I'm not sure how he can look at the shareholders with a straight face and say he lost 2/3 of the best players on the team. (assuming weber doesn't stay, and also not mentioning others that have left for nothing in the past; Hamuis etc.)
Poile could give away the whole team for free and he wouldn't be fired. The owners have stated in the past that they know nothing about hockey and have full faith in Poile.
Poile could give away the whole team for free and he wouldn't be fired. The owners have stated in the past that they know nothing about hockey and have full faith in Poile.
Poile also said as early as last summer he knew what Suter and Weber wanted and was prepared to sign them both.
Poile's passive attitude and style pisses me off but I tend to be more aggressive with most things. He's been decent at drafting and finding bargain players but nothing more than decent, Poile is lukewarm.
Poile's passive attitude and style pisses me off but I tend to be more aggressive with most things. He's been decent at drafting and finding bargain players but nothing more than decent, Poile is lukewarm.
That's what's annoying. Always playing it safe, never taking chances. Last year was the first time in a while I've seen him taking risks going "all in" for a playoff push. I feel like this organization is a business first, hockey team second. So playing it safe and making profits is the game plan.
Poile also said as early as last summer he knew what Suter and Weber wanted and was prepared to sign them both.
Poile's passive attitude and style pisses me off but I tend to be more aggressive with most things. He's been decent at drafting and finding bargain players but nothing more than decent, Poile is lukewarm.
I agree, but I don't see our ownership group firing him.
I don't see him getting fired, but if it were up to me (depending on how this Weber situation pans out), he would be out the door either by early retirement or being fired.
That's what's annoying. Always playing it safe, never taking chances. Last year was the first time in a while I've seen him taking risks going "all in" for a playoff push. I feel like this organization is a business first, hockey team second. So playing it safe and making profits is the game plan.
I think it's play it safe and don't lose a bunch of money, there's not much profit in the NHL in smaller markets
Poile also said as early as last summer he knew what Suter and Weber wanted and was prepared to sign them both.
Poile's passive attitude and style pisses me off but I tend to be more aggressive with most things. He's been decent at drafting and finding bargain players but nothing more than decent, Poile is lukewarm.
I agree with this. You can make all the excuses you want but this is a business. You can give a million reasons why Radulov didn't work out, AK didn't work out, Suter didn't work out, Weber didn't work out. If they all leave in the same offseason you should lose your job I don't care if you are Scotty Bowman. This franchise was very close to being on the cusp of elite and is now in danger of going back to square 1. Our worst fears we saw coming years ago are now being realized. When you are the GM the buck stops with you period. If Poile loses Suter, Weber, Rads all in the same offseason he should lose his job.
That being said no matter what happens he will be the GM at the start of the season. If we lose Weber and have a ****** season I think he will be gone.
Also if it is true Poile refused to give Weber a 3 year deal at 7m a year last year then Poile is not the man we need going forward.
I don't know. That deal would have taken all of 1 year of his UFA years. I think he did the right thing there. Poile probably would have waited too long and lost Weber for nothing after this season had we signed Weber to that deal.
Poile could give away the whole team for free and he wouldn't be fired. The owners have stated in the past that they know nothing about hockey and have full faith in Poile.
They've said they have faith in him, not that they know nothing about hockey. The latter is popular conjecture among many fans disgruntled with their GMs.
(Seriously, especially up here. If I have to see someone lean on "Detroit Blue Devils" as an argument one more damned time...)
__________________
Remember - when you're a hockey fan, it's not "reckless driving", it's "good forechecking".
"Viqsi, you are our sweet humanist..." --mt-svk on the CBJ boards
Thanks, Howson, for cleaning up MacLean's toxic waste. Welcome, Kekalainen; let's get good things built!
Poile also said as early as last summer he knew what Suter and Weber wanted and was prepared to sign them both.
.
By that comment, I'm assuming you're implying that he either 1) didn't know what they wanted or 2) wasn't prepared to sign them both. I'm not sure you can say #2 - it would appear he made competitive offer to Sutes and was prepared to sign him. As for #1 - could that have changed? Maybe they wanted to play together, Sutes changed his mind as to priorities, and therefore Webs changed his mind?
I'm not saying Poile shouldn't be accountable, but these guys have contractual rights to sign where they want. We all love Nashville, love the Preds - that doesn't mean these guys do/have to. What if it's not Poile, or Trotz - but players around the league just look at this and figure we'll never have the resources to fund a deep run? Does Poile have to change that perception - absolutely. Ultimately, that might be what he's got to be held accountable for - his inability to change league-wide perception that Nashville is a hockey backwater.
We b!tch about the Canadian media treating us that way, but maybe it's true. Not that we are, but that that's the player's perception. Yes, Poile has to change that, but if your leadership group - drafted together, playing together from day 1, with the potential to be a HofF pairing and play together an entire career - won't sign on the dotted line because it's Nashville - I don't know what Poile retiring early is gonna' get us.
So Poile is free of all blame for anything. Gotcha.
Exactly.
If we don't sign our guy -- We cannot make him sign. He changed his mind.
If we cannot land a FA -- He was overpriced. Better players out there. He wasn't going to come here anyway.
If someone else gets traded -- We never had a chance. We couldn't offer that exact deal. Cost too much. Our players are better!
Basically Poile has never screwed up. He doesn't sign or bring in guys, we were good enough anyway. Team loses in the second round? The players were good but screwed up.
Then at last, every bold move comes back with: Do you want to end up like Atlanta or Columbus or Edmonton?
So Poile is free of all blame for anything. Gotcha.
No - read what I said - I believe he has to be held accountable. However, not one of us on the boards no IF Poile did his job or not. Fans are saying obviously he didn't cause he didn't sign Sute and/or Webs, and I simply made the point that not only can you not make anyone sign a contract, it may just be Nashville is just not an attractive place to be as a player.
None of us want to believe that because we wouldn't live here if we didn't like it and we wouldn't be fans of the franchise - but that is a very real possibility.
Also, if the rumors of seeking trades for Webs are true, I'd argue that just proves Poile was indeed doing his job. If he recognized the shift in attitude when "everything changed on July 5th" - as Webs agent tweeted - then looking to maximize value for AN ASSET was exactly what he should have been doing.
I'd love to have us sign all 3, realistically hoped for 2, but woulda' been fine with a trade. Webs wanted to get paid and got a deal done to a team he'd be happy to play for - can't blame him for that. Not happy with Poile's strategy over last couple years for handling all 3 the way he did, but I understand why he did it that way. Just not sure you can hang him for that when it really appears ELITE players don't believe in Nashville as a destination/location. Like I said, I think ultimately that is what is Poile's problem is and what you have to hold him accountable for.
So - how come elite players don't want to be here?
If we don't sign our guy -- We cannot make him sign. He changed his mind.
If we cannot land a FA -- He was overpriced. Better players out there. He wasn't going to come here anyway.
If someone else gets traded -- We never had a chance. We couldn't offer that exact deal. Cost too much. Our players are better!
Basically Poile has never screwed up. He doesn't sign or bring in guys, we were good enough anyway. Team loses in the second round? The players were good but screwed up.
Then at last, every bold move comes back with: Do you want to end up like Atlanta or Columbus or Edmonton?
Did you break into the "Poile Fan Club" compound and steal a copy of the handbook?
This is spot on, and listening to the supporters constantly repeat these points is more painful that watching the team bow out each season. Unfortunately I can't come up with the self control to stay away from the boards.
I was getting blasted 6 years ago for saying Poile/Trotz needed to go... the only line from the script that you forgot was "well, if it's not better after NEXT season, then i'll be on the fire Poile/Trotz bandwagon"... of course next season rolls around and the excuses start all over again.
Poile could give away the whole team for free and he wouldn't be fired. The owners have stated in the past that they know nothing about hockey and have full faith in Poile.
Since then they have brought in people who understand sports in general, and hockey in particular. Also, they could easily hire consultants if they want to replace Poile. Their ignorance of viable replacements isn't really an issue anymore.
I'm not sure how he can look at the shareholders with a straight face and say he lost 2/3 of the best players on the team. (assuming weber doesn't stay, and also not mentioning others that have left for nothing in the past; Hamuis etc.)
Shouldn't we see how the Weber situation plays out first? This thread is 7 days premature.
Depends on whether or not you believe he's done enough to lose his job already. Weber going through the offer-sheet process would simply add to it.
As someone else has mentioned, the poll is asking "will" he be gone at the start of the season. You can discuss if he "should" to your heart's delight. That's what the thread is for.
There was nothing Poile could do. To think that Weber was still going to be a Pred at this time next year was/is delusional. I wrote a post a while back saying this is exactly what would happen. My point then was that Nashville simply does not have the financing available to them to match such a deal. They were presently trying to secure another $25 million, and we're having a hard times doing that, now they would need $50+ million. It's just not going to happen. Poile was bluffing and hoped no one would call him on it. Holmgren did, so goodbye Shea. The smart thing to do would have been to trade him, but of course you would not get market value in that situation, and he would have been grilled even more so for that.
