Brian Boyle Should Not Return To The Nashville Predators
By Colby Guy
As we head into the dog days of summer, Brian Boyle still remains a free agent and it looks like the Nashville Predators will not be bringing him back.
The Nashville Predators had traded for Brian Boyle at the deadline, giving up a 2019 second round pick in the process, and although he wasn’t bad in Nashville, it looks like it is time for both sides to move on.
Boyle’s spot on the team has been taken up by the signing of Matt Duchene, as the bottom six center roles have now been delegated to Kyle Turris and Nick Bonino, which means unless one of them gets traded, Boyle is without a spot in the lineup.
There will also be players like Eeli Tolvanen, Colton Sissons and Rocco Grimaldi taking up important spots in the bottom two lines, which makes bringing Boyle back very unlikely.
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Boyle could definitely find a spot elsewhere, as the 6’6 center brings physicality and the occasional scoring as a bottom six center, but sadly, the Nashville Predators don’t have a spot for him, especially after they signed Colton Sissons to a seven year contract.
Boyle is also a terrific penalty killer, so he could definitely make an impact on a team like the New York Islanders, Florida Panthers or Chicago Blackhawks, who are missing a center spot in their lineup.
He brings veteran leadership and grit as well and is quite literally one of the strongest players in the NHL after he had his run in with cancer in 2017.
Boyle is one of the league’s most humble personalities and has the ability to win a locker room over, but sadly the Predators don’t have a spot in the lineup for him.
The bottom six is going to be flooded with talented players and it just seems like Brian Boyle would be taking minutes away from guys who absolutely need it.
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Although Boyle is an excellent hockey player and would be a great glue guy for Nashville, there just isn’t a spot in the lineup for him, which should mean a mutual split between the two sides.