Nashville Predators Team MVPs of the Shortened Regular Season

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The NHL recently announced its Return-To-Play plan, thus ending the regular season. Who are the MVPs for the Nashville Predators?

The NHL has had one of the craziest seasons in history. The season pause aside, the Nashville Predators have experienced some highs and lows, but some players had standout seasons.

The Predators were on the upswing before the COVID-19 pandemic ended the regular season. Their recent play propelled them forward and helped them get into the playoffs.

With the eyes on the 24-team postseason, the regular season can be put behind us. The Predators had to really grind towards the end to stay afloat in standings.

While there have been some issues with the team, there are three players that have had great seasons and are deserving of the MVP title.

Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Juuse Saros got them where they are now

Saros didn’t have a great start to the season, but flipped a switch in January. It’s almost like two different people were playing.

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The first half of the season was terrible for Saros. So bad, in fact, he only had five wins in 20 starts.

In October, his GAA ballooned to just a shade under four goals per game. It lowered a bit by December, but was still pretty bad.

By February, his GAA had dropped all the way to 2.33, before rising a bit to 2.7 goals allowed per game.

When John Hynes became the new head coach, Saros seemed to be energized by the change. He began to start more often, and by February had taken over the starting goaltender role from Pekka Rinne.

During the second half of the season, Saros piled up some impressive wins. He registered a shutout win against the New York Islanders, a win against the defending Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues, and back-to-back shutout wins against the Dallas Stars.

Saros also had a career number of shutouts this season with four. What’s impressive about this stat is that his four shutouts happened in the second half of this season.

The Predators were riding a three-game win streak before the season was paused. Saros was a factor in this and should get the start when the playoffs start.

Saros’ play in this second half of the season has propelled him to MVP status for the team. This surge that he’s having is good news since Rinne only has one year left on his current contract.

The starting goaltender job is Saros’ for the taking.

Ryan Ellis, Nashville Predators (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Return Of The King

Ryan Ellis, Batman to Josi’s Superman, was robbed of his best season ever. Had the Winter Classic incident never happened then he would have undoubtedly surpassed all of his career highs.

With the shortened season now ended, Ellis sits four assists and three points shy of his career-best. With eight goals this season, he would’ve more than likely passed that career-best as well.

The Predators had a pretty decent season going before Ellis was injured, but still had some issues. After his injury, the issues turned into panic. The defensive core struggled enormously in his absence.

With Ellis out, the defensive lines were shifted drastically. Josi was usually paired with Yannick Weber, which shifted every other defenseman away from their usual partner. Needless to say, the team was glad when Ellis finally returned.

It is not by chance that Ellis’ return coincided with the Predators’ surge in gameplay. The team missed Ellis, and it showed on the stat sheet.

If Josi wasn’t captain of this team, then Ellis should be. His gameplay is always top-notch, and he delivers consistent results. He’s a strong leader and is vital to this team.

Ellis and Josi make a great tandem, arguably one of the best defensive pairings in the NHL. Hopefully, Ellis, along with Josi, can help propel this team forward and prepare them for what is to come when the playoffs start.

Roman Josi, Nashville Predators (Photo by John Russell/NHLI via Getty Images) /

The Captain

There’s a reason why Roman Josi wears the “C” on his jersey. This year the “C” might as well have been an “S”.

Josi is, undeniably, the leader of this team and played like Superman all season. He’s been the player who has been the most consistent this year. His numbers tell the story of his consistency.

This has been a career year for Josi. With 16 goals, 49 assists, and 65 points, he has reaffirmed himself as the team leader. Had the season continued, he would’ve padded these stats even more.

In December and January, Josi went on a tear and had points in twelve-straight games, six of which were multi-point games. He also managed to net two goals in four of the games that he scored in.

Josi’s excellent season has also put him in the conversation as a front-runner to win the Norris Trophy. John Carlson from the Washington Capitals appears to be the only player standing in Josi’s way.

With Josi being the captain and the way his play has elevated his team, I say give him the trophy.

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Josi’s leadership will need to be on full display once the playoffs finally begin. He’ll need to lift the team, motivate them, and carry them as far as they can go.

Hopefully, we will see Josi hoisting that huge silver Cup in the air. Either way, he’s been the undisputed MVP of the Predators over the shortened regular season. No one else comes close.

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