Assistant GM Brian Poile, son of former GM David Poile, leaving Nashville Predators
Assistant general manager and director of hockey operations Brian Poile is leaving the Nashville Predators, the team announced on June 5.
Poile is the son of former general manager David Poile. A team spokesperson told The Tennessean that David Poile, the team’s first ever GM who retired in 2023, will remain a senior advisor with the team.
The news comes two days after Chris MacFarland was introduced as the team’s president of hockey operations and general manager.
“On behalf of the entire Predators organization, I want to thank Brian for his commitment and contributions to our franchise for almost 16 years, including the last eight as assistant general manager,” MacFarland said in a team release.
Brian Poile joined the Predators in 2010 as director of hockey operations, then was named assistant general manager in May 2018. According to the team, Poile was responsible for fiscal and strategic planning; player and staff personnel decisions; and player contract negotiation and salary arbitration. He also assisted in managing the roster, player payroll, team budgets, salary cap, analytics, and collective bargaining agreement compliance.
“While we are moving in a different direction, Brian’s character, work ethic, passion for the game of hockey, love for the Preds and respect for our fanbase was deeply appreciated,” MacFarland said.
This departure marks a significant change for the Predators. Since Nashville was awarded a franchise in 1997, the team has had a Poile – either David or Brian – working in the front office.
“My family and I will carry many wonderful memories as we move forward,” Brian Poile said in a statement. “We will always have the Predators in our hearts.”
The announcement also comes on the same day the team announced Rob Blake as executive vice president of hockey operations. Blake will work alongside MacFarland in “all areas of the hockey operations department, including team and staff development, long- and short-term strategies, free agency, player recruitment, drafting and more.”
Notably, Blake’s position is separate from the one vacated by Poile, and the team hopes to hire a replacement for Poile soon.
After MacFarland and Blake, the Predators’ front office includes assistant general manager and director of scouting Jeff Kealty as well as assistant general manager, and general manager of the Milwaukee Admirals, Scott Nichol.
Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at jdaugherty@gannett.com. Follow Alex on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @alexdaugherty1. Also check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Brian Poile, son of former general manager, leaving Nashville Predators
