Barry Trotz

For the Predators, rival Detroit has long been their model in the pursuit of excellence. Now Nashville is measuring up to its nemesis, the first obstacle in a Stanley Cup run

Though Oilers forward Ryan Smyth (right) and defenseman Steve Staios are key to the team's effort to return to the finals, G.M.'s are eyeing them covetously. Both will be unrestricted free agents next summer, and...

1,354Basketball games coached by the retiring Jim Phelan of Mount St. Mary's, an NCAA record.

Barry Trotz has coached the Predators since they joined the NHL in '98-99, a span of 328 games. The only man to guide an expansion team from its start for longer was Terry Crisp (Tampa, 391 matches).

David Poile had always run the Predators on a shoestring budget. In the franchise's first two seasons Nashville's payroll was the NHL's smallest, and last year's $19.6 million tab, though large by club standards, was...