The preseason is finished, roster battles have been decided and it is time for the new-look Nashville Predators to embark on the 2023-24 season. An interesting year lies ahead for the boys in gold as there isn’t a clear picture of just who they will be. Are they a team led by veteran stars that can contend for a playoff run? Or, are the Predators just treading water in relative relevance until the next wave of talent takes over? As such, setting goals for this season is rather difficult because where do you start? There could be more roster turnover so going player by player doesn’t make a lot of sense. Also the new systems make statistical goals a challenge. So with the arrival of opening night I’m going to look at some bigger picture goals for what the Nashville Predators need to accomplish in 2023-24.
Barry Trotz – Find a Superstar Forward
You can see the picture taking shape. Through a multitude of moves the Predators have amassed both a deep prospect pool and a significant amount of future draft picks. The forward group has added an impressive mix of skill sets but what they still lack, and have lacked since Paul Kariya, is a truly game changing forward. Looking down the list of recent Stanley Cup winners almost every team has had that forward who changes the game and forces opponents to game plan just for them. Maybe Luke Evangelista, Joakim Kemell or Matthew Wood become that superstar, but it’s a big leap from very good to elite. As the season progresses, Barry Trotz must be prepared to use all assets at his disposal to bring in the type of player that can elevate the Predators to heights previously unseen.
Andrew Brunette – Make Diamonds Out of Coal
Much has been made of Andrew Brunette’s coaching contributions to the offensive outputs in Florida and New Jersey. But it has also been noted that Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau and Jack Hughes are not walking through the door in Nashville. In fact, the Predators have been one of the worst offensive teams in the NHL for multiple years. So while Brunette clearly has offensive acumen as a coach, he will have to bring the production to life in players who have either not reached those heights consistently or those who are still early in their careers. Brunette will need to identify a gear in his players that they didn’t know they had and channel it into high end offensive production.
Ryan O’Reilly – Be Maverick to Nashville’s Top Gun
An NHL legend brought in to guide the young guns reaching for the stars. Just like Tom Cruise’s Maverick going back to Top Gun, O’Reilly has come to Nashville to help teach the likes of Parssinen, Tomasino, Evangelista and eventually Kemell how to be a top level NHL player. While O’Reilly has never been a top of the league scorer, he possesses all the intangibles the aforementioned prospects will need to learn to bring the best of themselves to the ice. This season is just the start of the tutelage but it will lay the groundwork for Nashville’s prospect talent to have a Maverick to emulate.
Glass / Tomasino / Novak / Evangelista – Prove It
I’ll admit this one may be a little unfair but these four forwards are all being given a significant opportunity to play major minutes for the Predators. If they can produce then the ceiling for Nashville changes dramatically. With multiple players in Milwaukee pushing for the same opportunities, these four will all need to show that they can contribute consistently at the NHL level. And oh by the way, none of these four forwards have more than two years on their contracts. Big years from this group on the scoresheet would not only enhance the Predators’ likelihood for a playoff push but will also put the players in line for big paydays.
Fabbro / Carrier / Lauzon – Stake Your Claim
When the Predators chose not only to keep Tyson Barrie but to also sign Luke Schenn as a free agent the defensive pool suddenly became quite crowded. This is felt no greater than with three defensemen who would appear to be competing for two lineup spots on a nightly basis. Dante Fabbro, Alexandre Carrier and Jeremy Lauzon all bring different skill sets to the Predators defensive corps but also all would rightly expect to be playing on a nightly basis. Each player will enter this regular season knowing they need to bring their best every day to claim their spot not only in the lineup this season but potentially on Nashville’s roster going forward.
Nashville Predators Organization – Recapture the Vibes
Aligning the business of sports with a fanbase is a continual balance of supply and demand. The fanbase laid the groundwork for 2015-2017 when Nashville became widely recognized as one of the greatest environments for attending a hockey game. However the demand that resulted drove the cost of entry to a place where the longtime fans who were used to $35 tickets no longer felt seen. The heightened cost combined with a declining on-ice product has created a level of disillusion and even apathy among the fanbase. The same fanbase that sees Nashville SC engaging a broad array of fans across Nashville and creating a unique and exciting atmosphere. But it’s a new era now. A GM verbally committed to exciting hockey, a coach known for his offensive acumen and a rising crop of skilled players are an opportunity to re-engage with the community at large and bring those starved fans back into the building. It’s up to the organization to provide pathways for fans new and old to engage in the vibe that is Smashville.
At the outset of this article I asked two questions: Are the Nashville Predators a team led by veteran stars that can contend for a playoff run? Or, are the Predators just treading water in relative relevance until the next wave of talent takes over? In actuality, both are probably true. With an elite goaltender, an elite defenseman and a wide array of talent the Predators have an unknown ceiling if they all play to their capability. If they don’t, the veteran presence should still be enough to keep the floor from being too low. From the front office, to the coaching staff and on down to the players there are ways in which the present can be maximized while also planning for what looks to be a prosperous future. Watching those two roads and how they either converge or diverge will be fantastic theater.
