The sting of yet another first round playoff exit is still being felt by many NHL Nashville Predator fans and players. A season that had so much promise, a team with superstar and youthful talent, with the third best regular season record in the league, ended in disaster with a five game elimination at the hand the San Jose Sharks. Now with Forsberg possibly retiring from the NHL for good, many high profile players becoming free agents, and the coaching staff with expiring contracts, everyone is wondering what to do next.
Rumors of the team re-locating to another city have been consistently squelched by the front office and team owner Craig Leipold. Yet, we all know that it is hard to sell-out a game in the Music City due to the lack of support from the business sector. The arena no longer has a name since Gaylord Entertainment failed to live up to its contract. Leipold has been looking for someone to take a minority ownership in the club. A strong playoff run would have been a huge boost in support as has been demonstrated in other Southern cities like Carolina and Tampa Bay. Unfortunately, that didn't happen.
Another question is who is to blame for this third lousy outing into the post-season. Can Trotz and his staff coach an NHL-playoff contending team? Or is it general manager David Poile's player choices for small and fast players ill-suited for the post-season. Clearly there is plenty of blame to go around.
The summer of 2007 will be a season of soul-searching as the team tries to find an identity that can compete in the post-season, fill seats in the Nashville Arena, and contend for Lord Stanley's cup.
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