A Predators Rebuild Seems Unlikely: "Safe to Say That's Not the Case"
Steven Stamkos and the Predators veterans say the message they're hearing is that Nashville will push to contend next season as the new General Manager search continues.
Steven Stamkos called the Nashville Predators falling short of the postseason very disappointing.
“It still stings a little bit I think. We all play the game to be playing it at this time of year,” the Stanley Cup winning veteran said during the season’s final media availability on Monday.
“That’s the expectation here…which still is the expectation here, so it stings a little bit,” Stamkos said.
“You saw the potential of what can be…it was there.”
While what happens next for the Predators franchise may be hotly debated among the fan base and ultimately decided by a-yet-to-be-named new General Manager, the message to and from the veterans is that the immediate future does not include a rebuild.
When Stamkos was asked how things stand, he shared his takeaway after meetings earlier in the day.
“We had some meetings today and I think the message was the expectation is still to be a competitive team and to push for the playoffs.”
“I don’t anticipate any huge chances, right? We’ve kind of talked about ‘Is there gonna be a rebuild’ this, that. I think that’s safe to say that’s probably not going to be the case.”
Ryan O’Reilly had a similar takeaway.
“From what we’re hearing, it’s plans to get back into the playoffs next year,” O’Reilly said.
“There’s a lot of good character here, and hopefully we can add to it and get back and be successful,” O’Reilly said. “The character’s just too good to waste.”
Outgoing General Manager Barry Trotz outlined the reasons he sees the franchise being a potential contender in the near future.
“The building blocks are starting to fall into place,” Trotz said.
“There’s a lot of different outlets have us as having the fifth best prospect pool in the National Hockey League, a number of young players developing in the National Hockey League. Lots of draft capital. We got 33 picks in the next three years. We got lots of cap space to work with.”
With the Predators roster going from the third oldest team at the start of the season to the tenth youngest team at the end of the season, Trotz still sees a way this organization can “thread the needle” and use both veterans and young players to become a legitimate contender.
Those statements are interesting in context. Nashville is currently in the thick of searching for a new General Manager. On February 2, Trotz announced his plans to retire and a search began for the next GM of the Predators.
The decision to try and thread the needle, which veteran pieces should stay and which provide more benefit on the trade market, and a timeline for Nashville to become a serious postseason threat rest with a yet unnamed GM. The message to the players sounded clear Monday, but who will have the final word remains unknown.
Sticking to a particular course is not a prerequisite for the hiring committee.
Trotz was asked directly Monday if there were any scenarios in which potential GM candidates were told that they can do “X, but you can’t do Y” or that there are “untouchables”.
“No,” Trotz replied. “Not to my knowledge. I don’t think that’s how we operate.”
The players are clearly disappointed in the season outcome, but they also say there is a lot here for a new General Manager to build on.
Filip Forsberg believes the team’s performances after a slow start to the season show prospective candidates that there is a lot to work with in Nashville.
“I think it’s pretty clear that we have something exciting coming, especially down the stretch here, the last few games,” Forsberg said.
“We showed progress especially down the stretch, showed there’s a lot of youth, got a lot of excitement on that. We showed that some of us old farts still got some good hockey in us and obviously not slowing down anytime soon.”
“I think that’s a great opportunity for anyone really to come in and take advantage of,” Forsberg said. “It’s not like you’re coming in on a team that’s at the bottom and needs to be blown up, in my opinion.”
“I think whoever we hire I’m sure is going to share that view and at the same time, you know, we need to adapt. We need to evolve. We need to be better next year and make the playoffs.”
For now all the Predators players can do is watch playoff hockey and wait. They believe the franchise has potential to become a contender and the plan is to build on what is here. When a new GM is named, they will know for sure.
