Nashville Predators defenseman Mattias Ekholm is coming off of a career-high season in points and has high expectations going into the 2019-20 season.
While the Nashville Predators had a sour end to their season after getting knocked out in the first round of the playoffs, they have plenty of things to hang their heads high about. One of the biggest headlines of the Predators’ 2018-19 season was the outstanding performance of Mattias Ekholm.
The 29-year-old defenseman had an incredible season as he played 80 games, scored eight goals, tallied 36 assists, clocked 47 penalty minutes and had a plus-minus rating of +27. With 44 points, Ekholm surpassed his previous season career-high in points by nine.
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Ekholm was the second leading point-producing defenseman for the Predators, standing only behind Roman Josi last season. At 6’4” and 215 pounds, he is an intimidating presence on the ice. However, he is more of a puck-moving defenseman rather than a physical, shut-down defenseman.
Going into the 2019-20 season, Ekholm is expected to be on the first defensemen pairing with Roman Josi. Given that he will be on the first line pairing, it is expected that he will receive a lot of ice time and have the opportunity to increase his point production.
In 470 career NHL games played (all with Nashville), Ekholm has scored 37 goals, racked on 126 assists and accumulated 233 penalty minutes. With 470 games played with Nashville, Ekholm is a veteran with the franchise and holds the honor of being an assistant captain.
With P.K. Subban, one of Nashville’s better defenseman, being shipped off in a trade this offseason, Ekholm and the other Predators’ defenseman must pick up the slack and workload.
Although losing Subban hurts the Predators’ blue line, the team feels they can optimize the missing void by utilizing young defenseman Dante Fabbro and signing forward talent like Matt Duchene.
The 2019-20 season will be a big test for the Nashville Predators as this season will be a strong indicator on their future. The Predators’ gap to compete competitively to win the Stanley Cup is winding down and it will take players like Ekholm to help get the Predators to the promised land.