From John Glennon of the Tennessean:
Predators General Manager David Poile believes he’s putting together the kind of blueline corps that will make his team a Cup contender for years to come as well.
He cemented another long-term addition Monday with the signing of Ryan Suter to a four-year, $14 million deal.
The next goal is to re-sign potential restricted free agent Shea Weber. That would give the team three of the league’s better young defensemen — Suter, Weber and Dan Hamhuis.
“In my mind, we’re really happy with all of our defensemen,” Poile said. “But we certainly see players like Dan Hamhuis and Shea Weber and Ryan Suter as some of the best young defensemen in all of the NHL. They’re three players you’d like to build your team around for a long time.”
Read more from Glennon here.
Glennon is exactly right. The Predators have a terrific core of young defensemen moving forward. These three youngsters can all move the puck, play the body and skate. The team just needs to make sure they get Shea Weber’s name on a long-term contract.