For the second straight season, the Nashville Predators did not clinch a spot within the Stanley Cup Playoffs despite amassing a 38-34-10 record. While the Predators briefly flirted with a postseason spot, they couldn’t overcome their slow start.
The Predators posted a 4-6-2 record in October and 4-7-2 in November, putting them at an obstacle early on. But one in every of the positives that they’ll take with them into the offseason is that they managed to rebound and put together a positive record after the very fact, putting them inside striking distance of the playoffs before ultimately falling short.
Based on comments made by alternate captain Filip Forsberg, there may be loads of “youth and excitement” in what they did down the stretch, they usually plan on constructing upon it.
“We showed progress, especially down the stretch – showed that there is plenty of youth and plenty of excitement in that,” Forsberg said via NHL.com. “We’ve shown that a few of us old farts still have some good hockey in us, and clearly not slowing down anytime soon… I feel it’s pretty clear that now we have something exciting coming, especially down the stretch the previous few games, and clearly, we’d love to maintain constructing on that.”
Nonetheless, the team that finished the season is not going to be the identical because the team that begins next season for Nashville, and there are greater than just a few candidates on the present roster which can be prime trade candidates for whoever the brand new Predators GM ultimately seems to be.
Jonathan Marchessault continues to be included in trade rumors
Marchessault was signed by the Predators in the summertime of 2024 after he didn’t receive what he felt was a good offer from the Vegas Golden Knights, only one yr after he won the Conn Smythe Trophy because the most beneficial player within the Stanley Cup Playoffs, helping them to the primary and only Stanley Cup in team history.
His first campaign with the Predators was a disaster for all the club as an entire, as they began the season winless of their first five games. And it would not be long before Marchessault began finding himself included in trade rumors despite having signed a five-year, $27.5 million deal.
This past season, Marchessault was limited to 62 games, but still had a particularly disappointing output, scoring only 12 goals while adding 19 assists. This comes just two seasons after he tallied 42 goals in what was his final season in Vegas; he netted just 21 goals in his first season with Nashville.
With three years left and a $5.5 million cap hit on his contract remaining, Marchessault nevertheless stays a hotly debated topic in NHL trade circles. While his contract accommodates a no-trade clause, he might be willing to waive it so as to join a brand new club, giving him a likelihood at winning the Stanley Cup another time and maybe thriving in a brand new environment, considering how things have gone to date in Nashville.
In March, NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman speculated that the Predators were hard at work attempting to move on from Marchessault.
“I do consider there are serious efforts to seek out Jonathan Marchessault a brand new home,” Friedman said via Sportsnet.
Will he be on the move this summer again?
2019 Conn Smythe Trophy winner Ryan O’Reilly could also move
O’Reilly, who signed a four-year, $18 million contract with the Predators in 2023 after a transient stint with the Toronto Maple Leafs, has been heavily involved in trade rumors down the stretch in each of the last two seasons.
Actually, he even reportedly vetoed a trade last season that might have sent him back to the Maple Leafs, whom he helped win a playoff series with in 2023 for just the second time since 2004.
Nonetheless, despite his insistence that he’s completely happy in Nashville, his pending status as an unrestricted free agent after the upcoming season and no guarantee that the Predators can get back to the playoffs next spring make him a chief candidate to be moved.
He has one season left with a $4.5 million cap hit left, making him a moderately-priced option for multiple teams on the lookout for useful center depth together with Stanley Cup-winning experience.
The rumors surrounding Predators’ Steven Stamkos won’t go away
Like Marchessault, Stamkos was signed by the Predators in the summertime of 2024 in a move that many believed would put them excessive within the Western Conference.
Despite a below-average scoring output in his first season with the Predators, Stamkos looked more like his old self this season, reaching the 40-goal threshold once more.
He still has two years left on his contract with a substantial $8 million salary cap hit, however the Predators could ultimately decide to try to maneuver that cap hit and recoup multiple younger assets in return.
For the second straight season, the Nashville Predators did not clinch a spot within the Stanley Cup Playoffs despite amassing a 38-34-10 record. While the Predators briefly flirted with a postseason spot, they couldn’t overcome their slow start. The Predators posted a 4-6-2 record in October and 4-7-2 in November, putting them at an obstacle early on.