Nashville Predators: Tracking the Biggest Storylines of the Season So Far

The Growth of Tomasino

This was a major storyline coming into the season when we found out that Philip Tomasino would indeed be in the starting lineup on opening night. He managed 10:34 of ice time in his NHL debut with a shot on goal, but looked rather comfortable even in his first NHL game.

Fast forward to current times and Tomasino seems to be showing gradual improvement with each game. It hasn’t been flawless, which is understandable from a 20-year-old player.

It’s going to be very interesting to follow Tomasino’s continued growth and development as the season progresses. He’s got his average ice time up to 12 minutes per game, has a respectable Corsi rating at 52.8 and his shooting percentage is also pretty respectable at 13 percent.

Tomasino has seven points through 23 games of action, and could easily have more than his current four goals. He’s had some near misses and a couple moments where he lost the puck on breakaway opportunities.

As Tomasino continues to get more comfortable in his role for the Nashville Predators, expect his scoring to get an uptick. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if he rallies to finish with double digit goals and around 20 points in his rookie campaign.

The Captain’s Quest for Another Norris Trophy

He’s kind of flying under the radar, somehow, but Roman Josi is having another Norris Trophy caliber season through the first 25 games. He just posted a three-point game in the most recent Predators’ win over the Red Wings, putting him just shy of a point-per-game pace.

Josi is stoically leading this Nashville Predators team once again when they need him most. He doesn’t get nearly enough credit for being an MVP-caliber player, much less a Norris Trophy player.

Yes, there are some other really outstanding defensemen that also are in the Norris Trophy conversation that might in the end beat out Josi for his second in three seasons. However, it seems as if Josi isn’t even really getting much discussion for it:

Josi is tied for third with John Carlson among defensemen in points with 24. Victor Hedman and Adam Fox lead the way with 27 points. Although who has the most points plays a major part in it, it shouldn’t be the end all be all.

I’m not sure if Josi will be able to keep pace with Fox, Hedman and Carlson when it comes to points by season’s end. However, Josi’s makes just as big, if not bigger, impact on his own team than these other three.

It will be difficult for Josi to claim another Norris Trophy this season due to all the competition, and I do think Fox is the one defenseman I could fully understand getting it over Josi. However it ends, it’ll be an entertaining race to watch.

Duchene’s Resurgence

The welcomed resurgence of Matt Duchene is definitely one of the biggest storylines of the Nashville Predators season through the first 25 games, and you should expect it to carry on throughout.

All eyes are on if Duchene can keep this efficiency going, or will he just fade back into being an overpaid, underperforming player. For the sake of the Predators, he better keep it going.

There have been some interesting analytics shared to suggest that Duchene was never really that bad to begin with last season. It was more a product of some bad luck for himself and the team around him, while also being compared to a gigantic contract that he’ll probably never live up to:

Duchene leads the Predators in goals with 13, second on the team in points with 25, second in shots on goal and fourth in assists.

Can Duchene end up breaking Viktor Arvidsson‘s single-season franchise goal record? He definitely could, but so could Filip Forsberg. Forsberg is actually chasing some career franchise records as well.

Whether he keeps this pace up or if he shows some decline, you better believe that Duchene will continue to be a main storyline for this Predators team.

Forsberg Trade Rumors

As the March 21 NHL trade deadline gets closer, what will happen with Filip Forsberg will become a bigger storyline for the entire league. As of now, it remains the biggest storyline for the Predators season.

What is the right move for General Manager David Poile as his long-time superstar is due to become an unrestricted free agent, and there’s still no certainty that he’ll choose to work out a new contract to stay. He might very well decide to go elsewhere to a more viable Stanley Cup contender.

This is where the trade deadline rumors come into play. The thoughts of losing Forsberg for nothing next offseason fresh off another first round playoff exit is nightmare fuel.

If the Predators make the difficult business decision to trade a surging Forsberg who is scoring goals at will and a vital part to the team’s success, then it will be a tough blow to the fanbase and the locker room. It might be necessary, however.

It’s also very possible that Forsberg himself has no idea what he wants to do yet, and is waiting to let this season continue to play out. Perhaps he can be more easily persuaded to take a team-friendly deal if he sees strong progress from the team. If you can get him to believe in what they’re building, then maybe he chooses Nashville in the offseason. That’s a major risk, though.

Not going to pretend to have the correct answer to this. I can see both sides, but it’s absolutely the biggest storyline of the Predators season and will keep growing as the trade deadline gets closer.

Honorable Mention:

The emergence of the Forsberg, Duchene, Mikael Granlund line is so refreshing to see. The Predators appear to finally have their search for a high quality top line solved. For a while the team was scrambling every night to piece together a consistent lineup, and it was hard to know what the proper top line combination was.

Another honorable mention is the Stadium Series jersey reveal, which is already behind us now. We’ve seen them, and the reviews are overwhelmingly negative from fans and media. Maybe they grow on us and they look much better in person at Nissan Stadium on February 26.

We sent a poll question out asking our readers what the biggest Nashville Predators storyline has been so far. Here’s the results, and you can follow along with those results on our twitter account @PredlinesNSH.