The Nashville Predators came within two wins of capturing the franchise’s first championship in 2017, but since then, the team has been on a downward trajectory.
Predators general manager David Poile was candid when speaking with reporters on Thursday during his end-of-season media availability after his team was recently upset by the Arizona Coyotes in four games during the NHL’s qualifying round.
“I believe we have plenty of good players, but they’ve not come together to produce the results that we all desire, so it’s very clear to me that we need to make some changes,” Poile said. “We’re going to look at our roster and some players are not going to be brought back and we will consider all avenues to improve our team.”
The team followed its 2017 Stanley Cup Final appearance by winning its first division title and Presidents’ Trophy but they didn’t make it past the second round of the playoffs in 2018. The Preds then were eliminated in the first round in 2019 despite winning a second consecutive division title.
Nashville got off to a strong start in 2019-20, but things started going south after October. The team wasn’t living up to pre-season expectations and head coach Peter Laviolette was fired in January and was replaced with John Hynes. The team went 16-11-1 after the coaching change and finished with the sixth-best points percentage in the West, but fell short against the Coyotes.
“My job is to assess, evaluate and work with (Hynes) to identify how we can get better and play the game the way he believes will lead the team to success,” Poile explained. “I can’t tell you what these changes will be in the next couple months. All I can say is all options are on the table to make our team better for the 2020-21 season.”
Defencemen Dan Hamhuis, Yannick Weber and trade deadline acquisition Korbinian Holzer are among the team’s pending unrestricted free agents. So are forwards Mikael Granlund and Craig Smith, whose cap hits were a combined $10 million.
Ryan Johansen, Matt Duchene and Kyle Turris are among the high-profile players Poile has added to the roster in recent years. That trio of forwards has a combined cap hit of $22 million, yet only produced 36 total goals this past season. Duchene is signed through 2026 and Johansen through 2025, both at $8 million per year, and Turris has four years left on his current deal that carries a $6-million cap hit.
Veteran goalie Pekka Rinne, who won the Vezina in 2018, is entering the final year of his contact. The 37-year-old costs $5 million against the cap and is coming off the worst statistical season of his NHL career.
It’s not all doom and gloom for the Predators, though. If Rinne is no longer a starter, 25-year-old Juuse Saros has shown he’s capable of being a No. 1.
Filip Forsberg is a bargain at $6 million annually and he’s signed for another two years. Viktor Arvidsson is on one of the best value contracts in the league, locked in at $4.25 million through 2024. Standout blueliner Dante Fabbro is still on his entry-level deal.
Roman Josi’s lucrative eight-year extension is set to kick in next season, so that will cost $5.059 million more annually than what he’s been making for the past seven years, but at the end of the day, the captain and Norris Trophy finalist is hands down one of the best players in the league.
The team also has several high-end prospects that could become NHL regulars as early as next season, most notably Finnish forward Eeli Tolvanen and 2019 first-rounder Philip Tomasino.
“Do I see the possibilities of us being better with these same players? I absolutely do, but I’m saying that we got to make some changes,” Poile added. “A couple years ago, I sat here and felt we were really close. I don’t quite feel the same way today.”
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