Barry Trotz was blunt with his criticisms to the Tennessean regarding a struggling Nashville Predators team that fell to the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3 on Tuesday, extending their losing streak to four games.
” ... Close but no cigar,” Trotz said. “You need 20 guys. Right now we’re a little shorthanded, guys are trying to stay in the league, some guys are trying to make the team, some guys are trying to make a difference.”
From the sound of things, some of those fringe players won’t earn a full-time NHL job.
“We have a good goaltender, we have to play good defensively. I know some guys are playing over their heads, some guys quite clearly can’t play at this level, that’s plain and simple, but we’re going to sort that out and go from there,” Trotz said. “Some guys, I’m not happy with their game, they have to give us more. And I can go top to bottom, there’s some guys in that locker room who can give us a lot more, and that’s the part that bothers me.”
Four losses in a row could seem like a hiccup, but things have been rough for more than a month. The Predators are now 4-10-1 since Feb. 16, leaving them in 13th place in the Western Conference.
(If that’s not bad enough, Ryan Suter and Minnesota Wild have been on a roll since the defenseman’s awkward homecoming. These are bad times for the Preds.)