The Predators take their name from the prehistoric saber-toothed tiger, a ferocious-looking species of cat that went extinct 10,000 years ago. The tie-in to Nashville is that the partial remains of one of these tigers, including a fang, were discovered under a street in 1971. In 1996 a hockey arena was built near the site. These facts came together in fan voting in 1998 for the city’s NHL expansion team. Clearly, “Saber-toothed Tiger” was too much of a mouthful, so Predators sufficed.
MARK HUMPHREY/AP
