Nashville Predators’ 2026-27 Season Preview

Ross Colton, W — Colton is another forward that fits well on the bottom six. MacFarland has actually acquired Colton twice; once when the Tampa Bay Lightning traded him when he was an RFA, and again this offseason from Colorado. Colton is a goal-scoring energy forward, but he had a down season in Colorado last season. He had just a 5.9% shooting percentage, which led to a career-worst nine goals and lower playing time. He can play winger and center for the Predators, and he’s a good reclamation project, like Hoglander.

Jack Drury, C — Drury was also acquired by Colorado, just a week after Colton. He’s another player MacFarland has acquired twice, first from the Carolina Hurricanes this time. Safe to say, Colton and Drury are supposed to be the culture setters in the organization. Drury is one of the best defensive centers in the league, and he should set the tone for the third or fourth line.

Alex Kerfoot, W — Kerfoot was the only forward the Predators signed in free agency. The Predators signed him to a two-year, $7 million contract to complete their forward depth. Kerfoot had a rough deal with injuries last season with the Utah Mammoth, with seven goals and six assists in 34 games. He was much better from March onwards, with six goals and six assists during that time frame. Kerfoot is a high intelligent defensive forward that can provide a spark to the bottom six, just like a lot of these signings.

Vitali Pinchuk, C — Pinchuk was signed from the Kontinental Hockey League in April 2026, far before the offseason. He ranked third in goals and sixth in points last season with the KHL. He plays a lot like Artturi Lehkonen; a great forechecker that relies on his great positioning to generate offensive chances. Time will tell how much his game will convert to the NHL, at least defensively. He’ll start for one game in the AHL before he’s promoted to the NHL

Adam Edstrom, C — Edstrom was acquired by the New York Rangers on the second day of the 2026 NHL draft. He appeared in 35 games for the Rangers last season, with five points in 9:28 of average ice time. The tall skater (stands at 6-foot-7) is also a fast skater, and he generates hits and blocked shots. In 2024-25, Edstrom was fifth among Rangers forwards in blocked shots (34) and sixth in hits (94).

Ilya Lyubushkin, D — Lyubushkin was acquired in the deal that sent Mavrik Bourque to the Predators from Dallas. Signed to a three-year, $9.75 million contract, he was acquired to prevent Nashville from having to trade a first round pick for Bourque. Lyubushkin is a typical grinder as a defenseman: he earned 68 hits and 90 blocked shots last year. He’ll help assist the bottom six lines in Nashville as a third-pairing defenseman.

William Trudeau, D — Trudeau was also acquired by the Rangers, albeit by waivers instead of a trade. Trudeau has never played in the NHL, but he’s played the four seasons with the Laval Rocket of the American Hockey League. Last season, he had eigth goals and 12 assists in 62 games. Overall, he has tallied 90 points (28 goals, 62 assists) in 260 career AHL games, all with Laval, since debuting in 2022-23.

Depatures

Luke Evangelista, RW — One of the most surprising departures of the offseason, and certainly not a player I expected MacFarland to part away with. He entered restricted free agent status after this season, so that was a part of it, but Nashville’s going to miss him. The 2020 second-round pick blossomed last season, jumping from 32 points in 2024-25 to 56 points in 2025-26. He’s a very savvy playmaker who makes intelligent passes and can read the ice very quickly. He’s also solid defensively and he’s a hard worker.

Erik Haula, C — Haula’s departure was a little more expected; as a free agent center who didn’t fit the current core, he signed with the Los Angeles Kings on a two-year, $7.2 million deal. Haula wasn’t what he was with New Jersey, but he’s still a versatile bottom-six forward who excells at killing penalties. The Predators were ranked fifth in penalty-kill percentage, and he was a big part of that, especially when Michael McCarron and Cole Smith were traded away.

Zachary L’Heureux, LW — L’Heureux was notable in Nashville for his playstyle. The 2021 first-round pick was traded along with Fedor Svechkov to the Colorado Avalanche in the Jack Drury deal. With Nashville, he was a solid defensive winger, used on the penalty kill a lot. He was also a little bit of a psychopath on the ice, with his disciplinary history warranting its own Wikipedia section. He played more in 2024-25 for Nashville than 2025-26, but he might become popular in Colorado for his aggressive style of play, if he can stay out of the principal’s office.

Fedor Svechkov, C — Svechkov was another 2021 first-round pick traded in the Jack Drury deal. He’s played more than L’Heureux, and his 70 games last season suggests he’s more likely to be a full-time NHLer than L’Heureux. However, Svechkov wasn’t able to find a distinct role with the Predators. Through 70 games, he had four goals and 13 points with a minus-six plus/minus, but the only thing he excelled at was drawing penalties. He wasn’t asked to be on special teams much. He’s got good intangibles, though, so if there’s a good middle-six forward in him, the Avalanche have a good shot at finding out.

Justin Barron, D — Barron is a late arrival to the departures list, as he was claimed by the St. Louis Blues a few days before the last preseason game. Unfortuantely, he just ran out of favor in Nashville. He was acquired from the Montreal Canadiens for Alexandre Carrier in 2024, and while Carrier has been a solid second-pairing defenseman, Barron didn’t fit in Nashville. He has a good shot, but he rarely got to use it, as he had no goals and nine assists in 52 games. He had some tough turnovers in his own zone, and with Chris MacFarland actually trading him from Colorado to Montreal, there was a growing belief he would be on the outs in Nashville. The Blues are hoping he develops.

Expected Debutants

Vitali Pinchuk, C — Pinchuk didn’t make the NHL roster, but he’s more than likely going to last just a game or two in the AHL before getting called up. He should get a shot on the third line. He had some great moments in his only preseason game, and it could be argued that the only reason why he didn’t make the roster was because of a hit he sustained in practice.

Felix Nilsson, C — Nilsson impressed me when I was doing my prospects list for Nashville. The Swedish forward should make his American Hockey League debut, but the second game of the preseason made me believe he could be more NHL ready than people think. He had the game-winning goal against the Lightning and won several puck battles.

Aiden Fink, RW — This might be more of a stretch, but I think Fink could do well enough in the AHL to get a shot at the NHL at the end of the season. He had just six games in the AHL last season, he had 10 points (three goals, seven assists). He should get an extended look in the AHL, then he could be promoted into the NHL to see what he could do in that level. I love his story, and he is continuously proving people wrong

William Trudeau, D — I mentioned about him in the new additions tab, but since he’s made the roster, there’s a good chance he makes his debut sometime at the beginning of the season.

Tanner Molendyk, D — Molendyk really shined during the preseason, especially in the first game, where there were no starters except for Nick Perbix or Juuse Saros. He had a solid, albeit unspectacular rookie season in the AHL last year, with 23 points in 60 games. If some injuries or trades occur, Molendyk could be in line for an NHL spot.

Prospects to Watch

I wrote an article on the top 10 prospects in Nashville’s system, but the Predators’ prospect pool is deep and widespread, so there are plenty of players in their pool that could make an impact in the coming years, whether it’s this season or a few seasons later.

Brady Martin, C, AHL — In my opinion, Martin was talented enough to make the NHL roster. The highest draft pick in Nashville’s system will be in the AHL this season, but I think with the sample size he showed in the preseason, he should have a chance to prove himself in the NHL level. He’s always been known for his bone-crunching hits and great effort, but he’s made a lot of strides in his offensive game. I don’t know how much his offensive ceiling can clear, but Martin was an intriguing prospect in the World Juniors, and I’m interested in his AHL season (and how long it is).

Wyatt Cullen, W, NCAA — Cullen used his high-end hockey sense and intelligence to become the USNTDP’s best player last season. His puck-handling is insane, and his skating helps him use his full hockey intelligence. He is always a scoring threat because he’s always finding assists at every angle of the ice.

Yegor Surin, C, KHL — Surin has one more season in the KHL before he can head to the AHL, and boy, am I excited to see him when he gets there. He is a deft power forward that has great stick-handling skills and an awesome shot. He also has championship pedigree, winning back-to-back Gargarin Cups in 2024-25 and 2025-26.

Ryker Lee, LW, NCAA — Lee, similar to Cullen, has immense high-scoring upside. He’s a little raw, but his appearance at the World Junior Summer Showcase showed what he could be: a speedy winger with great hands and puck-handling skills.

Cameron Reid, D, NCAA — Reid has always had the defensive abilities, but it was always about developing his offensive skill. He surpassed the 50-point mark for the second straight season in the Ontario Hockey League, but he had 56 points in 57 games in 2025-26, versus 54 points in 67 games in 2024-25. He also led the Kitchener Rangers to a J. Ross Robertson Cup as the captain of the squad. He could become the captain for a national-title contending team at Michigan.

Tommy Bleyl, D, NCAA — Bleyl was selected 31st overall after a breakout campaing where he had 81 points as a Quebec-Maritime Junior Hockey League rookie. He’s a very highly-skilled and speedy defenseman. He skates very well, and he plays a calm, collected game defensively while attacking efficiently in the offensive zone. I can’t wait to see what he does at Michigan State with Ryker Lee.

Other Prospects: D Tanner Molendyk, C Felix Nilsson, RW Aiden Fink, G Jack Ivankovic, D Alex Huang, Reid Schaefer, LW, Joakim Kemell, RW, Justin Gra, LW, Charlie Puglisi, C, Hiroki Gojsic, RW, Joey Willis, C, Teddy Stiga, C, Viggo Gustafsson, D, Jacob Rombach, D, Isak Posch, G

Three Major Goals

Decide what direction you want to take. The Predators seem to be stuck in a middling state: not good enough to compete for one of the top three spots in the Central Division, but not bad enough to earn good odds for a top five or top three draft pick. That’s been the story with the franchise from the late David Poile years to now, minus the 2024-25 season.

They’ve been able to develop a top prospect pool since then, but there hasn’t been a crown jewel, generational talent to come out of it so far. To me, it would be easier to rebuild than compete for a title, but there will certainly be turnover in the coming years in the Central. The Predators need to decide if they want to go with this core, which is very old, or move on and start amassing young talent to compete in the later part of the 2020s.

Figure out what to do with Ryan O’Reilly. Ryan O’Reilly is an unrestricted free agent after this season, and he’s coming off of a career year. He’s on the first line for the Predators, but he is more likely viewed as an amazing second-line center for a playoff team in desperate need of that.

He didn’t have any trade protection in his deal with the Predators, but with his leadership role and his impact on the community, along with the Predators being in the hunt, they didn’t pull the trigger. This time, Chris MacFarland and company needs to make a decision.

Breakout seasons for Matthew Wood and Mavrik Bourque. The Luke Evangelista trade was surprising, but winger Matthew Wood might’ve benefitted from the move. He’s going to get a ton more opportunities on the first line, with his chemistry with Steven Stamkos. I’m expecting a big leap from him in year 2 after a great year 1. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him reach around 50 points in a full season on the first line.

Mavrik Bourque is due for a breakout, too. He had mostly third-line minutes to start, but he was much better from March onwards, with 18 points in 23 games, and that coincided with more minutes due to a long-term injury to Roope Hintz. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Bourque get around 50, maybe touching 60 points this season. He could revitalize Jonathan Marchessault.

Final Prediction

Opening Day Lineup:

Forwards

Filip Forsberg—Ryan O’Reilly—Matthew Wood

Steven Stamkos—Mavrik Bourque—Jonathan Marchessault

Alex Kerfoot—Jack Drury—Nils Hoglander

Reid Schaefer—Adam Edstrom—Ross Colton

Defense

Brady Skjei—Roman Josi

Nicholas Hague—Ryan Ufko

Adam Wilsby—Ilya Lyubushkin

Goaltenders

Juuse Saros

Justus Annunen

Extras:

Jack Achan, William Trudeau, Nick Perbix, Vitali Pinchuk*

*Pinchuk is not on the NHL roster, but I wanted to include him because he will more than likely be part of it in a few days.

Central Division Outlook

1. Colorado Avalanche (110 points)
2. Dallas Stars (106 points)
3. Utah Mammoth (101 points)
4. Minnesota Wild (94 points)
5. St. Louis Blues (92 points)
6. Nashville Predators (86 points)
7. Winnipeg Jets (80 points)
8. Chicago Blackhawks (72 points)

The Predators finish around their point total from last season, even if I feel like they’ll look like a better team than last season. They definitely have more depth in the forward core than last season, even with the loss of Luke Evangelista. However, I still think the Blues and Mammoth have higher high-end talent in their lineup so far.

With Nashville’s advanced age of several of their core members (Ryan O’Reilly, Roman Josi, Jonathan Marchessault, and Steven Stamkos are all 35 or older) they could be due for some regression. Hopefully, some of the young talent they’ve acquired can give them a shot in the arm and some more forward depth, but it still feels like this team is a seller at the deadline, especially if O’Reilly generates interest again. In MacFarland’s first year as general manager, it’s all about finding core pieces for competing for the Stanley Cup in a few seasons.