Erik Haula Prefers To Stay With Predators

According to Kevin Weekes of ESPN, Erik Haula, one of three free agents on the Nashville Predators set to become unrestricted on July 1, wants to remain in Tennessee.

The 35-year-old ended the last season of a three-year, $9.45MM ($3.15MM AAV) contract, scoring 14 goals for 38 points in 81 games this past campaign in Nashville, which is a contract high in tallies. Along with that, he triumphed at the 2026 Milan Olympics, scoring at a point-per-game in six games with Finland en route to a bronze medal. Weekes projected that Haula could command an average annual value of around $3.5 MM or more on his next contract with the Predators, as AFPAnalytics projects him to sign a one-year, $3.3MM deal, which he’d take up around 3% of the Predators’ cap hit.

Before he arrived in Nashville, Haula was originally a seventh-round pick of the Minnesota Wild and has signed six different contracts throughout his NHL tenure, none of which were longer than three years. After playing for Minnesota in the NCAA, he joined the Wild in 2013-14 on a two-year entry-level contract at $900k cap hit. He then signed a two-year deal with a  $1MM AAV before the Vegas Golden Knights claimed him in the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft. After signing a three-year contract worth $8.25MM ($2.75MM AAV) at age 26 with Vegas, he scored a career high 55 points in 76 games. In the final year of that Vegas deal, they traded him to Carolina, before the Hurricanes traded him to the Panthers.

The Bruins then inked him to a two-year $4.75MM ($2.375MM AAV) contract, which he spent between Boston and New Jersey, after the Bruins sent him there in exchange for Pavel Zacha. New Jersey extended him on a three-year deal, where, after two seasons, they traded him back to Nashville for defenseman Jeremy Hanzel and a fourth-round pick in 2025.

The Pori native, if he were to remain off the market, would be integral as a much-needed veteran for a Predators squad that would ideally benefit from it. Aside from top-line center Ryan O’Reilly at age 35, Nashville’s center corps consists of Matthew Wood, Brady Martin, and Fedor Svechkov, all of whom are under 23 years of age. Keeping Haula in the organization not only bolsters the center depth but also provides versatility for the forward group, as Haula can notably provide his services as a left winger if needed.

The Predators have around $23MM in cap space, more than enough to ink Haula to another contract if they choose to go in that direction. They ended up sixth in the Central Division, missing the playoffs by four points in the 2025-26 season. Free agents Nashville will need to assess include the likes of forwards Tyson Jost and Kevin Gravel, rounded out by restricted free agent Justin Barron. It should be noted that the Preds have Matt Duchene and Kyle Turris’ charges at $3.55MM against the cap next season.

Despite missing the postseason for the past two campaigns, the Predators have a mix of youth talent and veteran stars in Filip Forsberg, Roman Josi, and Juuse Saros, who can be supported in their quest for the dance while still under contract. The salary cap rising to $104MM benefits everyone, but after the Predators inked Jonathan Marchessault, Steven Stamkos, and Brady Skjei to major contracts, they need to capitalize on the window they have with these notable names.