We’re back for Part Two of the Nashville Predators season preview. You can check out Part One here for a look at the Predators forwards. Today, we’re going to focus on the backbone of the Predators, the defense and the goalies.
The Predators have been built on goaltending and defense from Day 1. While the offense has added several playmakers over the past few seasons, there’s no denying that the defense and Pekka Rinne is what carried them through the playoffs last season. So let’s go ahead, get started, and see why the Predators boast arguably the best defensive corps in the league and have one of the top goalies in the world minding the net.
THE DEFENSE
As I said, the Predators are one of the best defensive units in the league. Almost every team in the NHL would love to have a top pairing with the talent level the Predators have. Fortunately for Preds, they have two defensive pairings that could be the top defensive unit on just about any other team in the league. David Poile has done such a masterful job building this defense, that it’s a no-brainer he took home GM of the Year at the NHL Awards this summer.
The pairings that worked so well for the Preds during their playoff run last year were Roman Josi and Ryan Ellis, P.K. Subban and Mattias Ekholm, and Yannick Weber and Matt Irwin. The play of these six players was unbelievable last season. It took a while for Laviolette to find the right matchups, but once he found that right mixture, everything else just took off.
In a perfect world, the Preds would just roll those pairings out there again this season and call it a day. Unfortunately, the Preds will be without Ryan Ellis for quite some time. Poile broke the news recently that Ellis is still recovering knee surgery and will be back around January 1st. That really hurts since Ellis was really starting to take off, but that’s what happens sometimes in life. In the infamous words of Jon Taffer “I don’t embrace excuses, I embrace solutions,” so let’s see what options the Preds have to fill the Ryan Ellis size hole they have now.
There’s no doubt that Laviolette will have to do some shuffling in order to figure out the defense until Ellis is ready to return. You have to think that the balance he found last year in the playoffs is what helped propel the Preds further than they have ever gone before. What seemed to work best was having one “stay at home” D-man and one that could push the play. Working off that theory, I could see a few options.
Josi is obviously a player than can push the play. His speed and vision help the Preds break out of their own zone and create offensive chances. I think the two candidates to start the season working with Josi are Irwin and Ekholm. Irwin had a little bit of a breakout season a year ago, and actually played some with Josi when they were still figuring out the defense, so they have some experience together. The other option would be Ekholm. It’d be tough to break up Ekholm and Subban since they played so well together last season, but it may have to be done for the first half of the season.
Speaking of who will play with Subban, it’s pretty obvious why Poile picked up Alexei Emelin in a trade with the Vegas Golden Knights now. While most of us thought the trade for Emelin meant a trade for a certain center from Colorado was in the works, Poile was actually picking up a fill-in for Ellis (but seriously Sakic, quit messing around and just go ahead and make the trade. We all know you don’t want Duchene, so do yourself a favor and let him go. David Poile is awaiting your call). Anyways, back to Subban and Emelin. They were actually teammates in Montreal before P.K. made his way down south. I’m not sure how much they played with each other. But, they are at least familiar with one another. That could play a factor in who Lavy decides to go with.
The third defensive pair will come down to a combination of Yannick Weber, Matt Irwin, and Anthony Bitetto, depending on who fits in where. There’s also the possibility of prospect Alexandre Carrier making the team. He actually played a few games on a call-up last season. By all accounts, he has been having an excellent start to rookie camp. Even if he doesn’t make the team out of camp, expect to see him at some point this season in Nashville.
Obviously, there’s a lot that Laviolette will have to look at during training camp and preseason games. Coming up with a plan on how to deploy the defense will help set the tone for the Preds early on. Expect to see many different matchups during camp as Lavy tinkers with his lineup. It should be one of the more interesting aspects of the preseason this year.
THE GOALIES
Pekka Rinne will go down as one of the greatest both on and off the ice to ever lace them up for the Predators. I fully believe that he will be the first player to have his number retired by the Preds. He has been the constant on this team for close to a decade now. Last season, he proved that he is still capable of putting the team on his back and carrying them for games at a time. This season should be no different. There was never any question that Pekka will head into the season as the number one goalie.
Rinne isn’t exactly a youngster anymore, though. He’s had a few injuries over his career that have cost him a step from time to time. He seems to always return to form. But, I think the Preds would be wise to lighten his load at least early in the season. For the first time in a long time, there seems to be the heir apparent ready to take over. Juuse Saros burst onto the scene last year and instantly became a fan favorite. His play last season showed why they call him “Future” in Milwaukee. He’ll be the goalie for the Preds one day, but for now this is still Pekka’s team.
With the deep playoff run, Rinne played in more games than he ever has before in his career. Goaltender is such a physically demanding position. I’m sure it took a toll on Rinne’s body, though he’ll never admit to it. I think it would be wise for the Preds to give Saros a couple extra starts throughout the season, especially early on. This will help to keep Rinne fresh as the season wears on, and will help Saros continue his development. It’s one of those moves that is both beneficial in the short and long term. If Pekka can play like he did in the playoffs last year and Saros can step in when called upon without a drop off, look for another deep run for Nashville.
So there you have it. I’m fired up about this season. Last year’s run to the Finals has this city crazy about hockey, and I’m loving every minute of it. The window for the Predators is wide open to win a championship. They have their core locked up for the next several seasons, and have a ton of young talent ready to contribute. The journey starts on September 19th with the first preseason game. Then, shit gets real with the home opener on October 10th. Yep. It’s banner night. Should be one helluva atmosphere in Smashville all season. Buckle up. I’ll see you at Bridgestone.
Herbie Brooks is the Lead Hockey Analyst for SoBros Network. He knows three things: beating Commies, winning Gold Medals, and having great hair. Follow him on Twitter: @SoBroHerbie_B
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