Three Things that are Plaguing the Nashville Predators into Mediocrity
Poor Performing Power Play
The Nashville Predators power play has been horrendous this season. On the power play, the Predators are passing the puck too much, not taking the goalie’s eyes away, and not getting the puck to the net. All these things have played key factors into their poor performance.
When it comes to the power play, the Predators have had 164 opportunities and have only converted on 27 of those chances. To put that into perspective, the league average is 168 opportunities and 36 power play goals. The Predators have had roughly the same number of chances as the rest of league and have almost ten goals less than the league average.
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The Predators power play percentage is currently at 16.46% with the league average being 21.72%. With only three power play goals in their last ten games, Head Coach John Hynes and the power play units need to fix this broken mess if they want to be in contention for wins, we will not even mention being in contention for the playoffs at this point.
The top power play unit for the Predators, consisting of Roman Josi, Filip Forsberg, Matt Duchene, Ryan Johansen, and Mikael Granlund, have scored 20 of the power play goals for this club.
With Forsberg currently out of the lineup and Philip Tomasino getting called up, it should be expected that this power play unit will struggle even more in his absence.
Then there are the shorthanded opportunities that the Predators have given up.
Due to the excessive passing around the point instead of shooting the puck, the Predators have turned the puck over several times while on the power play and have given up four shorthanded goals. When you give up 14.8% of the number of power play goals you have as shorthanded goals, you are destined to lose games.
Terrible Offensive Play
The Nashville Predators offense has, well, for lack of better term, sucked this year. This organization has scored 142 goals through 51 games. Their inability to score goals has them tied with the Montreal Canadiens for 29th in the league in goals scored.
Only the Columbus Blue Jackets, Anaheim Ducks, and Chicago Blackhawks have scored fewer goals this season, and these are all teams buried deep down in the standings.
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Josi leads the club in total points with 44 (13 G, 31A), followed by Forsberg (19 G, 23 A) and Duchene (16 G, 26 A) tied for second with 42 points each. When year after year you have a defenseman leading the scoring for your team, you are not set up for success in this league.
The Predators have the offensive firepower on this roster, but they are not playing to their expectations.
Josi told the team’s website following the loss to the Coyotes that the team got plenty of offensive chances, but just couldn’t finish:
“It’s obviously frustrating. I thought we had more chances and more O-zone time, especially in the second. We had a lot of good looks and a lot of O-zone time, but we just couldn’t find a way to score more goals. And then in the third period they scored and they got the deciding goal and we didn’t.”
The Predators average 2.7 goals per game and sit in 26th in the league in that category. They are one of only nine teams averaging less than three goals per game. Again, when as a team you are only beating two teams in your division in goals per game, you will not win games.
This team has got to find a way to start scoring more goals or they are not going to have a choice but to go into a complete rebuild. Year after year they have been just good enough to make the playoffs and have a mediocre draft pick, but I believe that ends this season. With the goal scoring how it has been, and the inconsistent play of this team, I feel a rebuild is looming and this team will miss the playoffs this season.
Inconsistent, Inconsistent, Inconsistent
The Nashville Predators have been one of the most inconsistent teams in the NHL this season. One night, they will go out and blow your mind by getting a huge 5-3 win over the Carolina Hurricanes in Carolina or getting back-to-back wins over the New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders, both on the road.
Then on the other hand, the Predators will come out and lose to the Coyotes, at home no less, or lose two games in a row to the Columbus Blue Jackets and Philadelphia Flyers. You just never know which version of the Predators you’re going to get, and that’s a sign of a bad team.
This is something that has plagued this team since the beginning of the season. The Predators have had a win streak of three or more games on just four separate occasions. They have three three-game win streaks and one four-game win streak.
Pair that with a five-game losing streak and a six-game losing streak, and you have a Nashville Predators team that cannot seem to get it together.
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If the Nashville Predators want to get this fanbase engaged again, they are going to have to start stringing together some wins. When they lose, the fans become disconnected, and when they are winning, there is no better place than Bridgestone Arena with the Predators in town.
That’s a Wrap
These are the three biggest factors that I think have played part in the Nashville Predators terrible season. They have some major decisions to make with the NHL Trade Deadline coming up fast. Right now, I think the Predators will be sellers come that day, however, that could change if they start to elevate their level of play.
The Nashville Predators faithful deserve more than what this team has brought to the ice. This roster is capable of more than what their record shows. Let’s see if the Predators can get things turned around down the stretch.