That became a bigger concern in early 2008 when Jerry Collins asked to get out of his contract early, Nick Evans announced his intention to play in England and Dan Carter weighed up an offer from Perpignan that he was sure he'd sign until the option of a sabbatical was put in front of him.
The situation was not much rosier in 2011 when, in 2010, the likes of Dan Bowden, Michael Paterson and Ti'i Paulo left when they were on the edge of the World Cup frame.
The following year, there were another 36 players who headed off. It was a huge clean out and it wasn't dominated by senior players who were coming to the end of their time.
Brad Thorn and Mils Muliaina were about the only two who had reached the end of their natural rugby life. The bulk of those who moved were men who still had value - maybe not test players, but solid Super Rugby professionals who had plenty to offer.
The exit group included Jared Payne, John Afoa, Mike Delany, Neemia Tialata, Stephen Donald and Stephen Brett.
The Chiefs had an especially big cull - new coach Dave Rennie arriving, axe in hand, to blade those such as Aled de Malmanche, Colin Bourke and Isaac Ross who he didn't think were up to it.
There was a level of angst and consternation in 2012 about how many experienced players had left.
The turnover represented more than one-fifth of New Zealand's contracted Super Rugby players.
It turned out there was method to Rennie's perceived madness. The new generation he brought in were better, tougher, more reliable and they won a championship.
Across the country, the story was largely similar. TJ Perenara and Beauden Barrett set the Hurricanes alight, with help from the irrepressible Julian Savea, who had been a basket case the year before.
Given their opportunity, the likes of Brodie Retallick, Aaron Smith and Sam Cane took it. That's how it is - young players tend to be more resilient and better able to cope than most people imagine. Give them a chance and they will take it.
There will be times when their lack of experience is exposed and mistakes - some costly - will be made. But if the Hurricanes had been asked in 2012 if they wanted to swap Perenara and Barrett for the likes of Chris Smylie and Daniel Kirkpatrick, the answer would have been no. The former duo came with exuberance, energy, vision and creative magic.
A few mistakes here and there - but the rewards were high ... higher than the alternatives.
New Zealand has coped with World Cup cleanouts in the past, which provides a level of confidence, should the volume of departing players accelerate, that they can do so again.
But right now, they are not remotely close to a crisis. So far, only 14 players have announced they are leaving. As long as Retallick and Colin Slade commit to stay, Piutau will be the only one who got away.
The rest - Tom Taylor, Jeremy Thrush, Brendon O'Connor, Willi Heinz, Luke Braid and the like - are good professionals who will be missed. Their departure won't be disastrous, though.
The picture is no different today than it has been since the dawn of the professional age. New Zealand is under siege from offshore predators as it always has been.
European clubs have always had more money and while it's true the amounts being offered are higher now than five years ago, so too are the payments made in New Zealand.
Piutau's departure is disappointing for those who felt he had a long test career ahead of him, but it is not indicative of any emerging trend or unseen threat.
As New Zealand Rugby Union chief executive Steve Tew says: "For us, the pressure on player retention and coach retention really hasn't changed. It is a constant for us and the patterns of initiatives that we have employed in the last few years have worked pretty well.
"There haven't really been any players who we really wanted to keep that we didn't. Clearly Super Rugby would be better if we kept more than we do, but we live in a competitive market."
