Issue link: https://read.uberflip.com/i/1547037
OCTOBER 2026 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM // 39 THE YOUNG PREDS LEARN TO PLAY PROGRAM SAW A PARTICIPATION INCREASE OF 13.6% LAST YEAR. PA R T I C I PA N T S I N ' 2 5 - ' 2 6 401 then maximize the amount of ice that we have to utilize it in the best way possible," Franklin said. "Our big focus for the next couple years is going to be on retention and player development. Now it's time to keep the players in the game for longer while also being the most competitive in the nation. That's our goal." According to Franklin, there has been significant growth in co-ed, girls and women's programming. He said that Nashville now boasts 143 women's hockey players. "We've tried to make sure that we don't just put one-off items for girls hockey in there," Franklin said. "Now it's a consistent curriculum that we include in our programming each year. We have seen tremendous growth within our youth and girls hockey, but we've also seen tremen- dous growth within our adult women's hockey." Because Clarksville borders Fort Campbell, Kentucky, Franklin would like to increase support for military members. "We have a lot of disabled hockey players that are looking to jump into sleds and try it out for free," Franklin said. "I would say probably our Warrior program is something that I would love to see kind of get more promoted on the adult side." Franklin also noted potential future opportunities in blind and deaf/hard of hearing hockey. This year, the Predators will support 22 Try Hockey For Free Days in the area. "We're trying to be more optimal with how we use our ice," Franklin said. "I would say that our bandwidth is not necessarily an issue. We very much have an approach of 'Hey, bring it on.' We want to try to maximize what we can while also making sure that it's best for our community." Franklin said that the Predators will continue to strat- egize about how best to support hockey in the community going forward. "We want to make sure that we provide a good product with our potential new programs," said Franklin, "and so we're taking a lot of information and kind of finding out what might be the pros and cons with doing these sorts of things." As Franklin pointed out, the Predators prefer to focus on grass- roots-level hockey programs instead of Tier 1 or Tier 2 travel programs. "Truly, it's how we can make a lasting impact on these players and parents because we want everybody to play the game no matter where they are in life," Franklin concluded. P