Nashville Predators: Five Players Who Will Improve Their Goal Scoring
We’re starting to see a dramatic shift into a higher-scoring offensive attack from the Nashville Predators, and these five players will improve their numbers to keep this trend alive.
That reputation has gradually been shifting since Peter Laviolette took over the helm, and it’s about to reach a boiling point. The Nashville Predators have a plethora of young talent that can simply put the puck in the net.
The Predators are trying to build on a league ranking of 11th in goals last season, scoring 14 more than 2015-16. That total should increase yet again, even with the departures of Colin Wilson and James Neal. The reason is simple for me, and it comes down to having faith in the younger core to keep growing into Laviolette’s system.
There’s five key players I expect to make notable leaps forward in their goal scoring this upcoming season that’s less than two months away. Let’s dive in on these ascending goal scorers.
Arvy ready to explode
Both Neal and Wilson’s scoring has to be replaced. Viktor Arvidsson first jumps to my mind as someone ready to explode in terms of goal output.
Arvidsson’s speed and ability to create scoring chances on his own continues to get better. He’s coming off of a 31-goal season, shattering his career high. That total has him tied on the team as the leading goal scorer.
More pressure will be on Arvidsson to create even more scoring chances, and with that more goals. He has all of the tools to do just that. To be quite frank, he doesn’t have the option of regressing in this department. The Nashville Predators will need his offensive firepower to keep them alive in the hunt for another Western Conference Finals appearance. He finishes slightly ahead of last season’s total with 34 goals.
Fiala’s time to shine
It’s still difficult to think about Kevin Fiala‘s nasty injury that knocked him out of the playoffs in the second round against St.Louis. Good news is he’s already been back skating for while, as initially reported by Robby Stanley of NHL.com:
Also, Kevin Fiala is skating again and looks even better today.
— Robby Stanley (@RStanleyNHL) June 29, 2017
Fiala is a trendy choice for being the biggest breakout performer going into next season, even more so than the likes of Arvidsson. The void left behind by Neal might benefit Fiala more so than any other player. As long as his recovery keeps going smoothly, there’s no reason to think he can’t drastically skyrocket to huge goal numbers in 2017-18.
I’m putting his target number at 22 goals, which is modest due to being a little skeptical about how he’ll look initially coming off his injury. He may shatter that total and come closer to 30 goals if he bounces back even better than he’s looking now.
Sissons takes a big step forward
I’ll probably never forget that hat trick from none other than Colton Sissons that help defeat those pesky Ducks and thrust the Predators into the Stanley Cup Final. Even with that, where’s the Sissons love at? I’m seeing him sadly overlooked, and he shouldn’t be.
Sissons busted onto the scene as more than just a role player in the playoffs. It will be easy pickings for him to improve on his modest eight goals. You have to wonder how that’s even possible after watching his playoff performances.
Sissons isn’t going to become the Nashville Predators’ most dynamic scorer, but I expect him to become a more steady contributor. Someone who is capable of another hat trick as he heads into his fourth NHL season. In those four seasons he has just 109 games played. In a more full-time role, he will finish around 20 goals.
Forsberg will push the NHL Leaderboard
Of course the first goal scorer to come to mind for the Predators is Filip Forsberg. We’re all patiently waiting for him to be near the top of the NHL leaderboard in this department. There’s finally a dynamic scorer for the Predators that can actually be among the league’s best.
Forsberg surprisingly took a slight step back in goals last season with 31, falling two short of his 33 in 2015-16. He was just saving his energy for putting up nine postseason goals in 22 games.
The Nashville Predators need Forsberg’s scoring to push them over the hump and get them past a team like Pittsburgh that’s loaded with so many weapons. As far as the regular season goes, he’s not going to slow down. He’s just getting started and the best is yet to come. This is the year he can get 40 goals, which would be a first in franchise history. I want to say he gets there, but he comes up shy at 38 goals. However, he will reach that historical plateau eventually.
Subban will live up to the hype
Most people would be lying if they said they weren’t expecting more scoring from P.K. Subban in his first season in Nashville. That’s not to say his season was a bust, because that’s absolutely false. However, there’s something to be desired. Maybe that’s a product of his massive brand and transcending hype he brings to the table.
Subban has never been a big goal scorer, with his career high being just 15 goals back in the 2014-15 season. His primary role on the team may not to necessarily be scoring, but in this offensive system it should be easy for him to improve upon his 10 goals from last season.
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I’m a firm believer that Subban will elevate his game even more in his second year with the Predators. His assist total will get closer to what he’s known for over his career, and so will his goal total. He finishes with a new career high at 16 goals, and keeps being one of the most larger-than-life characters in all of sports.