20th Season: A Lineage of Defense

Growing up in Switzerland, Roman Josi didn't know much about the Nashville Predators.
But after getting drafted by the Preds in 2008, Josi began to research his new team.
It didn't take him long to discover what the organization's specialty was: producing quality defensemen.
"You just start looking at the teams over the years and you see how many great defensemen play here," Josi said. "When I first came over, it was Shea Weber and Ryan Suter who were two of the top defensemen in the League. But even before that, with guys like [Dan] Hamhuis and [Kimmo] Timonen, you could tell they did a really good job of developing defensemen and making sure they were ready for the NHL."

Josi was right on the money, as Nashville's blueliners have - for the most part - served as cornerstones of the franchise over the past two decades.
Only one Predators player has ever been named an NHL First-Team All-Star. It was a defenseman, Weber, who earned the honor following the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons.
In addition, blueliners have accounted for 11 of the 18 Predators' selections to the NHL All-Star Game. Weber was picked five times while in Nashville, Timonen three, and Suter, Josi and P.K. Subban once each as well.
"We've have had some good success on defense over the years, there's no doubt," Predators Assistant General Manager Paul Fenton said. "I don't know if our [scouting] staff gets recognized enough, but they do such a good job of being on [the same] page together. It all goes back to your people believing in what they see and what they feel, and how it fits for you."
The Preds' first big-impact blueliner wasn't necessarily expected to be one, certainly not by the Los Angeles Kings, anyway. The Kings had made the decision the 5-foot-10 Timonen wasn't big enough to be a regular on the NHL level, so they traded him to Nashville prior to the 1998 Expansion Draft.

Timonen would proceed to play eight of his 16 years in Nashville, where he still ranks fourth among the Predators in career games played (573), assists (222) and points (301).
The torch would then be passed to Dan Hamhuis, Nashville's first defenseman selected in the first round, who would become an anchor on the blueline for six seasons starting in 2003-04. Selecting and developing defensemen was crucial for the Predators in their early years, as they played against teams with more scoring ability on a nightly basis.
But the Predators' reputation for building around defense increased dramatically in 2003, when Nashville entered the draft specifically looking to build a blue line corps for the future. The Preds grabbed Suter with the eighth overall pick, Kevin Klein at No. 37, Weber at 49 and Alexander Sulzer at No. 92.
Suter and Weber would become one of the League's top defensive pairings over their seven years together in Music City, Klein grew into a top-four role and even Sulzer played 131 games in his NHL career - 53 in Nashville.
"The intention going into that draft was to solidify us for the next 10 years (on defense)," Fenton said. "That was our projection. And if you look at all of them, we came pretty close.
"I don't know of another team that has drafted four defensemen that have played in the NHL on one team at one time, and we did. When you're able to build a foundation from one draft like that, it sets you up for years to come."
The length of time that Weber (11 seasons), Klein (nine seasons) and Suter (seven seasons) spent in Nashville - and the quality of their work - allowed that trio to have a strong influence on the next generation of quality blueliners.

That group would begin to take shape in 2008 with the drafting of Josi, followed by the selections of Ellis and Ekholm in 2009.
"As young guys, you looked up to players like (Suter and Weber) and you learned from them," Josi said. "They were such good players that there was a lot you could learn from them on the ice and off, especially with the way they handled themselves as professionals."
The large number of top-level defensemen in the Predators system also made sure Nashville's blueliners had to be playing at their highest level - to work their way into the lineup and to keep up with their teammates.
"I think competition is the No. 1 thing," Ekholm said. "From the first day I got drafted, we've always had really good defensemen here, starting with Shea Weber and Ryan Suter.
"I feel like if you have players like that to look up to, that makes competition within the organization very good - because everyone wants to be that good. I think that's what has been driving all of us. We try to push each other, too."
The Preds' current top four defensemen - Ekholm, Ellis, Josi and Subban - are arguably the best in the NHL, a group of players that thrive in 5-on-5, power-play or penalty-kill situations. Nashville's defensemen contributed 65 points (20 goals, 45 assists) in the Preds' first 25 games this season - despite the fact Ellis (knee) had yet to play a game.
Who knows how good the Predators' defensive corps might be if the team hadn't traded away two more blue-chip blueliners - Seth Jones and Samuel Girard? But Nashville's defensive depth allowed the Preds to make those deals, which brought first- and second-line centers Ryan Johansen and Kyle Turris in return.
Meanwhile, Josi and company are influencing the franchise's next potential star defensemen - such as 2016 first-round pick Dante Fabbro, a sophomore at Boston University.
"Nashville has always been known for its defensemen and they just keep doing a good job," Josi said. "We've got a lot of great defensemen in the minors, too, that will get their chance.
"So yes, if there's a young guy coming up, you try to take what you learned from older guys, and then try to pass it on to them."