory Tuesday night by ending the 22nd-ranked Commodores’ 16-game home winning streak.
 Tennessee (18-4, 6-2) had won its first 10 games at home heading into a visit from Vanderbilt on Jan. 27, when it was looking to regroup from a 15-point loss at Georgia four days earlier.
The Volunteers led 35-31 at halftime, but the Commodores (17-5, 6-2) responded with their best half of the season. Jermaine Beal, who made 2 of 17 shots in a pair of losses in the series last season, scored 17 of his 25 points in the final 20 minutes as Vanderbilt outscored Tennessee 54-41 en route to an 85-76 victory.
A.J. Ogilvy added 10 of his 12 after halftime.
“Beal was special,” Pearl said. “Part of our success against Vanderbilt in the past was that we had got the better of him. Everybody talks about A.J. Ogilvy and whether he’s a factor, but in my mind Beal has always been the guy that has made the team go.”
J.P. Prince scored 22 points on 9-of-10 shooting and Scott Hopson had 14 for the Volunteers, while Wayne Chism finished with 16 rebounds and five blocks. But Chism struggled to score, missing seven of his nine shots in addition to making just 4 of 8 free throws.
The winner of Tuesday’s game will claim sole possession of second place in the SEC East. The Volunteers visit No. 1 Kentucky on Saturday, meaning a win in Nashville can make that game a battle for the division’s top spot.
Chism also struggled in the loss to Georgia (3 of 10, six points), but as he’s bounced back, so has Tennessee. The senior big man has averaged 22.0 points in the Volunteers’ last three wins, including a career-high 30 in a 79-53 rout of visiting South Carolina on Saturday.
“When Wayne is able to do things like that, inside and out, defend like he did and lead the team, he is a very difficult matchup,” Pearl said. “South Carolina did not have an answer for him.”
Tennessee is 14-1 when Chism scores at least nine points. He had a game-high 20 off the bench in the Volunteers’ most recent trip to Nashville, a 76-63 win on Jan. 20, 2009.
Matt Field
Nashville.com Sports Editor
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If the Edmonton Oilers had to do it all over again, they may have waited another two days before they traded Denis Grebeshkov to the Nashville Predators.
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