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Nashville Predators: Offseason Central Division Power Rankings

By Chad Minton

NASHVILLE, TN - MAY 10: Roman Josi #59 of the Nashville Predators shakes hands with Blake Wheeler #26 of the Winnipeg Jets in Game Seven of the Western Conference Second Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena on May 10, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Russell/NHLI via Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TN - MAY 10: Roman Josi #59 of the Nashville Predators shakes hands with Blake Wheeler #26 of the Winnipeg Jets in Game Seven of the Western Conference Second Round during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena on May 10, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Russell/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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DENVER, CO – APRIL 22: Colorado Avalanche defenseman Samuel Girard #49 and teammates goaltender Andrew Hammond #35, defenseman Nikita Zadorov #16 and right wing Mikko Rantanen #96 thank the fans after the Nashville Predators defeated the Colorado Avalanche 5-0 in game 6 of round one of the Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Pepsi Center April 22, 2018. The Predators won the series 4-2. (Photo by Andy Cross/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
DENVER, CO – APRIL 22: Colorado Avalanche defenseman Samuel Girard #49 and teammates goaltender Andrew Hammond #35, defenseman Nikita Zadorov #16 and right wing Mikko Rantanen #96 thank the fans after the Nashville Predators defeated the Colorado Avalanche 5-0 in game 6 of round one of the Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Pepsi Center April 22, 2018. The Predators won the series 4-2. (Photo by Andy Cross/The Denver Post via Getty Images) /

Colorado Avalanche

We saw loud and clear that the Avalanche are on the rise when they gave the Predators everything they could handle in the first round of the playoffs. The Predators may have taken them for granted early on, but you still have to credit the Avalanche putting up an impressive fight.

Heading into this season, the Avalanche are looking to maintain their momentum. Their top two scoring threats, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen, make the top line deadly. There are question marks after that, but I see some promise for improvement for role players like Matthew Nieto and Tyson Jost. It’s a gamble to say they maintain their surge up the division hierarchy due to their depth.

The Avalanche are in an interesting situation at goaltender. They have a battle between Philipp Grubauer and Semyon Varlamov. Both are good enough to keep the Avalanche in plenty of games. I expect Grubauer to end up being the primary starter when the season starts.

Can MacKinnon repeat his MVP-caliber season with another? I think he can, but that won’t be enough to carry them to fourth in the division. If a few role players take the load off the top line, they’ll take another step forward.

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