Nashville Predators Predictions for 2023-24: The Top Goal Scorers
#5 Top Goal Scorer for Nashville Predators in 2023-24 : Roman Josi
It might kind of surprise you that I have Josi so far back on top goal scorers for the Nashville Predators this upcoming season. However, if you’ve watched this team for a while you know that Josi drives the offense and piles up assists for his teammates, but doesn’t always get the glory of scoring the goal.
Josi’s career high for a season in goals is 23, set during his mammoth year that saw him nearly hit the 100-point mark in 2021-22. He also put up an extraordinary 73 assists.
Other than that, Josi has always hovered around the 15-goal mark for a season. Although I do think he’ll finish above 15 goals this upcoming year, I don’t see him finishing above 20.
Josi is going to need to stick to quarterbacking the offense, if you will. That means plenty of points, but more of the same of piling up the assists and counterattacking in transition to set up other goal scorers.
With the strong belief that the Nashville Predators as a whole will be much improved at scoring goals, I have Josi quite possibly having his second-highest point total of his NHL career, but will finish just short of his career high of goals in a season. Still good for fifth on the team.
Josi’s 2023-24 Goal Prediction: 19 Goals
#4 Top Goal Scorer for Nashville Predators in 2023-24: Thomas Novak
Maybe one of the most interesting stats I’ve come across during this 2023 offseason surrounding the Nashville Predators is that involving Tommy Novak.
https://twitter.com/chad_minton/status/1687484094441996288?s=20
Novak got such a late start to his 2022-23 and still, thanks unfortunately to injuries, he ended up becoming one of the more reliable offensive contributors on the team. Should we be worried about a “sophomore slump”?
When the season finally came to a close for the Predators sitting outside of the postseason picture, Novak finished at an 82-game point pace of 69 points. Rare territory for any player in Nashville Predators history.
Now looking ahead to 2023-24, Novak should get the full confidence from the coaching staff to be considered for a top-six role right out of training camp. If the team really wants him as a center, which is where he obviously fits best, then he may get third line duty.
Either way, I’m taking a confident swing that Novak will roll over an very efficient second season in the NHL into a full-time NHL gig that sees him crack 20 goals and 50 points.
Novak led the Predators in Goals Above Expected with 5.7 and was with fifth on the team in Expected Goals Per 60 Minutes, according to MoneyPuck.
With some expected ice time increase from 14:39 this past season, I’m putting Novak at fourth on the team in goal scoring and to finish with 21.
Novak’s 2023-24 Goals Prediction: 21 Goals
#3 Goal Scorer for Nashville Predators in 2023-24: Luke Evangelista
Alright, now this is a pretty bold prediction on my part. Evangelista is heading into his first full season in the NHL, and there’s always that chance that he hits somewhat of a sophomore slump at age 21. Not to mention, he still needs to secure his starting spot out of Nashville Predators training camp, although I believe the coaching staff would have to be nuts to leave him off the NHL starting roster.
Evangelista wasted no time looking comfortable on the ice when his number was called in late February, and even tallying a two-goal performance in just his fourth NHL game.
Although he won’t win it, thanks to Connor Bedard, but I really have confidence that Evangelista will at least be in the Calder Trophy conversation for rookie of the year. Assuming he sticks in the Nashville Predators lineup throughout the entirety of the regular season, he can definitely crack 20 goals playing alongside veteran linemates Filip Forsberg and Ryan O’Reilly.
Speaking to Evangelista’s seamless and smooth transition to the NHL this past year, he notched an impressive Corsi rating of 55 percent and saw his Offensive Zone Start percentage at just under 80 percent in all situations.
Additionally, Evangelista piled up the Shots on Goal with 54 in just 24 games, and was second on the team in percentage of shots that actually hit the net. That’s around eight shots per 60 minutes. An analytical masterpiece for Evangelista in his first stint in the NHL.
Imagine the numbers Evangelista can put up if he managed to play in 70-plus games and gets top line minutes with Forsberg and O’Reilly?
It might be a long shot, but I’m banking on Evangelista to build off what he did last year under a full season of NHL hockey and come in at 23 goals, good for third on the team.
Evangelista’s 2023-24 Goals Prediction: 23 Goals
#2 Goal Scorer for Nashville Predators in 2023-24: Ryan O’Reilly
The top addition for the Nashville Predators offseason is no doubt Ryan O’Reilly, and one that caught a lot of people off guard, including some Maple Leafs fans and media.
So with that said, expecting O’Reilly to finish second on the Predators in goals and coming in somewhere in the mid-20’s in goals is a bit of a reach, I know. But hear me out.
O’Reilly first and foremost will need to put together a season where he can avoid any lengthy injuries. Hopefully he has some luck come his way, because 2022-23 wasn’t kind to him while appearing in only 53 regular season games and missing around a month of action shortly after being acquired by the Maple Leafs.
Once O’Reilly was available for the Maple Leafs playoff run, he actually put together some productive games. He put up five points in a two-game stretch that saw the Maple Leafs eventually ending up rectifying their first round nightmares and eliminating the Tampa Bay Lightning.
O’Reilly finished with three goals during the Maple Leafs playoff run, and actually had his third-highest Goals Per Game average since 2015-16 when he played with the Buffalo Sabres.
With a new start in a Nashville Predators sweater, O’Reilly is going to have a newfound energy and be a focal point of leading this team out of the offensive abyss they found themselves in last season.
O’Reilly is going to enjoy a revival of sorts and put up a respectable 24 goals for the Nashville Predators in 2023-24, which will put him second on the team.
I know, I know. That would be tied for his second-highest goal total of his NHL career, so call me crazy if you’d like. It’s a hot take I’m standing by. He is just two seasons removed from scoring 24 goals for the St. Louis Blues while only playing in 56 games.
O’Reilly’s 2023-24 Goals Prediction: 24 Goals
#1 Goal Scorer for Nashville Predators in 2023-24: Filip Forsberg
Was there really ever any doubt? I’m all for hot takes and making bold predictions, but I also have to use common logic here and the wise choice is of course the franchise’s all-time leading goal scorer, Filip Forsberg.
The big question surrounding this prediction is how rusty will Forsberg be coming back into NHL action? When Forsberg hits the ice for the Nashville Predators regular season opener at the Tampa Bay Lightning on October 10, it will be his first regular season action since February 11 when he sustained that brutal fall and head injury.
That will be eight months nearly to the day for Forsberg’s return to regular season action. Will it take some time for him to get back into game shape and shake off the rust? Perhaps it could, but I have high confidence that it won’t take long for the 11-year veteran who will be on a personal mission to deliver.
Let’s not forget that before the head injury, Forsberg was enjoying his third-most efficient point per game output of his NHL career. His goals were down a bit, but that was a common theme for the entire team.
Must Read. Did the Predators Do Too Much or Not Enough This Offseason?. light
Forsberg is the runaway favorite to lead the Nashville Predators in goals, which he actually hasn’t done since 2019-20 in the shortened pandemic season when he notched 21 goals in 63 games.
In fact, Forsberg has only led the Nashville Predators in goals during a season once since 2016-17. But he’s going to come back ready to prove a point in 2023-24, and he’ll crack 30 goals and easily be the team leader.