The Nashville Predators turned things around far faster than anyone thought they could last season. The 2014-15 campaign represented the first that Barry Trotz was not the head coach of the team since its inception. Peter Laviolette came in, as did rookie Filip Forsberg, veteran sniper James Neal, Mike Ribeiro in a bounce-back campaign and a once-again healthy Pekka Rinne.
All of those ingredients, plus a cast of veterans playing some of their best hockey, allowed the Preds to spend almost the entire season as one of the West’s best. An early postseason exit at the hands of eventual champion Chicago Blackhawks provided the bitter end to what was an otherwise exceptional year in Nashville.
Now the Preds are back with largely the same roster and a renewed confidence that the team hasn’t seen since right before Ryan Suter left in free agency. This is a team that should be thinking playoffs and making some noise once they get there.
A lot of that depends on the health of Rinne, another big year from their top line and a defensive group that is ascending to the upper tier of the league. Aside from minimal losses and bringing in reclamation project Cody Hodgson and veteran defenseman Barret Jackman, not a lot has changed for Nashville. That said, Forsberg has a sensational rookie season to build off of, promising young defenseman Seth Jones may be due for a breakout and others like Craig Smith and Colin Wilson remain in what should be their scoring primes.
This should have the team brimming with confidence and that includes the front office as longtime general manager David Poile, who said this:
"There are a lot of good teams in the League this year, the good news is we're one of those teams...this is our year." #Preds GM David Poile
— Brooks Bratten (@brooksbratten) September 26, 2015
Bold statement, but the Preds have few reasons to feel anything but confident in their abilities to take another step forward this year.
2015-16 at a glance
New additions: Cody Hodgson, Barret Jackman, Steve Moses
Key losses: Anton Volchenkov, Cody Franson, Viktor Stalberg, Matt Cullen
Top returning scorers: Filip Forsberg (82 GP, 26-37—63), Mike Ribeiro (82 GP, 15-47—62), Roman Josi (81 GP, 15-40—55)
Total salary against cap: $58,044,226
Salary cap space remaining: $13,355,774
Biggest question heading into the season: Will the Predators have enough secondary scoring to hang with the big boys?
The Predators have never advanced past the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. They’re not one of those teams that is ever in the Stanley Cup conversation, but last year changed things. Nashville was different in so many ways. Most notably, they kept opposing defensemen on their toes.
The attacking style the Preds employed under Peter Laviolette helped lead to more goals for a team that has never been known for offensive prowess. The Preds notched 2.68 goals-per-game last season, third most in the Central Division and 14th overall in the league. To take that next step, boosting that scoring attack even more could go a long way.
The question is, where will that come from? Much should be expected of Filip Forsberg and a healthy James Neal. Craig Smith has been an automatic 20-plus goals the last two years. Mike Fisher came back from injury strong and showed he’s still got plenty in the tank.
Nashville should also be getting considerable goal scoring from its blue line with the always productive Shea Weber and last year’s breakout star Roman Josi providing the bulk of the fire power.
After that, the Preds need another big year from Mike Ribeiro, who had 62 points last year, but whose last few seasons have been wildly unpredictable. Colin Wilson is coming off of a career year in points and shots on goal, which gives him something to build off of.
The X-factor when it comes to depth scoring, however, could be offseason signee Cody Hodgson who was bought out by the Sabres after a 13-point campaign. He scored 20 in 2013-14 and 15 the year before in a lockout-shortened campaign. Assuming his game is back on track, he could be due for a big year on a much, much better roster in 2015-16.
A few other things to keep in mind: Calle Jarnkrok was disappointing last year, but might do well with an extra year of NHL development under his belt now. Additionally, super-skilled prospect Kevin Fiala is in the AHL for now. If he blows up in the minors, they’ll recall him and maybe have a second-line threat. Also in the AHL is offseason acquisition Stevie Moses, who set the KHL’s single-season record for goals last year with 36.
Lastly, the Preds have a boatload of cap space and they might need to dip into it at the trade deadline. Last year, they overextended themselves at the deadline and ended up getting redundant instead of better by acquiring Cody Franson and Mike Santorelli.
If David Poile thinks this is the Preds’ year, he may need one more big gun up front. If that can’t be addressed internally, he shouldn’t be shy near the deadline.
Basically, if scoring becomes a concern, the Preds should have a number of potential solutions.
Season outlook: This Predators team has every reason to believe it will compete in the very tough Central Division. It’s not going to be easy, but it won’t be for anyone else in the division, either. The Preds aren’t at the same level as the Blackhawks and Blues yet, but last season showed they’re not far off if everything clicks.
The best thing that can happen for Nashville is that their young guys continue stepping up. This could come in the form a breakout year for defenseman Seth Jones, who excelled near the end of last season and looked very comfortable for the brief playoff run after Shea Weber went down. He needs to be a key guy for them this season, especially being it the last year on his entry-level contract.
You know who else is in a contract year? Last year's leading scorer, Filip Forsberg. Both could make next summer an expensive one for Nashville with big seasons.
Weber and Josi are as good a top-two as you’ll find in the league defensively, so supplementing them with heavier doses of Jones and maybe Ryan Ellis could go a long way. This defensive group can put up the points to help taper scoring concerns as well.
Pekka Rinne’s health is key to the season. He managed to appear in 64 games last season, which was tied for second most in his career. He’ll probably have to carry a similar load, which will be no easy task. He turns 33 early in the season and he’s nearing the age where goalies start to see decline. Rinne was a Vezina finalist last season, however. Even if he’s not at that level, he’ll be far better than the league-average goalies.
Up front, the Predators should be heading into the season pretty comfortable, even if they could afford a little more punch. As noted, they have a lot of options if things go sideways in the scoring department.
Nashville should be a playoff team this season, but there are no guarantees in the deep Western Conference. They might be one or two players short of being a real title contender here, though. Expect them to be in the conversation for a top-three spot in the Central, with the wild card looking like the worst-case scenario for a club on the rise.
