The project with the Mall of Hope, also known as the Nashville Inner City Ministry, began in 2016 when Nashville hosted the NHL All-Star Game. The expansion of the program was announced as part of the festivities surrounding the 2022 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series game between the Predators and Tampa Bay Lightning at Nissan Stadium on Saturday (7:30 p.m.; TNT, SN360, TVAS2, NHL LIVE).
The announcement included an event outside of Bridgestone Arena, the Predators' downtown home, where 400 kids were invited to participate in skills and drills with the NHL STREET program. Each participant was given NHL STREET start-up equipment and a pair of tickets to the outdoor game.
Kenny Purvis, the director of development for the ministry, said that the legacy project has allowed the kids in the program to know what opportunities may lie ahead for them.
"The opportunity to partner with Predators and the NHL has been neat because we've been able to expose our kids to another side of life," Purvis said. "The Predators have made it their effort to be involved and engaged in the community."
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The relationship between the Predators and the Mall of Hope started in 2015 with the building of a KaBOOM! playground and continued through 2016 with the renovation of 30,000 square feet to help better serve the community.
Purvis said he believes that the more kids see and experience these events and projects they will one day want to be involved in creating them for the next generation.
"Our kids are kind of pigeon-holed a lot of times," Purvis said. "They get judged a lot based on where they live. This is a chance to show there are things they can be part of to break that cycle. That might be creative or marketing or promotional. We want to give them a nudge in those directions and expand their minds."
Rebecca King, the Predators VP of community relations, credits the ministry for its commitment to opening doors for kids in the community and believes that these events will lead to even bigger things in the future.
"As an organization we have a huge focus on making sure our fan base at the hockey rink and our employee base is more diverse," King said. "Hopefully one day some of the kids will come and intern with us when they are in college and eventually become employees. It starts with a day like today."
The lasting message on this day was that anyone can learn to play hockey and the new rinks at the Mall of Hope and the equipment from NHL STREET will help eliminate some of the barriers that have kept kids from playing the sport.
"You can play this right out in front of your home, in your neighborhood, in your recreation community center," said Jeff Scott, NHL VP of community development and growth. "All you need is some sticks and a ball and you can get kids running around and understand what the sport of hockey is all about."
