Official Nashville Predators Thread

#8,001
#8,001
1st in defensive rankings

1. Nashville Predators

Top pairing: P.K. Subban, Mattias Ekholm
Key stats: 526 minutes, 55.8 Corsi for percentage, plus-3 goal differential

If you were to rank the best pairs in the NHL, Nashville's first and second pair would both belong in the top 10. The Preds' Subban-Ekholm and Roman Josi-Ryan Ellis combos are both dominant. Subban's outstanding skating and offensive skill combined with Ekholm's length, smarts and sound defensive play create huge challenges for opponents, while Josi and Ellis are both mobile and offensively gifted. The Josi-Ellis pair has a 54.7 Corsi for percentage and plus-14 5-on-5 goal differential in 563 minutes together.

Nashville's defense played a huge role in its run to the Stanley Cup Final last year, and the Preds have improved their depth. With former Shark Matt Irwin and the addition of veteran Alexei Emelin, coach Peter Laviolette now has the flexibility to spread his talented defenders throughout his three pairs.
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#8,004
#8,004
But there is one thing this year’s Predators have in common with last year’s: They’re succeeding without a bona fide offensive star. No Predator scored more than 61 points last year, and it’s been more of the same this season. Seven Predator forwards finished with at least 35 points, but none eclipsed 64. Four Predator forwards scored at least 23 goals, but there’s not a 30-goal scorer in the bunch. Nashville has plenty of players who can hurt opposing defenses, but it doesn’t have a Connor McDavid or an Alexander Ovechkin. Which is to say, it doesn’t have a single skater who is capable of changing a game by himself.
You might expect this from a team that nabbed the last spot in the playoffs, but it’s quite unusual for a Presidents’ Trophy-winning team. In the more than three decades that the award has been handed out, Nashville has the lowest top scorer of any team to receive it.
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The Predators Don’t Need An Ovechkin Or A Crosby | FiveThirtyEight
 
#8,005
#8,005
Pretty interesting. If you look at the second chart, its not out of the ordinary to not have a "star" and win the Cup
 
#8,009
#8,009
YankeeVol said:
Pretty interesting. If you look at the second chart, its not out of the ordinary to not have a "star" and win the Cup
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I think the writer of that article is dead on it when he compares the Predators this year to the 2011 Bruins. That Bruins team had no flash but played solid team defense, had great goaltending, and got offensive contributions from a variety of guys.

Also, no Predator has more than 64 points, but that is a little misleading because our leading scorer (Forsberg) only played in 67 games. He was almost a point-per-game player and was on pace for 78 points over an 82-game season, but that is still quite a bit lower than most of the historical top scorers for a Cup-winning team.
 
#8,016
#8,016
Two dumb penalties. Unscathed so far. They've had some good chances just can't get that last little oomph
 
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