5. Nyquist Finding his Place and Role in Predators Lineup
It’s kind of gone under the radar on what Nyquist could potentially mean for this Predators lineup. It wasn’t the high profile free agency pickup that O’Reilly or Luke Schenn were, but Nyquist is a seasoned veteran who is looking to provide stability and leadership to players like Glass, Novak and Philip Tomasino.
Nyquist slotted in on the second line with Glass at center and Tomasino on the other wing. If this is the second line on opening night against the Tampa Bay Lightning, I won’t be mad about it. I’m interested to see if Brunette rolls this line out one more time in the preseason, because there’s potential here.
Gus Nyquist days until the season opener https://t.co/8V0YQOoAnS
— Nashville Predators (@PredsNHL) September 26, 2023
Glass also stated to the Predators flagship station 102.5 The Game that he is excited to be learning from a veteran like Nyquist and sees potential in playing alongside him.
Nyquist has 703 games of NHL experience, joining O’Reilly’s 991 career games and Schenn’s 933 career games. To put that into perspective, that’s 2,627 NHL games added from just three players this past offseason through free agency by General Manager Barry Trotz.
In some ways, you’re hoping that Nyquist can be a much better replacement to Mikael Granlund, O’Reilly can fill the void of Matt Duchene, and Schenn can fill the void of losing Mattias Ekholm to a trade.
Next up in the preseason is this Saturday with the Nashville Predators traveling down to Tampa Bay. There should be some different lineups from both teams, and the Lightning will probably feature more of their star players like Nikita Kucherov, Brayden Point and Steven Stamkos.
Nashville Predators: Where Roman Josi Stands Among Best NHL Defensemen
Roman Josi is many ways laid the blueprint of the current influx of offensive defensemen, and is still one of the best representing the Nashville Predators.