Glennon: Matt Duchene becomes key measuring stick for Peter Laviolette and his success with new players

Seated at a dinner table some 33 stories above Music City last week, Matt Duchene asked Peter Laviolette if he might have a quick private conversation. We had a lot of similar ideas and things … We had a great connection right off the bat.” The prospects of a quality player-coach relationship are understandably important for Duchene since — assuming all goes according to plans — he’ll spend the next seven years in a Predators uniform, earning an average of $8 million per season. Because a number of Predators acquisitions over the past few seasons — players like Ryan Hartman, Kyle Turris, Mikael Granlund and Wayne Simmonds — have not fared particularly well after arriving in Nashville. Should Laviolette get the most out of Duchene — something akin to the.75 points per game he’s averaged during his career — the Predators will more than likely return to elite status among NHL teams. For whatever reason, we just couldn’t seem to get it firing on the power play, and that even trickled down into the 5-on-5 play.” Here’s a look at some of the Predators’ key acquisitions — via trade or free agency — during Peter Laviolette’s tenure, and how their career numbers compare with their totals in Nashville: MIKAEL GRANLUND Games Goals Assists Points PPG SA% SH% Career: 477 94 228 322.68 50% 9.8% With Preds: 16 1 4 5.31 48.1% 3.4% WAYNE SIMMONDS Games Goals Assists Points PPG SA% SH% Career: 841 243 231 474.56 49.8% 13.1% With Preds: 17 1 2 3.18 47% 4.8% BRIAN BOYLE Games Goals Assists Points PPG SA% SH% Career: 766 124 92 216.28 48.6% 9.3% With Preds: 26 5 0 5.19 47.7% 11.9% KYLE TURRIS Games Goals Assists Points PPG SA% SH% Career: 664 156 229 385.58 51.2% 10.8% With Preds: 120 20 45 65.54 53.7% 10.2% RYAN HARTMAN Games Goals Assists Points PPG SA% SH% Career: 245 42 47 89.36 52.1% 9.2% With Preds: 85 13 13 26.31 52% 8.9% PK SUBBAN Games Goals Assists Points PPG SA% SH% Career: 645 98 310 408.63 52.4% 6.1% With Preds: 211 35 95 130.62 52.9% 6.8% RYAN JOHANSEN Games Goals Assists Points PPG SA% SH% Career: 592 130 276 406.69 51.8% 10.6% With Preds: 283 51 162 213.75 54.3 9.9% SA%: Shot attempt percentage; SH%: Shooting percentage A lot of connection There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the Laviolette-Duchene marriage.