I'm not hating on the team as a whole, I'm hating on the first day of UFA they just had, that's why the article is as negative as it is.
I think the contracts Poile dealt out are more Gill or Gaustad than Goc, that their biggest impact on the Predators next season will be being NHL bodies instead of not-NHL-players and that DP didn't have to break out the checkbook for that effect. Stalberg especially I have issues with. I don't think he can succeed without either a straightforward forechecking role on a sheltered depth line (Shaw), or a combination like Kane and Toews that allows him to wheel while they do most of the work. I don't think he has the defensive chops to play on either of your top two lines, and he's not good enough at creating his own shots to aid Smith's development on the third line (or whoever ends up on the third line).
And there's a reason the two names I brought up as alternatives here are Gordon and Filppula, two guys who were paid premiums by non-playoff teams. I'm not saying "OMG Nashville didn't sign Iginla, bust city," by any stretch. I didn't even bring Matt Cooke, a better depth forward than anyone the Preds signed, into the conversation specifically because he signed with what he saw as an up-and-coming squad. Honestly, if these four guys were the only ones willing to go to Nashville, I would have told at least two of them (Stalberg/Nystrom) to piss off and played the long-game on the trade market.
If the Predators do well this year its because: Jones/Forsberg make meaningful contributions to the lineup, Wilson continues to develop, the core stays healthy, and they don't have to rely on a revolving door of Bobby Butlers for secondary scoring. I have nothing against grinder-heavy lineups, I just don't think Nashville invested in particularly great, or even "good" grinders, given their defensive and possession needs.
Again, let's recap, the Predators signed:
0 top 3 QoC forwards
0 top six forwards under 36
1 forward better than 9th overall in team TOI
1 forward with a positive corsi (which came in one of the most sheltered roles of the season)
1 forward with first unit PK deployments (on the 20th ranked PK)
And the only two forwards with decent goals against (Stalberg/Cullen) are one season removed from significantly worse defensive seasons, in roles far more comparable to what they'd be counted on to do in Nashville.
I don't understand how the Predators had a July 5th that's above significant derision. That they signed a bunch of grinders isn't the issue, it's that they signed a bunch of grinders who aren't even very good at grinding.