Nashville Predators: Four Players Who Could Be Traded Soon
Ryan Johansen
For his first three and a half seasons in Nashville, Ryan Johansen played his game and garnered some of his best seasons in the NHL. Then the 2019-20 season came along, and something changed.
During the shortened 2019-20 season, Johansen could only muster 36 points (14 goals, 22 assists), well shy of his usual production numbers. This current season finds Johansen only registering four assists through eleven games so far.
The trick with moving Johansen is his contract. He still has a few years left on his current contract that pays him $8M a year. Finding a team that is willing to take on that amount, knowing Johansen has struggled for the past couple of seasons, could be challenging.
An option would be to leave him unprotected in the upcoming Seattle Kraken expansion draft. This would require some pre-draft negotiations with Seattle, but could work out for all involved.
Clearing Johansen’s contract would provide the Predators with some cap space leverage to go after another superstar forward.
Whether a trade comes at the trade deadline, in the offseason, or he gets moved in the expansion draft, Johansen’s time in Nashville may be drawing to a close.
It’s still early in the season, and things could turn around for Johansen. He’s also now dealing with an injury that hopefully won’t linger for too long. He missed the Predators’ last game against the Florida Panthers, which ended in a 2-1 loss.
But if Johansen fails to turn things around, a change in scenery may very well be in his future.
Matt Duchene
Matt Duchene finds himself in a similar situation to Johansen. He had incredible seasons with former teams, but has struggled during his time in Nashville.
Duchene has multiple seasons of scoring 25 goals or more. Unfortunately, he only tallied 13 goals last season and finds himself with only two goals in 11 games played this season.
Also, like Johansen, it may be challenging to move Duchene’s contract. His current contract pays him $8M a year and extends until the end of the 2024-25 season.
If moving Duchene becomes an option, it’s hard to imagine a scenario where the Predators don’t have to retain a portion of his salary in order to make a deal.
While the preference would be for Duchene to figure out his game and perform up to expectations, that may or may not ever happen. The bottom line is his current production doesn’t warrant such a large paycheck.
With a recent surge in play, the hope is that Duchene is turning a corner and will finally play up to his capabilities. If Duchene can’t turn the corner, his time in Nashville may come to an end.
Duchene is also playing alongside Filip Forsberg and Mikael Granlund, and this line looks to be the most productive for the Predators now. Maybe that will ignite Duchene’s play.
Mattias Ekholm / Calle Jarnkrok
Mattias Ekholm and Calle Jarnkrok could be on the trade block but for different reasons than our previous two players. These two players have trade value that might be beneficial if GM David Poile decides to clean house.
Ekholm is in the final year of his contract and will become a free agent when this season concludes. He’s a solid defenseman with a cap-friendly contract who could be in a first defensive pairing role on any other team.
Jarnkrok is a quality forward who can play several positions. While he has hit his ceiling, he’s still a steady player and can be counted on to produce points. A team looking for a solid player that works hard and can score would do well to have Jarnkrok on their roster.
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Unless the Predators turn things around quickly, they’re going to possibly become heavy sellers towards the end of the season. These players just mentioned all could be realistic trade pieces that will signal a full on rebuild for the Nashville Predators.