Nashville Predators: Five players could surprise us this year
When it comes to expectations, the stats sheets don’t lie. But, there is always a surprise in store. Who are the Nashville Predators’ players to watch?
We know what to expect. We watch players every year, paying attention to the stats they accumulate. The back of the cards don’t lie, or so they say in baseball. But the same is true with the Nashville Predators. Coming into each season, we have an idea of what each player can – and likely will – produce during the year.
For example, Viktor Arvidsson now has two seasons of 61 points, averaging 30 goals and 31 assists each year. Or, take Roman Josi. You can almost write with a pen the Predators’ captain will score 13 goals and 40 assists.
More from Editorials
- Captain Candidates if Nashville Predators Didn’t Have Roman Josi
- How the Nashville Predators Have Trended over Past Five Years
- Three Reasons Nashville Predators can Shock the World in 2023-24
- Three Different Outcomes for Juuse Saros’ Future with Nashville Predators
- Top-5 Nashville Predators Home Games to Attend for Upcoming Season
Yet, even with these consistent numbers, there is always a surprise player or two. Take last season. Did anyone truly see Pekka Rinne winning 42 games in 59 starts? Or holding opponents scoreless eight times? These were nearly career highs. Rinne won 43 games in 2011-12, but that took 73 starts to reach. He also averages just under 5 shutouts per season not counting last year.
Then, there is the case of Craig Smith. His performance last season mimicked that of 2013-14, where is gained 24 goals and 28 assists. In 2017-18, Smith reached 25 goals and 26 assists. This is considerably different from his stats in the previous three seasons. Maybe not a major surprise, but still better than most people expected from the speedy forward.
There are several players that could surprise us next year. Here are five players we are watching.