Nashville Predators: Where Does Their Defensive Core Rank in the Central Division?

Nino Niederreiter #22 of the Nashville Predators celebrates his goal in the second period against the San Jose Sharks with teammates during the 2022 NHL Global Series Challenge Czech Republic match between Nashville Predators and San Jose Sharks at O2 Arena on October 8, 2022 in Prague, Czech Republic. (Photo by Jari Pestelacci/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)
Nino Niederreiter #22 of the Nashville Predators celebrates his goal in the second period against the San Jose Sharks with teammates during the 2022 NHL Global Series Challenge Czech Republic match between Nashville Predators and San Jose Sharks at O2 Arena on October 8, 2022 in Prague, Czech Republic. (Photo by Jari Pestelacci/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)
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It’s been a few years, maybe even since the Presidents Trophy season of 2017-18, since you can realistically be this confident top to bottom in the Nashville Predators roster.

This team is deep, has a nice blend of young talent to go along with veteran experience, and that should equal to being a very competitive team in the Central Division that went through a lot of changes of its own over the offseason.

We already ranked the Nashville Predators’ projected top line among the rest in the Central Division, and also ranked the starting goalies within the division.

The Nashville Predators ranked pretty high in both of those, but where would you put them among the division’s defensive cores?

This is an area that has been up and down for the Nashville Predators in recent years. Everyone knows that Roman Josi is one of the best in the game, but sometimes the defensive part of his game can be exposed.

The Predators have a solid group of defensemen heading into 2022-23, but how do they stack up against the others in the Central Division?

All projected line combinations are courtesy of Daily Faceoff. and each team’s official website roster.