By Ron Wynn
NASHVILLE, TN — The Nashville Predators now look to the 2024-2025 season following their tough 1-0 home loss to the Vancouver Canucks last Friday in Game 6 of their first round Stanley Cup playoff series. Given that no one at the start of the year predicted that the Predators would return to the playoffs, for the most part they had a positive and surprising season. But if they want to take the next step, the Predators will have to do some serious thinking about a few issues in the offseason.
The first and possibly foremost concerns goalie Juuse Saros. Saros was spectacular in Game 6, making 28 saves on 29 shots, many of them highlight reel variety. But this was not his best year and certainly not up to the level of his Vezina Trophy candidacy year two seasons ago. He will be in the final year of his contract next season. There were repeated talks about a trade throughout the season, an those are bound to come up once again. Saros’ record for the year was 35-24-5, with a .906 save percentage. Over the last 20 games that percentage improved to .914. In the playoffs it was .900. It can be argued Vancouver did a better job in protecting all three of its goalies, especially third-stringer Artus Silvos, who played the final four games. The next goalie in the Predators system, Yaroslav Askarov, had a fine year in the minors and many consider him ready to take the next step. So if GM Barry Trotz can get a good package for Saros, will he trade him is a question that will certainly be addressed.
A second need is for more scoring. Outside of Filip Forsberg and Roman Josi, the Predators didn’t have a topline scoring threat other teams feared. At various times different players stepped up and had their moments, but in the playoffs, a third or even fourth consistent scoring threat was needed. Whether they look to do something in free agency or bring up players from the minors, there have to be more contributions from the other lines if Nashville wants to be a Cup contender.
The lack of success on the power play has been a recurring theme since 2020. It resurfaced in these playoffs, as they scored only two times on 22 attempts. In the climatic Game 6, they failed to score on a four-minute power play when the game was still scoreless. Considering that it’s been a problem with multiple coaches, it will be instructive to see what happens in the future. There are a couple of other things that are hard to tell whether they were just cyclical or long-term issues. The baffling inability to consistently win at home puzzled all year except for one stretch near the end, and they lost all three home playoff games. Also the collapses in Games 1 and 4, both of which they led until late. Some of that may be attributed to a lack of playoff experience.
The Predators have two candidates for postseason honors. Captain Josi is a finalist for the Norris Trophy, which would be his second. Andrew Brunette is a finalist for the Jack Adams Award, the NHL’s version of Coach of the Year, his second nomination there. If either or both win, it would be a fitting conclusion to this better than anticipated year.
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