Nashville Predators general manager Barry Trotz has sounded off after he saw his team begin the season 4-7-1 while going 3-6-0 at home.
He joined Jared Stillman for his weekly visit right over these airwaves on Tuesday night as the Predators got settled for their next game against the Washington Capitals.
He made it clear on Stillman & Co. that if his current plan doesn’t work out change is imminent.
“I’m trying to do some things right now. We will be limited a little bit because of some of the contract stuff we do have. If we don’t get it going then I’m going to start our rebuild plan a little bit,” Trotz said.
“What we did in the summer was as I said fantasy hockey until we become a good team. If we do not become a good team then we’re going to see a lot more of our kids starting their process. We brought in the veteran players to extend this year & be a threat. Hopefully, in the next couple of years, our young guys come in & they take a bigger role.
“If we get into a position where we fall out & it doesn’t come together then I’m going to start that process & you’re going to see some of the kids & we’ll start our process on getting them the games needed to start developing them & still try to win because we have some good players. We’re going to shake it up if we don’t get going here soon for sure.”
Nashville has three first-round draft picks this coming offseason along with two second-rounders. Trotz could certainly dangle the assets he has in front of other organizations to shake things up or start moving pillars in the lineup. Everything he has seems to be on the table if his initial plan this summer goes south in his mind.
However, there’s still time for Trotz & head coach Andrew Brunette to feel out this next stretch of 10 games to establish what the plan is for the rest of the 2024-25 season.
“If we get all of those pieces rolling I think we’ll be fine,” Trotz said. “I will still tweak the roster but if it’s just not happening for us then we have to be realistic & start getting some of your kids in & start building. If it’s not this year then it’s going to be next year.
“We’re not giving up on the season yet, don’t misread what I’m trying to say. I think we have to give these guys a chance to do something on the road here a little bit here in the next few weeks… We talked in our last meeting on the air that we became a little stale at home. Our home games should be something you relish in, but when you’re at home as long as we were you get into that rut, Groundhog Day if you will.”
Trotz is optimistic his team will take advantage of the one-on-one time his players will have away from Nashville. Whether it’s over dinner or spending quality time together. They’ll have plenty of time over the next 20 days.
Moving forward the Predators will have a reality check & a chance to do what they did back in February, respond with their actions out on the ice.
Trotz will be keen on a few things when he’s taking in games from the press box moving forward, one focus being how veterans behave during the current dry spell.
“It angers me when I see veterans dealing with frustration poorly,” Trotz said. “Busting their sticks, slapping the puck against the boards, things like that bother me because if it’s okay for them to do it then it’s okay for a young guy like Evangelista, Tomasino, or Pärssinen to do it.
“If a leader isn’t working hard in practice then the young guy thinks it’s okay, no that’s not how it’s supposed to be. During the season you go through a dry spell, you just can’t outwardly continuously scream at the world. There’s a difference between frustration & determination. When you get frustrated you should gain determination & that’s the difference between the two for me.”
The Predators currently have Gustav Nyquist & Dante Fabbro as pending free agents going into next offseason. Tomasino, Evangelista, Pärssinen & Marc Del Gaizo are all set to be restricted free agents this summer.
Trotz has pieces he could shuffle around, however, who could be out if he opts for a shakeup?
Nashville has to juggle the two retained salaries of Ryan Johansen ($4 million) & Mattias Ekholm ($250,000) for the remainder of this season, Ekholm’s for at least an additional year. Should Johansen’s contract be terminated Trotz has an extra $4 million to utilize as he approaches making moves.
Listen to Barry Trotz’s full interview here ⬇️
Follow Nick Kieser on Twitter/X: @KieserNick
Photos courtesy of the Nashville Predators
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