What Has to Happen for Predators to Justify Keeping David Poile
Bring Filip Forsberg back to Nashville Predators
Let’s get the obvious out of the way — for Predators fans to regain any trust in Poile for the future, re-signing Forsberg is going to be the bare minimum. And they will not just have to re-sign him, they will have to do so for good value and not hurt the team’s future.
Anything under $9.5M per year should be considered good value, and fans should be happy if that is the price tag he re-signs at. Admittedly, it will be tough to do so considering that the Predators have little to no leverage in negotiations, since Forsberg now has the power to sign wherever he wants.
Both the Predators and Forsberg will say that there has been mutual interest in reaching a deal eventually, but also that they are hung up on the amount of money and potential contract clauses. The latter part of that sentence is especially worrisome.
#Preds GM David Poile says mutual interest remains between the Predators and Filip Forsberg to keep Forsberg in Nashville: "For today, and for the next month, or however long it takes, we're going to concentrate" on signing Forsberg.
— Brooks Bratten 🍪 (@brooksbratten) May 19, 2022
Let’s get one thing right, Forsberg is a stud and deserves to be paid, and Predators fans will be on the edge of their seats worrying about the status of the team’s star forward.
If Poile is unable to keep him, it is an unforgivable mistake and one that should automatically cost him his job, no matter what else.
Get aggressive in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft
As it stands right now, the Nashville Predators are picking 17th overall in the first round of this year’s draft. They picked 19th overall last year, and as you could expect with the team’s history, they have picked in this range for the majority of their existence.
Anyone who is picked in the first round of the draft is expected to become a significant contributor for their respective team, but when you are picking in the mid to late teens and the twenties, you are almost never going to get a superstar player.
This is what the Predators have almost always done. Yes, they traded up back into the first round last year to take Zachary L’Heureux, but is he someone who is going to turn into a top-tier difference maker? There’s almost zero chance of that happening.
A superstar forward — or lack thereof — is one thing that has held them back for years. If they want to get one, it seems that the only way they will be able to is by trading up in this year’s draft.
The New Jersey Devils have been rumored to be willing to part with the second overall pick this year, so that could be an opportunity if Poile wants to make a big gamble. It is very unlikely that this happens, but if it does, then fans might be willing to change their stance on Poile.
Be smart with the large amount of cap space
As it stands in early June, the Nashville Predators have the eighth-most projected cap space per Spotrac, and if they re-sign Forsberg and other restricted free agents, they will be left with approximately $10M.
Poile has mentioned that he wants to spend to the cap as much and as wisely as possible, and there are plenty of free agents who he could go after. Poile could also opt to add players via trade, and there are definitely pieces on the roster that could be moved.
But as has been mentioned before, the Predators must be careful and while taking a risk is not the worst idea, Poile must make sure that it is a sensible and tactical one.
Trading a second round pick for Jeremy Lauzon was a desperation move and while it could aid their future, they could have gotten him for much less.
light. Related Story. Four Burning Questions for Preds Offseason
If the Nashville Predators are to go after someone in free agency, a two to four-year deal seems appropriate based on the usual timeline of prospects’ development. Anything more than that would stunt the development of the youth and would hold back their future, which looks really bright right now.
There are some guys who could be available for trade who have three or fewer years left on their contracts, and that might be the most appropriate at the right price.
The goal with this is to give the Predators more juice in their top-six and give Ryan Johansen some help, which could ultimately boost his trade value and not sacrifice the team’s future.
Unlike other trades that have been made with the purpose of improving the top-six, Poile has to make sure that the players fit well and are actually ones that can get the team over the first round playoff hump.
Hynes must show improvement in his coaching
This is one right here is huge for Poile, and while it is something that is not entirely in his control, how Hynes performs as head coach reflects on the guy who hired him, which is Poile.
This is especially the case because Barry Trotz and others were available for hiring, and Poile passed on them, which indicates that he really believes in Hynes.
Now, giving him a two-year contract extension is not the worst thing in the world because it does show that Poile still needs to see more before he commits to him long term. But with the problems the Predators had on the ice this year, if Hynes cannot fix them, it will be yet another bad decision by Poile that alone should warrant finally getting a new general manager for this organization.
The biggest thing is the amount of penalties that the team took this year, and if the Predators cannot improve their discipline they can forget about any Stanley Cup ambitions they have.
Another glaring issue with Hynes’ coaching has been defensive structure, as Juuse Saros has bailed them out time and time again.
Hynes, while he has gotten better at this, has to make sure he can roll consistent and dependable lines throughout the season. One line, in particular that has to be kept intact is the line of Eeli Tolvanen, Cody Glass, and Philip Tomasino.
One of the biggest criticisms of Poile and Hynes is that they have not allowed the youth to develop properly, and flipping these players, especially Tolvanen and Tomasino, from line to line has been a huge reason why.
Regardless, Hynes has a lot to improve, and Poile will once again be heavily scrutinized on this extension for Hynes if things go sour early next season.
Next. How Matt Duchene Resurrected His NHL Career with Preds. dark
Final Thoughts on Poile’s Job Security
Let’s get one thing straight; many if not all things have to go right if Poile is to be trusted again by this fanbase. Beyond constant first-round exits, he is continually playing with fire season after season.
The Forsberg situation is a perfect example, especially when the team knew (or at least should have known) that this was not the year and could have gotten a haul for him at the trade deadline.
Bringing Hynes back is another example, and while it’s somewhat understandable to give him another couple of years to make improvements, him ascending to the next level is so dependent on several what-ifs.
And for all the risks Poile has taken, it seems as if he has not taken the right ones, such as trading up for a top five draft pick or superstar forward.
It seems that all the decisions Poile has made come back to one common theme — they have always led to mediocrity. With the right moves, Poile can right this ship, but is that something we can trust him to do after all this time? Especially when it comes to free agency and trades, can we trust that he is not going to overpay, overcommit, or just sign someone who does not fit the Predators’ needs?
There are more questions than answers, and everyone can agree that first round exits will just not be tolerated anymore.