Vokoun Reflects on Time with Preds, Praises Goaltending Future in Saros

It's hard to imagine a time before Juuse Saros and Pekka Rinne stood between the pipes for the Nashville Predators, but before either of them got their due, there was Tomas Vokoun.
If you owned a Predators jersey between 1998 and 2007, there's a big chance Vokoun's nameplate was stretched across the back, and for good reason.

Before Rinne could break any records, Vokoun - selected by Nashville in the 1998 Expansion Draft - was the one setting them.
From wins (161) to save percentage (.913) and goals against average (2.55), the Czech netminder had a laundry list of franchise goaltending records safely locked down for years to follow.

With a brand new franchise there were also a number of firsts up for grabs, and Vokoun took full advantage.
Earning the franchise's first shutout, a spot as its first All-Star goaltender and a 34-win (2.53 GAA, .909 save percentage) season that propelled the Predators to their first Stanley Cup Playoffs berth, Vokoun soon became Nashville's first franchise netminder as well.
When the Predators faced the Detroit Red Wings in the first round, Vokoun's 41-save performance in Game 3 helped the team to its first postseason win. The next game, Vokoun turned away another 41 shots to earn the franchise's first postseason shutout.

"Any time there's a new franchise, you have an opportunity and there's a lot of firsts and things that have never happened or never been done before," Vokoun said. "So, I think the biggest thing was when we first made the playoffs - it was a great feeling."
Vokoun's steady presence in the blue paint would lead the Predators to two more postseason berths. But eventually, Vokoun's time in Nashville came to an end.
In June 2007, the Predators traded Vokoun to the Florida Panthers, where the goalie spent four seasons before wrapping his career with two final seasons in Washington and Pittsburgh.
After a full 700-game career spanning 16 years, Vokoun still looks back on his time spent in Nashville quite fondly.
"I got to Nashville when I was 22 years old and I didn't know if I was going to make it to the NHL," he said. "Getting picked up by Nashville in the Expansion Draft totally changed my life, my family's life and my career… When you're going through it there are obviously ups and downs, but I can't really remember one bad moment."

Now happily enjoying retirement with his wife and two daughters in south Florida, Vokoun has reveled in seeing just how far his first NHL team has come since its inaugural season in 1998.
"There was a period when hockey was starting in Nashville and it was popular because it was new and exciting and something different, but then there was a period when that kind of wore off and the team at the time wasn't good enough and we were kind of losing fans," Vokoun said. "Then local business people bought the team and it showed in how they took care of it and what they did… It's just amazing what they've done with the fanbase and how much it's grown. I mean, even the product is really good. When I've been to games or watched the games it's fun, it's branded with country music and everything else in Nashville. Even as a city, it's obviously changed drastically since I got there in 1998 - without the Batman Building being there I don't think you would even recognize it."
There's also a new generation of Predators netminders for him to watch - namely Saros, the 27-year-old Vezina Trophy finalist.
Vokoun, put simply, has liked what he's seen.
"He's very, very good," Vokoun said with a laugh. "I would definitely put him in the top 10 goalies, for sure. He's unbelievably quick, he's got great reflexes and his game is unreal. I think honestly, if he was two inches bigger, he would probably be the best goalie in the League."
Vokoun is so impressed with Saros' game, in fact, that he uses him as a model when teaching young goaltenders.
"You either have the game or you don't have the game, and he obviously has the goods," he said. "And I personally love the way he plays - staying on his feet and all his recoveries. He's a very active goalie with great skating and all that… And I think goalies like that can be successful on any team. You could be playing on the best team in the League and be very successful or you could be playing on the worst team and be successful, just because your game is so solid and you can deal with a lot of situations and not need to rely on your team to play the way you need them to play for you to be successful."
Hockey is a much different game than it was 25 years ago, and from Vokoun's perspective, Saros has everything a modern NHL goaltender needs to succeed.
"Obviously, the level of hockey is totally different than it used to be in the 90s, or even in the 2000s or 2010s for that matter, but it just comes with all the improvements in everything, like from coaching to skates and sticks and the preparation of the players," Vokoun said. "For goalies, in a previous time you always had a six-foot-five, 230-pound guy in front of the crease and now the game has changed and you've got to move quicker from east to west, and maybe you don't get as much traffic and fighting in front of the net. But I love watching hockey now and I think the product is probably the best it's ever been. It's exciting and obviously it takes a high skill level from all the players involved in the game."
Now just a two-hour flight from his first true NHL city, Vokoun is eager to return to Smashville to visit with old friends and perhaps make his way to a game at Bridgestone Arena.
In the meantime, day one Predators fans can rest easy knowing their first franchise goaltender feels the same about them as they do him.
"For a long time I thought Nashville was going to be my home, but sometimes changes come and obviously I moved and now have stayed for a long time in Florida and it just worked out the way it did," Vokoun said. "But like I said, I lived in Nashville for 10 years and have nothing but the best memories… And I wish nothing but the best to the organization and to the team."