Apparently Nashville Predator fans kicked it up in the last part of the season which is a good thing when it comes to getting a piece of the pie.

The Predators averaged 14,650 in paid attendance over the last 16 home games after averaging 12,640 through the first 25. Attendance has traditionally been higher after football season and similar surges were followed by setbacks.

Maintaining the higher paid attendance figures into next season is critical. The Predators need to average at least 14,000 in order to qualify for the NHL’s full revenue-sharing plan, which allows smaller markets such as Nashville to share profits made by bigger markets with bigger local television contracts.

So the hierarchy isn’t kicking up its heels and smoking cigars, but it finds the numbers reassuring after a season of tremendous turmoil headlined by an ownership change.

If you are suffering from hockey withdrawal, Paul has a Predator’s countdown clock on his blog.

137 days to go before Nashville pucks it up again.