Working at Predlines has been a pleasure.

This is my last post as the editor of Predlines.

I first came on board here in December 2012 after FanSided’s NHL Network director, Derek Stykalo, recruited me to run the site. I hadn’t written about hockey with any regularity since I closed my old blog, Predators’ Den, which I had begun during the 2003-04 season with my late, great friend Charlie Tuttle. Very few people on the internet were paying attention to the scrappy expansion team in Nashville in those days. That was back when James Mirtle didn’t yet work for the Globe and Mail, Jes Golbez was the funniest guy in hockey blogging, and the occasional link from Eric McErlain’s Off Wing Opinion or PJ Swenson‘s Sharkspage meant the world to two kids from Tennessee. There hadn’t been an NHL lockout yet, much less two of them. It was an entirely different hockey world than the one we know today.

Despite all my time away from writing about the game, Derek wanted me on the FanSided team. So I agreed to take the job. 

At the time the latest lockout was at its lowest point and nobody knew if the league and players would come to an agreement in time to avert disaster. In all honesty, I expected there wouldn’t be any hockey to watch. But by early January the buzz of a possible deal began to build, and within a few weeks I had an actual hockey season to keep up with. More than 300 posts later, it’s almost hard to believe that the NHL came within weeks of not having a season at all. Almost.

Though the team struggled this season, covering it was enjoyable. I’ve always been free to write whatever sort of content I wanted here at Predlines, from whatever angle seemed best to me. That’s the kind of freedom any writer loves to have. And when it came to pitching ideas for less traditional content – like Bob Sham’s Shea comics – the network was always behind me. It would be gauche to ask for anything more.

(PHOTO: Don McPeak-US PRESSWIRE)

Interacting with you has been enjoyable for me, too. Social media the way we know it today didn’t exist back when I wrote about hockey the first time around, so this experience was very different than that one. Those of you on Twitter made live-tweeting Preds games a lot of fun, even if they usually didn’t go the way we all had hoped. Having a few of the team’s players tweet back at me along the way was fun, too.

I’ll no longer be the editor here at Predlines but I will be staying on as a contributing author. I won’t be publishing here often  but whenever I have something I really want to say about the Preds, this will be my venue. Like all of you, I’m looking forward to a more successful future for the team.

To the FanSided NHL team: thanks for allowing me to join you in an editorial capacity. It’s been a pleasure to work with all of you.

To the readers: thanks for your time and attention. Seeing so many of you read what I’ve written has been a humbling experience. I’m grateful to have had the opportunity.

- Jason Kirk

Pending Nashville Predators Restricted Free Agent Odds of Re-signing

The Locks

Hornqvist is the most prolific goalscorer on the Preds’ roster. (PHOTO: Don McPeak-USA TODAY Sports)

Patric Hornqvist – 2:5

Nobody on the Nashville Predators’ roster has scored more goals over the last three years than Patric Hornqvist. Poile has already said that he considers the 26-year-old Swede a core player and wants to ink a multi-year deal with him. The only question is how much he will cost.

Roman Josi impressed in his sophomore season. (PHOTO: Don McPeak-USA TODAY Sports)

Roman Josi – 2:5

Another lock to be re-signed is Roman Josi. The 22-year-old Swiss defender stepped up to first-line duties this season. He not only held his own but actually improved on his performance from last season: his five goals and 13 assists in 48 games gave him two more points than he had in 52 games playing on lower defensive pairings in 2011-12. Like Hornqvist, Josi is a high priority for Poile.

The Rest

Victor Bartley may finally earn his first full-time NHL contract. (PHOTO: Rob Grabowski-USA TODAY Sports)

Victor Bartley – 3:1

The Nashville Predators’ key weakness this season was a thin defensive corps hit by the loss of both Ryan Suter and Francis Bouillon. Victor Bartley, who nearly made the team out of training camp, was one of a handful of bright spots on the blue line. He shined once he was finally called up from Milwaukee halfway through the season. He posted seven assists in 24 games – his first work in the NHL – and meshed particularly well with Kevin Klein on the team’s second defensive pairing. The 25-year-old looks likely to land a full-time NHL job as a reward.

Nick Spaling has Coach Barry Trotz on his side. (PHOTO: Russell LaBounty-USA TODAY Sports)

Nick Spaling – 4:1

Aside from Hornqvist and Josi, there’s no player on this list more beloved by Coach Barry Trotz than Nick Spaling. He works the penalty kill and has been a consistent presence on the team’s checking lines for three seasons now. And being a Trotz favorite means that his 20 points per season are more than enough to keep him on the ice.

Spaling seems a bit redundant on a team that already has Paul Gaustad, especially given that he’ll require a qualifying offer of more than $1.1 million per year when Goose already costs $3.25M. I think that’s balanced out by having the coach in his corner, though.

Matt Halischuk played best when his job was on the line. (PHOTO: Don McPeak-USA TODAY Sports)

Matt Halischuk – 5:1

When his job was on the line – and it was on the line multiple times this season – Matt Halischuk stepped up his game. Whether it was putting up two goals and an assist in a three-game conditioning assignment in Milwaukee, shooting the puck 17 times in his last six full games, or scoring three goals and an assist in the last two of those, the 24-year-old forward showed that he’s a capable player when properly motivated.

Though he’s quite good at implementing Trotz’s dump-and-chase tactics, the coach doesn’t tend to use him much. Halischuk was the fourth-least-used player on the team among those who spent significant time with the Preds. I think the team’s familiarity with him is the strongest factor in favor of him earning a contract, even if it’s a short one that keeps his feet to the fire.

Bobby Butler isn’t a Trotz favorite but put up good numbers in limited ice time. (PHOTO: Rob Grabowski-USA TODAY Sports)

Bobby Butler – 6:1

After being picked up on waivers from the New Jersey Devils, former Hobey Baker Award finalist Bobby Butler scored three goals and added six assists in 20 games with the Preds. He’s a shooter on a team of passers and he works hard on the forecheck. He was also one of the most underused forwards on the team, averaging just 10:48 ice time per game – ahead of only Rich Clune. That’s not a particularly big surprise given that Barry Trotz had originally argued against signing Butler out of college when David Poile broached the idea back in 2010.

Probably the biggest thing working in Butler’s favor is that he would be a bargain signing, requiring less than $600,000 for a qualifying offer. He could shift these odds up a tick if he has a particularly good showing representing the United States at the World Championships.

Jonathon Blum hasn’t been able to match his junior & AHL success at the NHL level. (PHOTO: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports)

Jonathon Blum – 8:1

Outside of a burst of eight points when he joined the team for 23 games at the end of the 2010-11 season, 24-year-old Jonathon Blum hasn’t been able to translate his success in juniors and the AHL at the NHL level. This season in particular was disappointing: he went pointless in his last 14 consecutive games, only contributed offensively in five of his 35 games played, and failed to record a single point on the power play all season.

This year, playing on a one-year contract at a reduced rate from his entry-level deal, Blum was on pace for 16 points in a full 82-game season. If he were more of a stay-at-home type of defender that would be fine, but the Preds hoped for a lot more offensive help when they drafted him in the first round. With Victor Bartley performing so strongly after joining the team, the only strong arguments in favor of Blum would be his low cost and the fact that the team’s defensive corps is stretched thin. I think Blum’s roster spot is likely to be filled by an unrestricted free agent signing.