Nashville Predators: Potential P.K. Subban Trade Partners
Biggest Need for Subban
The New Jersey Devils took a big step back this season after making a surprise trip to the playoffs last year. The biggest reason was Taylor Hall’s absence. After being named the MVP of the league last season, Hall finished this year with only 33 games played. The Devils have a breadth of young talent on the roster with a solid mix of good veterans.
However, they don’t have a true, elite defenseman on their team. They have top-four quality guys with the likes of Damon Severson, Sami Vatanen, and Will Butcher. But, they don’t have that superstar. Subban can be that guy.
The Devils get their elite defenseman and the Predators get back a top-four d-man and a seriously good, young NHLer. Severson was just given a new contract that is good for 4 more years and $4.166 million per. Bratt will be a restricted free agent after next season.
Severson instantly slides in to a top-four role with the Predators and has a nice offensive touch. He also adds another blueliner for the Seattle expansion team to take a look at in 2021. Unfortunately, that would bump Dante Fabbro back to the third pairing. But, Fabbro is younger and hasn’t played a full season yet, so the Predators might benefit from not thrusting him into a big role just yet.
Bratt is a high potential forward who has already shown he can play at the NHL level. He averaged 0.65 points per game last season. That would put him at fifth on the Predators. Corey Masisak at the Athletic put Bratt in the “Not going anywhere, unless it’s a blockbuster,” category in his post about potential movement for New Jersey this offseason. Getting only Subban back may not add up for both players, but Nashville can sweeten the pot with draft picks.