While Nashville GM David Poile ponders whether or not to match the 14-year offer sheet put forth by Philly to captain Shea Weber, he’s got his hands full fixing the team one way or another no matter what.
Nashville’s troubles abound at every position other than in goal, but on defense life could be miserable.
Losing Ryan Suter is hard enough to manage but losing Weber would make the job for veterans like Hal Gill and Kevin Klein as well as youngsters like Roman Josi, Jonathon Blum, and Ryan Ellis that much more difficult. Production from guys like Suter and Weber is nearly impossible to replicate and asking the guys left behind to make up for that is asking perhaps too much. At least Barry Trotz’s system is still in place to help them out.
If Weber stays that’s a huge relief to this entire group, but the issues surrounding the rest of the team are immense and for Weber, it’ll make him feel like he’s taken a trip back in time.
Offensively, the Preds are still hurting. They’ve parted ways with playoff distractions Alexander Radulov and Andrei Kostitsyn as Radulov headed back to the KHL and Kostitsyn is a free agent. Both of them were late season additions, but on a team that was already offensively lacking, losing guys that can fill the net is no good.
The pressure once again falls on the shoulders of Mike Fisher, Sergei Kostitsyn, Patric Hornqvist, and Martin Erat to score goals. They’re solid but not game-breakers. Youngsters like Craig Smith and potentially 2010 draft pick Austin Watson may get long looks to see if they can spark the team.
Progress has been Nashville’s thing for many seasons, but it’s hard to look forward when things may just be taking a huge step backwards.
