Now that the Cup has been awarded and the party in LA is winding down, the real off season work begins as all 30 teams begin the run up to the draft and UFA day in earnest. A few teams still have coaching vacancies to fill, compliance buyouts are being considered and locally, the Nashville Predators are headed into uncharted territory with a new coaching staff and determination to get back into the playoffs and that right quick.
The common refrain is that the Nashville Predators need offense, for a team that only scored 214 goals (tied for 18th in the NHL,) that one is a given… but it may not be the primary need for this team.
Wait… what?
I see you there, slack-jawed, calling me an idiot… but stay with me here. Defensive improvement may be more important for this Nashville Predators team. Over the past four seasons, the Predators GAA as a team has gone up over half a goal a game, from 2.32 in ’09-’10 to 2.84 last season. Let’s face it, a big piece of that degradation was injuries to Pekka Rinne, he clearly was not himself in the lockout shortened season and the November surgery kept him out of the lineup for 51 games last season. This team performed significantly better in the games where Rinne was on the roster vs. the one’s he wasn’t. I break this down in detail in a previous blog.
Another defensive stat to look at has to do with the penalty kill, which struggled mightily this past season and has also degraded over the past four seasons, slipping for top five performance to last season’s 77.1% kill rate that was 25th in the league. That did represent a bit of a rebound from the previous seasons bottoming out at a 75% kill rate. This is a problem across the lineup and has to be addressed.
Those two things alone point at improvement needed on BOTH sides of the puck, and only a piece of it will be improved with a full season of Rinne between the pipes, perhaps an add of a solid veteran defensemen to help out a little?
More offense would absolutely be a great thing, there is definitely some young talent that need to grow into scoring roles and some roster players that need step up their production. Craig Smith’s breakout season portends well for the future, however players like Colin Wilson and Gabriel Bourque need to deliver up to their potential. Viktor Stalberg gets a chance to re-launch his Nashville career after last year’s disappointment, and young guns Filip Forsberg and Calle Jarnkrok will have every opportunity to be contributors at the NHL level. With some real options available in free agency, the right add could fill in a key missing puzzle piece.
A focus on continuing the rebuild of the pipeline will be a focus of this year’s draft, unless the opportunity presents itself for a trade that would bring a needed piece of the puzzle. David Poile has been quoted as looking at three different forwards in the upcoming draft, where the Predators pick 11th right now. They also have two 2nd round picks which could be trade bait.
If you want a little hope Pred Nation… the team the Predators tied with for goals scored this just concluded season? The New York Rangers…
Want a little more hope? The eventual Cup winners only scored 198 goals… good for 26th in the league.
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I began my column yesterday with the phrase “silly season is upon us.… You know how you can tell? One big sign is David Shoalts writing yet another column bashing the NHL, Gary Bettman and any team outside of where he believes hockey should be. His obsession with the Phoenix Coyotes continues unabated, apparently the team was supposed to turn things around in only a few months. I wonder why he doesn’t have the same expectation for the on-ice product in Toronto? It certainly seems to fly all over the columnist that all of his dire predictions about the destruction of the NHL haven’t come to fruition, but bless his heart, he keeps on plugging.
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SlapShot Radio is back, tomorrow night, live from Tavern ’96. The weather looks to be great, so come on out and join us for our annual Season Review. Stu Grimson will be filling in for Pete this week… we’ll be chatting with President/Chief Operating Officer & Alternate Governor for the Preds, Sean Henry, St. Louis Blues color analyst, former NHL goaltender Darren Pang and the Voice of the Stanley Cup Champion LA Kings, Bob Miller!!
There’s free parking after 5pm in the Demonbreun Street parking garage, drink specials and food specials… so come on out an enjoy an evening with your hockey family, before the long hot summer takes over! See you there!
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Buyout Watch
- The Dallas Stars have placed Aaron Rome on waivers with the intention of buying out the last year of his contract.
- The Buffalo Sabres have placed Ville Leino on waivers with the intention of using a compliance buyout on him.
- The Vancouver Canucks have placed David Booth on unconditional waivers for purpose of buyout.
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Random Notes
- Congratulations to the US Men’s soccer team on their stunning victory over Ghana.
- The Predators announced an extension of their agreement with the ECHL’s Cincinnati Cyclones as their secondary development affiliate. The Cylones have appeared in three Kelly Cup finals, winning the trophy twice since beginning their affiliation.
- The oddsmaking company Bovada has the Predators with a 66:1 chance at winning the Stanley Cup next season, tied with four other teams. The only teams listed with worse odds are the Florida Panthers (75:1) and the Buffalo Sabres (100:1)… the favorites are Chicago (7:1) Boston (8:1) and LA (10:1)
- You have to love a mayor unafraid to drop an F-bomber in a celebration of a championship. Now THAT’S a hockey fan!
- Mike Heika is reporting that former Predator and lucky hat recipient Vern Fiddler has rejected a contract extension from the Dallas Stars and will test free agency.
- A lot of eyes on San Jose GM Doug Wilson, whose Sharks had the Cup champs down 0-3 before spitting the bit and allowing the Kings to reel off four straight to move on. It has seemed that the further the Kings went in the playoffs, the more pressure has been building.
- Some of the same old same old names surrounding the open Florida Panthers head coaching job, favorites are Marc Crawford, Dan Bylsma and Gerald Gallant.
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SlapShot Radio, Join Pete Weber and I as we chat with hockey’s best, every Wednesday night at 7pm on 102.5 the Game and the SlapShot Radio Network. Our next show will be back at Tavern ’96 on Wednesday! We will have a special guest co-host… Stu Grimson.
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