By the time Pekka Rinne sat down at his locker Saturday morning, Juuse Saros was already gone.



Saros, 24, was starting for the Predators that night against the Colorado Avalanche, his 11th in the past 16 games, so he was quick to leave the morning skate. For the past month, Rinne, 37, has mostly been a spectator, leading to conversations about whether the inevitable passing-of-the-torch moment has come.



“You want to play, that’s for sure,” Rinne said. “But at the same time, I think you consider the time of the year and time of the season and where we’re at as a team and how many games (are) left and what’s the situation. We’re pretty much in the playoffs right now, so in that sense, I think if we (were) 20 games into the season, I would be probably saying different things, but I think now it’s different, and it really is what’s best for the team.



“But at the same time, of course I think anybody...