As the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs comes to an end, it is very clear that the Nashville Predators are not as close to being a Cup contender as some want to believe.
Luckily for General Manager David Poile and company, this summer’s free agent class has plenty top-6 forward options to upgrade the Predators roster.
If Poile meant what he said in the season-ending presser, there will be some moves made this summer, as he tries to give recently extended head coach John Hynes a team that can actually compete in the playoffs.
The first order of business will certainly be re-signing the franchise’s leading goal scorer, Filip Forsberg. Forsberg will command a big salary, and deservedly so, as he had 42 goals and 42 assists in 69 games this season. His extension will likely come between $8.5m and $9.5m per season.
That cap hit would leave the Preds with between $15m-$16m, with Luke Kunin, Yakov Trenin, Cody Glass and Jeremy Lauzon as the major RFAs to re-sign. After those are taken care of, there should be around $9-10m left for Poile to improve the team through free agency and possibly trades.