David Poile's career as general manager of the Nashville Predators ended just as we thought it might: on his own terms.

As announced by the Predators on Sunday, David Poile is retiring from his general manager post effective June 30th. Barry Trotz, who will take over as general manager on July 1st, will work alongside Poile over the next four months to ensure a smooth transition from one manager to the next.

“This is a decision that is best for me personally and best for the Nashville Predators,” Poile said in a press release yesterday. “For the Predators, I believe it is time for a new voice and a new direction. I am proud of the foundation we have put in place in our hockey operations, investing in and improving every area of the department. This is the right time for someone else to move our franchise forward."

In the ultra-competitive world of professional sports, it's not very often a general manager gets to leave on his own terms. Especially one who seems to have set his franchise up for failure in recent years. General managers and coaches get fired for far less, most of the time with very little notice.

But not many managers are quite like David Poile.

For many years now, it's been clear that the only way for Poile to no longer be the general manager in Nashville is if he decided to retire. No one in the organization would vote to terminate the only general manager in franchise history. No one would ask the man who has been so instrumental in the team's success to step down.

It was David Poile's way or no way.

And it remains that way even through his retirement on June 30th.

David Poile will still have influence on the Preds

I have some bad news for those wanting David Poile to turn in his work laptop, switch off his cell phone, and sail off into the sunset, never to influence the Nashville Predators again.

It doesn't sound like that's going to be the case.

Consider these quotes from The Tennessean's lead story on Poile's retirement, published earlier today. Poile mentioned that after last season, "we talked about a succession plan, and we've been doing that the last two or three years" adding that he told ownership this would "probably" be his last season. From there, Poile directed the exit from his general manager position, governing how things would go.

As Sean Henry put it, "not only was it [Poile's] decision, it's his architecture of what the next four or five months could look like."

There was apparently a brief internal search, where candidates like Brian Poile, Scott Nichol, and Jeff Kealty were considered. But ultimately Poile decided that Barry Trotz should be the next general manager and that the decision was made "quickly."

Even in retirement, apparently, Poile is directing how things should go.

But then there's what might happen after June 30th, when Poile officially retires and Barry Trotz officially takes over.

After June 30th, Poile will no longer be officially in charge. Barry Trotz will be the new general manager and inherit all of the duties that Poile had for 25 years. But according to the press release, Poile "will remain affiliated with the organization as an advisor" for the hockey operations and ownership group.

How involved with Poile be? How much influence will he have on roster and team decisions?

Is David Poile really going anywhere?

I mean, yes, he is retiring. But is his influence going anywhere?

Here's an analogy. Think about when a popular movie or television director becomes executive producer of a new project. Like when J.J. Abrams, whose excellent work creating the hit TV show Lost, helped land him all sorts of new projects, including HBO's Westworld. He's not writing or directing it, but it still has his influence. You can tell when you watch Westworld that his hands are all over it.

Another example would be George Lucas, famous for creating, writing, and directing Star Wars, and then executive producing the 1986 film Labyrinth: you can't watch that movie and not notice George Lucas's influence.

Are the Nashville Predators now written and directed by Barry Trotz, brought to you by executive producer David Poile?

[deep-voiced narrator] "From the producer of the 1998-2023 Nashville Predators, and the coach of the 1998-2014 Nashville Predators comes the 2024 Nashville Predators!"

Perhaps not the most inspiring news for those hoping Nashville's hockey team would have an entirely new voice at the helm. Or from those hoping that David Poile would have no influence at all, official or otherwise.

The Preds' future is still uncertain

While we do not know what the team will look like under Barry Trotz, most people will be happy for the team to go in a different direction at the GM position. I do not think Poile will involve himself in the day to day operations of the team. He won't flood Barry Trotz's email inbox with suggestions or questions.

But it's a curious transition, and one that was entirely constructed by the man leaving the position. That doesn't happen often in the world of sports. That doesn't happen often in any business.

It's really a soft retirement. Poile isn't moving out, he's just moving offices. He won't have the same influence, but he will have some influence. Trotz is hardly a new voice in the building, though he's obviously never been in the general manager role. How often will he ask Poile's advice? How much will he lean on Poile's 50 plus years of work to make his decisions?

"I think I'm doing the right thing for me personally," Poile told The Tennessean, "and I think I'm doing the right thing for the Predators. Sometimes I wonder why I'm stepping away, but I've had my chance for (26) years with the Predators and 41 years in the National Hockey League. It's time for a new voice; it's time for new leadership."

The juxtaposition of "I think I'm doing the right thing" and "I wonder why I'm stepping away" with "it's time for a new voice" is a bit jarring.

Which does he mean exactly?/ Is Poile doing the right thing and he's just not sure? Or is he not sure he's doing the right thing?

More questions.

One thing is clear: the team is already going through the beginnings of a tear down. Nino Niederreiter was traded on Saturday. It appears Tanner Jeannot is about to be traded, and there could be more moves ahead. Injuries are piling up and there's more focus on head coach John Hynes with every game. Perhaps Trotz already has ideas about what to do with the coaching staff… but will those ideas be influenced by Poile as well? 

Lots of questions ahead about the direction of the team. Only time will tell how different things look under a new general manager. But if David Poile is still around, will we ever really know?

— Featured image via Yahoo Sports —