Three Things to Hope for in Nashville Predators’ Final Preseason Games
Finish off the Preseason Strong and on a Good Note
Just like in the regular season you don’t want to peak too soon and then just completely fall apart, the same can kind of be said about the preseason. You don’t want to throw out two duds here against the Hurricanes with much of your regular season roster on the ice.
The Predators tallied up an impressive 47 shots on goal against the Lightning in their last preseason contest. You put up that many shots, and you’re winning on most occasions.
The hope is to see the Predators carry that over into their two matchups with the Hurricanes. Muster up a healthy number of shots and put pressure on the opposition to have to defend a lot.
That’s what Head Coach Andrew Brunette is trying to employ. An aggressive offensive style that’s relentless for the opponent to deal with. A far cry from John Hynes’ mundane and stale system that just relied on being the more physical team, which often times led to more penalties and leaving your world class goalie out to dry.
Again, a preseason win or two would be refreshing, but the more important detail is to continue to see this offense get accustomed with the new system and pepper Carolina’s goalies with a lot of shots. And shots on goal, for that matter.
Make them make the save, please.
Let’s See the O’Reilly/Forsberg Combo Have Themselves a Game
We haven’t really seen the full potential of the Filip Forsberg and Ryan O’Reilly duo just yet, and that’s totally fine. Rome wasn’t built in a day, am I right?
Seriously, I would be elated if Forsberg and O’Reilly can put together a wire-to-wire dominant showing against the Hurricanes. Feeding off each other, connecting on passes and ultimately connecting on some goals.
I’m not being overdramatic when I say that O’Reilly has the potential to bring Forsberg to the next level of being a reliable 60-plus point scorer, at minimum. But Forsberg has never had a reliable top line center to work with, aside from the glory days of the “JoFA Line” with Ryan Johansen and Viktor Arvidsson.
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Forsberg had nine shots on goal in the most recent preseason outing against Tampa Bay, while O’Reilly got a primary assist on a Philip Tomasino goal. A positive sign on both fronts.
That brings Forsberg’s preseason total through two games to 16 shots on goal. And additional chances where he missed the net. Encouraging that he’s getting this many looks, and as he shakes the rust off from being out of game action since February, he’ll start burying some of these.
However, we’ve yet to see a direct scoring connection between O’Reilly and Forsberg. I feel it’s coming soon, so let’s see it happen in highlight reel fashion at the expense of the Hurricanes and watch Predators social media rejoice.
Can Samuel Fagemo Surge his Way onto the Nashville Predators Roster?
The spotlight is going to be on Samuel Fagemo, who was just claimed by the Nashville Predators on Monday from the Los Angeles Kings.
First off, where does Brunette stick him in the lineup? Does he give him opportunistic line or give him fourth line limited minutes where he can’t really impact the game? Do we really want him taking away vital minutes from Tomasino or Luke Evangelista?
Fagemo, who was drafted in 2019 in the 2nd Round, comes in with a particular skillset that could end up being a perfect find for what the Predators are trying to become. A team that throws four relentless lines at your to score, and score often. Push the pace, take chances, and find offensive snipers in the zone.
Not to be the downer here, but Fagemo has an uphill battle to quickly acclimate to a new team with new linemates. If he somehow manages to pot a goal or two then how will you be able to justify leaving him off the roster.
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Heck, even if Fagemo doesn’t score, even if he generates offensive chances and tests to goalie to make difficult saves, then that will be very telling. Also, we’ll be watching how he skates and creates his own offensive chances, which he’s known to be effective at in his scouting reports.
If Fagemo does enough to make this final Predators roster out of training camp, who does that push out. A storyline that will be worth discussing in these last two preseason games.
I’m hoping Fagemo can flash his offense and show that sometimes a talented young player just needs a change of scenery. The Kings definitely were begging to the hockey gods that somehow he went unclaimed.
