Nashville Predators: The Five Predators you meet at Thanksgiving Dinner

The cousin nobody really likes

There is always one cousin the rest of the family can’t stand. Except for their mom. Get their dad in a room alone and he will admit the cousin is annoying. They are the ones that wants to be the all-time quarterback for the annual football game. If they play, it is terrible. Or, maybe they are the one exaggerating their life exploits. We all know this person…..or are this person. And, every year, we either hope they don’t come to dinner or maybe become less annoying.

If a Predators’ player would be this way, it is Alexei Emelin. How many times have we watched games and just put our head in our hands because of him this year?

When the Nashville Predators made the trade for Emelin this offseason, fans speculated another trade was to follow. You know, the one to bring Matt Duchene to Nashville. It didn’t happen. And, he was not part of the trade to bring in Kyle Turris. We are stuck with Emelin.

Now, it has not been all bad. There are a few moments in which Emelin provided a spark and helped the Predators. However, not too many. We all remember the play against the New York Rangers. Emelin whiffed on a puck clear, leading to a goal. In 19 games played, Emelin achieved seven CorsiFor ratings below 40%. He is on pace for a career-low in that category.

Plus, he keeps giving the puck away. Sure, Filip Forsberg and P.K. Subban have more giveaways this season than Emelin, but they are commonly pushing the puck forward and handle it far more. The defensive zone is where Emelin turns the puck over.