NASHVILLE – When re-signing up-and-coming players, Nashville Predators GM David Poile normally opts for a short-term contract that involves little risk. As he found out with Ryan Suter, Shea Weber and Pekka Rinne, sometimes those contracts can result in having to spend many more millions sooner than you would prefer.
That’s one reason why the Predators chose to sign 23-year-old defenceman Roman Josi to a seven-year, $28-million contract. The organization thinks very highly of Josi and his potential as a top-pairing defenceman alongside captain Shea Weber, and this contract shows that. Josi was set to become a restricted free agent this off-season.
“Last year we saw the growth in Roman like no other young player we’ve had,” Poile said Monday afternoon. “Just turning 23 last week, I think the potential is there for Roman to be one of the best defencemen in the National Hockey League.”
When Suter left for Minnesota last summer, Josi was put under a spotlight to perform in the All-Star defenceman’s place. Josi proved right away he was up for the challenge. It didn’t take long for him and Weber to gain chemistry and form another formidable homegrown defence pairing.
Josi has a lot of the same traits his predecessor possesses. He’s smart with the puck on his stick and is reliable on both ends of the ice. He logged upwards of 23 minutes a night in 2012-13 and notched 18 points in 48 games. At the recently-completed World Championships, Josi was named the MVP and Best Defenceman while helping Switzerland capture a silver medal.
Locking Josi up to a seven-year deal is a smart ploy by Poile. If he had given the promising blueliner a one or two-year contract, the dollar figures would only rise like they did for Suter, Weber and Rinne. Instead of waiting a couple years to sign Josi to a long-term deal potentially worth $5-6 million a season, they saved some money for the long term by doing a seven-year contract now.
“I like the fact that Roman wanted to commit here for seven years. Aside from the money, he committed here for seven years,” Poile said. “It feels like it gives us that good foundation and stability that we’ve been looking for as we try to add other pieces to our franchise and move forward.”
Of course, there is some risk involved here. Josi has a good head on his shoulders, but you never know how a youngster is going to respond to a big contract. He has yet to play a full 82-game season and could have reached his peak this season. He also has a history of concussions prior to arriving to the NHL, which heightens the risk of a long-term deal this early.
“It gives you a lot of security,” Josi said Tuesday of his new contract. “As a hockey player you never know what happens; I’ve had some injuries in the past.”
In the end, though, this was a smart move by both sides. For the Predators, they now know they will have Josi and Weber anchoring their blueline for at least the next seven seasons. With management speaking so highly of Josi, they believe the Swiss defenceman is a vital piece of their future – which Josi himself is proud to be a part of despite the team’s down season in 2012-13.
“Nashville is a great organization,” he said. “We had a bad season last year but I think the year before we had a pretty good season and got pretty close to making it far. I know Nashville is going to do everything to get back on that track and that’s why I signed a long-term deal.”
