Insider links two NHL alumni as potential replacements for Nashville Predators GM Trotz

Tires are spinning in the Nashville Predators General Manager search.

After Barry Trotz announced that he was retiring as the GM of the Preds back in February, the organization announced that it was going to conduct a thorough search for his successor. Besides the news on the NHLPA shutting down CAA attempts, not much else has been said about it.

Recently, insider Nick Kypreos reported on the Real Kyper & Bourne podcast that gears are turning and the team has their eyes set on former NHL players Brendan Shanahan and Chris Pronger as potential suitors.

Shanahan, former President of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Pronger, former Senior Advisor to the President of Hockey Operations of the Florida Panthers, have years of NHL experience. In terms of management, Shanahan takes the cake, but don't leave Pronger out of the mix. The aspiring GM could be an underdog in this GM search story.

Shanahan rebuilt the Maple Leafs but struggled to see playoff success

The Toronto Maple Leafs have some of the best players in the entire league. Under Shanahan's management, the Leafs drafted top-end talents like Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. Together, they pushed the team to multiple playoff appearances after almost 11 seasons of no postseason action.

Despite a playoff presence post-2016, Toronto has only made it past the first round twice where they'd lose in seven games both times. With six consecutive and seven total years of first-round exits, the "Shanaplan" just didn't work out.

The real weakness of his tenure was arguably his loyalty to the core four pieces, consisting of Matthews, Marner, William Nylander, and Morgan Rielly. Despite little playoff results, he kept them together and insisted it was the core and coaching around them. This sense of clinginess was a leading factor into the downfall of the Maple Leafs. He ultimately decided enough was enough and made one last move, sending Marner to Vegas, at the end of his more than a decade old tenure with the team.

Nestor Quixtan wrote for the Editor in Leaf that the Predators could end up seeing a similar result if Shanahan does take a gig with them. Nashville themselves is already undergoing the same fate as they cling onto Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, and Juuse Saros as the core three. Whether or not he'd approve of it is unclear, but the organization is practically built on loyalty, as seen with the long-term tenure of David Poile and the inside hiring of Trotz as GM.

With the progress Nashville has on the prospect growth, Shanahan will need to find a way to draft a couple franchise pieces to improve it. Obviously, the team needs a true number one centerman and defenseman for the future. Brady Martin isn't the clear pick, and neither is Tanner Molendyk or Ryan Ufko. They're nowhere in comparison to Matthews or Rielly.

Secondly, we could expect him to give money to familiar faces like Luke Evangelista, Matthew Wood, and Fedor Svechkov. There's also the potential move on finding a new Head Coach in replacement for Andrew Brunette. Shanahan has had a fair share of HC changes in his career so it's in the cards.

Even with some of the cons, I believe that Shanahan is a great pick for Preds GM. He knew when to tear it down for Toronto so it's obvious he knows what a rebuild looks like. He's got good skills in scouting development and his tenure as the GM in arguably the biggest market in the NHL sure lands him a ton of connections for trades and signings. The Preds roster future could look very bright under his control in the near future.

Pronger is an interesting pick but potentially a smart move

Pronger doesn't have nearly as much experience as Shanahan does at the management level. He was the Senior Advisor for Florida to the role Shanahan played with Toronto. However, that doesn't mean he won't bring just as enough promise and experience as he.

The Florida Panthers were at one point one of the scariest teams to play against. With top lines consisting of Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Aleksander Barkov, and Aaron Ekblad, the Panthers had offense up and down the lineup. While Pronger never got to witness the dynasty, he was there when the pieces were put together, such as goalie Sergei Bobrovsky.

Pronger took note and assisted in the creation of a future superteam. After he left, the team went all in and acquired more valuable pieces, eventually leading them to three straight finals appearances and two Stanley Cup victories.

It isn't all about high-level titles, for Pronger, it's about experience. The difference between Shanahan and Pronger is on the cup. Sure, Pronger wasn't around when the Panthers dominated, but he was there to witness its creation. Shanahan created a superteam, but when the lights were the brightest, they were blinded.

The only noticable negative about bringing in Pronger to handle Nashville's future is that lack of GM experience. When Trotz came in, he was a rookie GM and made some pretty questionable all in moves, signing Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brady Skjei to pretty expensive long deals. That clearly didn't work out.

With Pronger, he helped establish a young squad who eventually won cups. He went through the lows, so he knows what it's like to be there. The thing I'm scared about is the moves he'll make to kick off his career. As a rookie GM, will he instantly admit to a rebuild or will he commit to winning a cup? The uncertainty might be a big factor in the hiring.

With Pronger being one of the greatest defensemen of all time, maybe he'll steer towards a more defensive team. Selecting valuable defenseman and acquiring two-way forward talent. That's one thing to look out for.

Predators fans should stay mindful of the management change

Whether its Shanahan, Pronger, or somebody else, Predators fans need to prepare for change. Poile and Trotz cared a lot about competing; other GMs might not so much early on. Players could and will get traded eventually so don't think that there's untouchables on the roster.

If I had to pick a GM to guide our team's future, I'd have to select Shanahan. Even though his winningness isn't the best, he's a proven talent builder and has drafted some of the best players in the league. Pronger is a solid choice as well, but that rookie GM factor is going me deja vu with the Trotz experiment.