As Rinne Retires, Poile, Preds Look Toward Future Plans

Pekka Rinne isn't about to retreat to a small island in his native Finland never to be heard from again.
Well, he may do that from time to time - and who could blame him for wanting to get away from it all for a bit - but he'll be back in Nashville soon enough.
The now-former Predators goaltender - and franchise icon - officially announced his retirement from the game of hockey on Tuesday after spending his entire NHL career with one organization. A commitment like that doesn't just evaporate overnight, and Rinne doesn't plan on being a stranger in these parts.

After returning to Europe with his fiancée, Erika, and young son, Paulus, for the remainder of the summer, Rinne and his family plan on coming back to Tennessee as the 2021-22 season begins. After all he's experienced in this city over the past 17 years, Rinne wasn't ready to say goodbye for good to a place he now calls his "home."
That's welcome news for not only fans of the club, but also those in the front office who will be tasked with determining how best to celebrate and honor Rinne next season and beyond.
Never one to seek out the spotlight, Rinne will accept those events in stride when they come, but ultimately, he simply wants to be in Nashville more often than not.
"The fact that now we've crafted a player who's played all these years here, hasn't played for another organization, those are the types of stories we want to include in this franchise as we build it," Predators General Manager David Poile said of Rinne. "The other thing that's really good here is…he and Erika are coming back to live here next year, basically when the season starts. So, I think that's a fantastic decision, because in some ways you don't go out as cold turkey, I guess, and you can still be part of the organization, come to the games, do his community work, all those other things. That's going to be great for him, and it's going to be great for us, great for our fans and our players."

No Preds player has benefited more from the guidance and tutelage of Rinne than his goaltending partner, and fellow Finn, Juuse Saros.
Sharing a bond that often resembles that of a father and son, the 38-year-old Rinne has helped to groom the 26-year-old Saros into a starting netminder, and he's expected to assume that role once more when the puck drops again in October.
The transition in the crease from Rinne to Saros as the starter has been underway in recent seasons, and the confidence in Saros's capabilities throughout the organization also gives Rinne some piece of mind as he officially hands over the reins.
"I love competing, I love playing with these guys, but I do feel fortunate that me and Juuse ended up playing in the same organization, playing on the same team," Rinne said. "We have a really great relationship, but for sure, these past couple of years, he showed that he can play. He belongs, he's ready to make that next step, so for sure, that also helps my decision. And it is a special relationship. I'll be watching him for sure."

With Saros set to receive the bulk of the action in the Nashville net next season, Poile will still be looking to fill the No. 2 goaltending position with Rinne's departure. Always a planner, Poile has identified a number of options for the spot, with one of them being Connor Ingram, one of the team's top goaltending prospects.
Ingram, who was on Nashville's taxi squad to start the 2020-21 season, entered into the League's Player Assistance Program in late January. The netminder has since returned to the ice and played games for the AHL's Chicago Wolves toward the end of the campaign, and Poile says he expects Ingram to arrive in Nashville soon to continue training for the upcoming season.
"For a second goalie, we've got a number of candidates that we're looking at, and we'll see," Poile said. "We're looking for a fit, we're looking for somebody who can play X-number of games, we're looking for somebody that will support our system…just get the right guy."
While Rinne will never fill that on-ice role again, the question has also been raised about a potential future with the Preds in the front office. Just as he gave Rinne time and space to make the retirement decision, Poile won't be in any rush to try and convince Rinne to consider other options, but not surprisingly, the door is always open.
"I told him there'll be a time and a place…and he said it correctly that he needs some time to sort things out in his own mind, his own life," Poile said of Rinne. "I'm just really happy that he wants to come back here…and I would like and hope and believe that Pekka has some affiliation, whatever that looks like, in our organization going forward… I have no idea whether he actually has any interest in the hockey, per se, and that's something that he'll come to grips with as to how much he misses the game, how much he would like to be involved, all those things."

No matter how Rinne chooses to spend his time when he does reside in Nashville moving forward, he's sure to still find ways to make this place better, just as he's always done.
Rinne intends on continuing his work in the community, particularly his involvement with the 365 Pediatric Cancer Fund at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt, and he'll certainly appreciate the ability to make an in-person visit again sometime in the future.
As Rinne said earlier in the week, he simply sees himself as a man of the people. In that case, he'll continue to fit in here just fine, just as he always has.
"I'm hoping, like his career, the legend of Pekka might even grow more in retirement," Poile said. "Of course, the more that he's around Nashville, I think the more he stays involved, that would be great for us, selfishly, but also great for Nashville the community."