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Nashville Predators: Exploring Early Woes After a Slow Start

By Aly Dhanani |
Oct 18, 2016; Nashville, TN, USA; Nashville Predators defenseman P.K. Subban (76) makes a save in front of goalie Pekka Rinne (35) during the second period against the Dallas Stars at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 18, 2016; Nashville, TN, USA; Nashville Predators defenseman P.K. Subban (76) makes a save in front of goalie Pekka Rinne (35) during the second period against the Dallas Stars at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Off to a horrendous 3-5-3 start, things are starting to get ugly with the Nashville Predators, a team that many expected to contend for the Stanley Cup. What went wrong?

There have been plenty of teams to stumble out the gate to start the 2016-17 season, but none more surprising than the troubling start of the Nashville Predators.

Some teams, like the Los Angeles Kings and Dallas Stars, can at least blame injuries as a correlation to their starts to the season, but the Predators? A perfectly healthy team that is struggling to click despite making it to the third round of the playoffs last season.

It’s not like we haven’t seen this before. The Anaheim Ducks were even worse out the gate last October. But there are a couple of reasons why the Preds early season slide is concerning.

Goaltending

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Let’s use the Ducks as a comparison to Nashville’s slump to start the season. The reason for the Ducks losing streak was an inability to score. For Nashville, that doesn’t really seem to be the problem. Nashville’s power play percentage of 28.6% is second in the NHL, and the

So then what is holding the Preds back? Defense and goaltending, it seems. The Predators, a team  usually regarded as one of the better defensive teams in the league, are a miserable twenty-fourth in goals against per game.

One of the reasons for this is the poor play of goaltender Pekka Rinne, who was considered a strong candidate for a bounce-back season after posting a .908 SV% and 2.48 GAA last season.

Rinne has been very on and off this season, downright stellar on some occasions and mediocre the next day. He definitely needs to be more consistent, but some of the blame also rests on the shoulders of Nashville’s blue line.

Puck Possession

October 27, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Nashville Predators goalie Pekka Rinne (35) defends the goal against the Los Angeles Kings during the overtime period at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
October 27, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Nashville Predators goalie Pekka Rinne (35) defends the goal against the Los Angeles Kings during the overtime period at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports /

The Nashville Predators have been pretty bad at both generating and giving up scoring chances so far, which is crucial to a team’s success.

The Preds rank a meager 28th in the league in shot attempts percentage close (a calculated percentage which includes both a team’s shot attempts against and shot attempts for when a team is within one goal or tied in the third period), behind even the last place Arizona Coyotes.

Last year? Nashville was one of the NHL’s top teams at generating and giving up shot attempts, finishing seventh in the league  in front of teams like Chicago and Washington.

Next: Week 4 NHL Power Rankings

What has been the cause for such a drastic change?

  • The Predators defenders have been having a hard time getting the puck out of their zone.
  • The Predators defenders and forwards are struggling to get the puck to the net.

Do you think Nashville’s staggering start to the season is an anomaly, or is it a sign of future struggles in Music City? Let us know in the comments section.

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