The Nashville Predators have not been world beaters by any means like many believed they could be at the beginning of the season, but they will punch their ticket to the playoffs for the third year in a row. Do they have a first round upset in their plans?
The Nashville Predators made one of the, if not the biggest trades of the offseason when they traded long time captain Shea Weber to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for PK Subban. They haven’t challenged for the division this year, but they’re a team that can strike when you least expect it.
EXPECTATIONS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SEASON
After adding PK Subban, many believed he was a better fit than Shea Weber for Peter Laviolette’s version of the Predators. Couple that with a healthy Pekka Rinne and a group of good young scorers up front, many believed the Predators would take a step towards becoming an elite team.
Things didn’t necessarily turn out that way as the Predators stumbled a bit out of the gate with a 2-5-1 record in October before evening out with a 9-3-2 November.
Like I mentioned in the previous “Cup Case” article for the Montreal Canadiens, EA Sports did an NHL 17 simulation that pitted PK’s old team against PK’s new team for the Stanley Cup Final.
BIGGEST STRENGTH: BREAKOUT OFFENSIVE SEASONS
Filip Forsberg, Viktor Arvidsson and Ryan Ellis are the biggest contributors, and even a bounce back from new captain Mike Fisher has aided the Predators’ offence throughout the season.
Forsberg started the year out slow like last season before getting hot during an incredible stretch in February. Forsberg now has 30 goals on the year to make him the first player in Nashville Predators history to score 30 in back to back seasons.
Viktor Arvidsson has seemingly become an impact player out of nowhere. He was drafted as a 20-year-old out of the Swedish Elite League in the 4th round after putting up an impressive 40 points in 50 games. The young Swede jumped the pond and turned pro with the Milwaukee Admirals the next year where he led the team with 55 points in 70 games.
Arvidsson had a decent, but underwhelming 16 points in 56 NHL games. It’s fair to say nobody expected the offensive explosion he would commence this year.
Ryan Ellis has helped offset some of the offence from the back end they lost by deals of Seth Jones and Shea Weber. Ellis currently has 37 points on the year besting his career high of 32 set last season. It looks like Ellis has found his offensive gear in the big leagues after starring for the Windsor Spitfires in junior.
BIGGEST QUESTION MARK: PEKKA RINNE
There was a time when Pekka Rinne was considered one of the best goaltenders in the league and the savior of the Nashville Predators. These days Pekka Rinne could be looked at as a liability more often than not.
One look at the Nashville Predator’s Fan Page on Facebook and you can see more and more fans getting frustrated with Rinne’s play. In fact, more Preds fans would like to see rookie goaltender Juuse Saros get a few more starts.
Rinne’s stat line doesn’t read like a particular couple of starters in Dallas, so calling Rinne a liability is a little outlandish.
Instead, it’s just that Rinne is not a dominant force in between the pipes anymore. He had a few tough stretches in the playoffs last year, especially in Game 7 against the San Jose Sharks.
Any goalie can get hot and Rinne has a track record of being able to steal games, but he is 34 and age could be catching up to him.
WHY NASHVILLE CAN WIN THE STANLEY CUP
The Predators have a group that gained a lot of valuable playoff experience last year and have been able to strike offence from all four lines on any given night. While their top line of Ryan Johansen, Viktor Arvidsson and Filip Forsberg has done most of the heavey lifting, the Preds have a solid secondary scoring tank ready to deploy.
Colin Wilson and Craig Smith can’t seem to put together two consecutive solid seasons of production, but they are still skilled enough players to not give any room to. Wilson had a hot playoff stretch last year and will be looking to repeat. Smith only had a goal and an assist throughout the playoffs last year and he’s a few years removed from a solid 20-goal season. Players like that go under the radar prior to the playoffs and find a way to become unlikely heroes.
Nashville has always been known for their defense and they still boast a solid top four despite having to move on from Shea Weber, Ryan Suter and Seth Jones.
If the Preds go up against the Chicago Blackhawks, not many will pick them to win, but stranger upsets have happened. It may not be known to the entirety of the NHL, but the Hawks and Preds have quite the rivalry these days. If Rinne gets on a roll and the unlikely suspects play with a fire in their eyes anything is possible. Remember the 2012 L.A. Kings defeated the Canucks in round one as the 8th seed, and the 2006 Edmonton Oilers defeated the President’s Trophy winning Detroit Red Wings. Upsets happen.
Next: Making the Case for the New York Ranger's Cup Chances
If the Preds take on the struggling Minnesota Wild, it would be more likely that the Preds would get some fanfare from NHL analysts. Considering Bruce Boudreau’s poor playoff track record and Laviolette’s rather impressive playoff record, the Preds could smother the Wild offence.