Is It Time?
This is a question I have been struggling with as far back as the first-round exit against Dallas in 2019 and even more so after the abrupt, one-sided exit against the Avs last season.
Sometimes it’s best to think of the right words to say instead of rushing to brash conclusions and off the cuff responses. But it’s time.
I’ve tried to remain cautiously optimistic for the future of this franchise, but I am now coming to the realization that my fandom has done nothing but provide me with gold-tinted glasses. I believe I have been critical at times, but now it’s time for complete honesty. I could use this article to detail what we all have witnessed over the last six games, but that would not do the readers justice. We are all thinking the same thing. I’m not going to even waste time discussing tactics or whatever other excuse the coaching staff or talking heads for the team are discussing. We’re just not built to win. We’ve half-mortgaged our future to keep a core together that wasn’t quite good enough. We rewarded certain players for what they did for us in the past, but the present is all the matters now. The pipeline of prospects is decent but nothing transcendent on paper. Players have the potential to arise and be stars, I have no doubt about it, but the statistical odds do not support such a result. I recognize that it's not easy to simply tank, get a good draft pick and win. The Oilers and Devils were exhibits of this fact for years. But moving forward without a defined plan (sure there may be one internally but I can't find it from the outside) is nothing more than clinging to what used to be.
This article is for the true fan from a true fan. IT IS TIME FOR CHANGE. The world of sports is a meritocracy and not a kindness business. When it comes to the world of sports and the entertainment industry, how good a person you are is absolutely relevant but should never be determinative. Deserving something is established through earning it, nothing else. There are certain players that simply shouldn't be on an NHL roster if winning is a serious consideration. I'm not going to mention names because to be in this league you are a special kind of athlete. You can even be an incredible person. But those two alone do not result in banners or rings.
Six losses in a row–in quite embarrassing fashion to be frank– sums it up and should bring all fans and management to the very evident reality. The team isn’t built for success now or in the near future. Consistently average whether sliding into the playoffs or picking middle to the end of the draft will never create a perennial contender. You have to commit to something or be doomed to mediocrity. Smashville has become mediocre.
Unfortunately, the fans and management are on a different page entirely it seems. But at least fans and management are on different pages because ownership isn’t even on a page. They’re nonexistent. It must be nice to sit in your box or act as a minority owner not even attending games, while prices continue to rise, and the true fan is either priced out or ignored. I don’t know the ownership group personally and have only met a few of them a hand full of times, but this is my view as a fan. Rightly or wrongly, feel free to correct me (with facts I might add). If they ever wanted to actually talk openly to the fanbase, maybe a different perspective could be offered. I bet if you polled random fans in the arena tonight, maybe 5% could name an owner, let alone all of them. Not that that matters, it’s just a point. Again, zero doubts on them as good humans but that won’t bring a Cup to Nashville any more than the next guy. The hard truth is that hockey will always come second in Nashville. The team has grown tremendously, but football is king. Isolating the true hockey fans may pay dividends in the short term when the team is successful, but when the hype of 2017 wears off (as it now has) the excitement for hockey in the city does wane. So for that reason alone, change is needed to manifest excitement for the future. Or at least to present some glimmering of hope.
Former Governor of TN Bill Haslam is slowly taking control, so cheers to him for seeking to become the majority owner down the line. Hopefully he has more success than his brother up north, but I digress.
This is no longer the franchise I grew up loving and watching. It has turned into a franchise that is stuck in the miracle run of 2017. Instead of seeking to create future possibilities, it has become an organization seeking to maintain the reigns on the magic that was. How do they do this? At all costs keep the team relevant but not great, keep prices high and pushing out the die-hard fan who will come to an 8pm start from Kentucky. It’s better to reward the white collars who will pay top dollar for a box or lounge and not be able to name two players than the fan who has had the same seat since ’98. Need I continue? As many games as I have been to, I could write exactly what is going to happen at each minute of the game when it comes to a fan experience. Military salute in the second? (love it but maybe change it a bit to make it as important as it should be instead of just another check mark). The Truly search, the higher, lower game (for an item that is already priced 10x more than it should be, a toque for $50? Seriously?) I understand a lot of these things are due to contractual agreements with sponsors and must be done, but at least make the presentation more fun as opposed to a brief yadda yadda to fill time. I even catch myself standing up for certain things before they're even announced. I know it's coming. It may be a fun initial experience for the casual tourist, but it’s not something that will keep someone coming back for more. I love hockey and find myself getting bored at times, what does that do for someone who doesn't necessarily care for the game?
Whenever something goes wrong on the ice, there’s always the direct few that take the hit. First it may be the players, second the coaching staff, third the front office. But maybe we have been looking at this all wrong. Sure, change is needed. I think we’ve reached the point of no return on that front. But I more so think that the organizational mindset is the underlying issue.
Take the Titans organization for a local market example. They’ve had consecutive winning seasons and have been competing at a “high” level for years under the management of GM Jon Robinson and coaching of Mike Vrabel. But owner Amy Adams Strunk read the fanbase and knows that this is both a business but an entertainment business as well. Mediocrity and simply reaching the playoffs is currently not and will never be enough. Anything less than a championship is a bust for this team. Sure, let all the radio hosts and “experts” state that the decision to fire a GM midseason to be a radical, stupid decision. It may well be that. But at least changes are being made that represent that just being average is not enough.
This is the action that the Preds need. I’m tired of the excuses. Yes, I fully buy into the fact that the current six-game losing streak has some correlation with the injury situation, particularly on the defensive side. But as everyone always states, correlation is not causation. Instead of searching for tangential explanations, let’s stop the bleeding while we can.
So where do we go from here?
Well, as hockey has tighter contractual obligations for players over other sports (meaning no mid-contract restructuring, etc.) tough decisions are always presented. You can't simply fire a player without significant repercussions. This has enraged the Nashville fanbase most recently with the waiving of Eeli Tolvanen in the need to free salary space and fill gaps presented from injuries. But this scenario is simply a symptom of an overwhelming organization issue that has continued to bear its ugly face since the Cup run. Place the blame on the players to some degree, of course. But the buck stops with the higher ups. Sweeping change is needed to, if anything else, provide a new, rejuvenated perspective on the entire franchise from the top down. Complete change doesn’t mean that the individuals being replaced are bad people or bad at their job. It just means that the current trends cannot continue if a franchise truly wants to be successful. It’s no coincidence that during the Preds lifespan in the NHL, teams like the Colorado Avalanche, Detroit Red Wings, LA Kings, Tampa Bay Lightning, etc.. have won Cups and rebuilt to win more Cups or are currently in the process of rebuilding. I’d put my money on a team like Chicago to win another Cup before the Preds. And the Hawks are downright awful right now. But successful teams are not ok with just average, making a few bucks off playoff tickets and then doing the same thing the next year. Again, no one is saying that management doesn’t want to win. I know for a fact David Poile wants a Cup more than anyone on this planet right now. As much as it pains me to say, maybe a Cup just isn’t a tarot card in his hand.
For years I fell for the same conclusions as management and others, so I am not casting blame or admonition. It’s simply a fact that I have come to, and the organization needs to openly accept. The 2017 run and team was a magical experience, but it was driven through luck, destiny and a bit of grit as opposed to via a team that can truly compete at the highest level. When the players on this team are clicking on all cylinders, then magic can, and has been, experienced. But when reversion to the mean occurs, as it always does, reality slowly creeps in. And it's not pretty.
It's not worth analyzing individual games at this point. It’s game day again tonight in Nashville, and sadly the result against the Oilers over the last few years has been quite predictable. From a betting perspective, take the over and Oilers in a parlay. I’ll be rooting for the opposite, but money talks as well. Come tomorrow and this result does not occur, then I’ll gladly accept the fact that I was wrong.
What’s To Be Done?
This is a loaded question to which I will continue to ponder upon and publish another article when the thoughts are fully articulated on paper. One is in the works, but I thought best to set forth the frustration and then later bring forth solutions from the perspective as if I were ownership. As some may say, those in charge have forgotten more hockey than us “fans” will ever know. I won’t challenge that, whatever it even meant, jest or not. The fact of the matter is that a broken clock is right twice a day, and this is one of those times. So stop carrying the water and accept the reality. The Emperor has no clothes in Nashville and the masses, instead of accepting the narrative, see the nakedness quite clearly.
Nothing said here is personal, but merely my perspective as a lifelong fan of this team that has brought me to tears, both happy and sad. I’m curious in how others within the fanbase view the current situation, as an organization and not simply an on-ice analysis. I'm tired of reading the sugar-coated excuses.
My frustration has been building and it is reaching an apex. I’ve heard from many who will not be renewing their season tickets as they do not feel valued as season-ticket holders. Individuals state that it is easier to purchase one-off games as you wish instead of signing up for 41+. Kudos to the NHL for thinking about adding an extra 2 games to the regular season. Chase the money without telling us you’re chasing the money. 82 is already way too many, but that’s a topic for another day. Other than sitting in the same seat and receiving a nominal discount on already overpriced concessions, it's better to pick and choose your games than purchase in bulk. And trust me, writing this has pained me more than I can express. I love this team, but we all know what happens when you follow something blindly into the dark. The hard truths are hard because they hurt. And this is where I'm at. Just one man's perspective.
P.S.
I wish Michael McCarron and his family all the best as he has entered the Player’s Assistance Program. His personal life and privacy are his own and I hope he comes out of this healthier and stronger. Hockey comes second when it comes to one’s personal health. I commend him on taking this action. This is something that the Preds do extremely well in supporting their players off the ice.
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