Nashville Predators: Final Regular Season Grades

Special Teams: C (Improved From F)

Arguably the worst unit at the onset of the season, the Predators Special Teams have drastically improved down the stretch. Though the power play has fallen off a bit, the penalty kill has stepped up a great deal in some key moments. Compared to where this phase of the team started, we will gladly take the improvement.

For context, from the start of the season through February, the Predators ranked 20th on the power play at 18.1% and 28th on the penalty kill at 72.9%. Since then? Well, the power play still ranks 20th and regressed a bit to 14.1%, but the penalty kill ranks 8th at 85.7%.

Dig a little deeper, and you’ll see that while it looked like the power play regressed, there may be a reason why.

From February 1 until April 6, the Predators had the 5th best power play in that stretch. What’s so special about those dates? February 1 was Eeli Tolvanen’s first game, and April 6 was his last before getting injured.

Before the injury, Tolvanen was a power-play monster. He has yet to return to form since getting back into the lineup, but he could make a huge difference in the Predators’ playoff hopes if he does.