Preds GM Poile Discusses NHL Options, Salary Cap, Life in Quarantine

The work for a general manager in the National Hockey League never slows, even when the entire season has been paused.

One difference David Poile has noticed, however, is extra downtime in the evenings, which he's not particularly accustomed to having in mid-April. In the past, if he wasn't perched high above the ice watching his club play in person, he and his wife, Elizabeth, would at least be parked in front of the TV at home keeping an eye on action around the rest of the NHL.

These days, the GM of the Predators is still clicking around on the television after dinner with his better half, but it's been spent watching '"Designated Survivor," a program he's much more interested in than the runaway hit of the spring.

"I kind of regret that I watched that," Poile laughed when referring to the "Tiger King" docuseries.

He's still plenty busy during normal business hours, however, and while Poile and his staff don't have any real hockey games to prepare for at the moment, discussing contingency plans and what could happen in the weeks and months to come is a topic that receives plenty of attention during the daylight.

"[NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman] is very committed, as the owners are, and I think we walk in step this time with the NHLPA, that they want to do everything they can at the appropriate time, when it is safe and healthy for everybody to participate again, to play games," Poile said Thursday from his home via video call. "What that is going to look like is probably yet to be determined, and again, it always comes back to the same thing - safety and health for everyone. But I think we need to get our arms around the fact that if we're allowed the opportunity to come back in the near future that we certainly could be playing in empty stadiums, something that we've never done before, and it certainly can be at remote locations where you can bring in teams and probably go to an area that has been least affected by the virus."

Poile says all of those items have been discussed at various points, but it's become clear over the past few weeks that health officials and experts in the field will ultimately be the ones who likely make those sorts of decisions, not the League.

With that in mind, the NHL has also taken into account a slew of different scenarios as to how play should resume, if at all possible, to finish out the 2019-20 season.

"As [Bettman] has said, he will do everything [he] can to bring as much fairness through a season resumption and bring integrity to whatever format that we come up with," Poile said. "I know the most ideal situation would be to come back to play some regular-season games… [for] each team to play the same amount of home and away games. I know that, time permitting, that's probably what would happen… If we get backed up further in the summer, then maybe there's just playoff games, but I think we have to go a step at a time right now. We're still in self-quarantine… [But] sports may be able to be a leader in this area [of reopening the country] if we get the green light."

If that signal does come, the puck wouldn't drop immediately. Poile echoed sentiments that have already been voiced by NHL players, Video: GM Poile comments on hockey's return possibilities Matt Duchene, that there would need to be a miniature training camp to allow for time to get back into game shape. Players have been working out at home during the pause, but as has been said time and again, there is simply no way to replicate playing a game without the real thing.

Therefore, contingency plans for the preparation to return are also being evaluated, and considering the potential to jump straight into the postseason, these sessions would carry immense importance.

"What I've been told, and what I've heard, is players are looking at a two- or three-week window of, I guess you'd say a training camp type of format where they can be safely in really good shape to prevent injuries as best as possible," Poile said. "In terms of the resumption of play, there's going to have to be a real stage-by-stage process before we actually get back to playing games. As we all know, we're still in self-isolation and still have a long way to go."

A majority of Predators players are quarantining here in Nashville, but some have chosen to return to their home cities. Poile listed Ryan Ellis, Mattias Ekholm, Calle Jarnkrok, Juuse Saros, Dante Fabbro, Colin Blackwell and Korbinian Holzer as those who are currently based in other locales around the world as they await further instruction from the League and Players' Association on potential restart dates.

Until then, they, like Poile, are simply preparing for the future. For the GM, that also means looking at the NHL's Salary Cap potential for the 2020-21 season, a number that is anybody's guess with uncertainties surrounding the coronavirus impact on League revenues. That number was set at $81.5 million for the current campaign, but that ceiling could fall given the situation.

"[If we're able to finish the season], certain revenues would obviously be brought back into the pot and shared between the NHL and the players," Poile said. "If we don't have that, then obviously there's going to be a deficit of money that was budgeted for, and all of this is going to affect the cap going forward. All of us have certain player commitments that we have made that add up to a certain number. The most perfect situation that I could see is the NHL sitting down with the PA to come up with a cap number that works for both sides.

"I'm just going off my own [thinking], depending on how this plays out. If it's a quick resolve it all might work itself out, and we may not have to make any adjustments. If this is a longer situation, we may have to look at more than a one-year plan in terms of what you do with it… It's something that none of us know the answer to yet, and until we play these games or [don't play] these games, it's going to be an open issue."

Poile says he has had discussions with the representatives for forwards Craig Smith and Mikael Granlund, both of whom are pending unrestricted free agents, but the GM added it's difficult for those conversations to gain traction due to the inability to forecast what the salary cap will look like in 2020-21.

"You have to imagine that [these are the sorts] of questions that the GMs are asking on a daily basis, and nobody knows that answer, so we're just going to have to react to what is presented in front of us," Poile said. "Hopefully, our relationships are such with our players that they understand that, and if there's an ability to maybe do something with them, [we'll look to do that]. When the season is over, and when we know more, we will put our best foot forward at that time."

In the meantime, Poile and his staff will continue to prepare for things like the currently postponed NHL Draft and free agency period. They'll be ready for hockey too, no matter the situation that arises.

And, on a personal note, Poile intends on continuing his daily neighborhood walks with his wife, a necessity during this quarantine.

"Every time I've walked by the refrigerator, it yells out, 'What do you want now?'" Poile laughed. "So, we're going to try to stay out of the kitchen a little bit."