The Nashville Predators have a lot to be happy with at the end of the 2025-26 season even after missing the playoffs for the second-straight year.
Fans were treated to youth hockey and they, despite playing on a weak team, found a way to shine. When the veterans weren't performing, the rookies stepped up and made it count. The future is looking bright in the mustard yellow and fans should be ecstatic for what is to come.
If we're following the NHL qualifications of a rookie, a player with less than 25 games played in a season, then the Preds suited up eight rookies this season. This means Zachary L'Heureux and Fedor Svechkov are not included in this conversation.
With that out of the way, let's take a look back at these eight and evaluate their overall performance this season.
Matthew Wood takes the cake as Nashville's best rookie
It goes without saying that Matthew Wood was the Predators' best rookie this season. The organization hasn't seen this much hype come out of a first round prospect since Philip Tomasino in his rookie year. Not only does Wood lead the rookies, but he is also up there with the veterans on the stat sheet.
In 71 games, Wood scored 17 goals and tallied 13 helpers. His 16.5-shooting-percentage was the second highest among full-time players on the team, sitting 4% behind Steven Stamkos. He was fourth in team goals and tied for fourth in power play goals. Wood was Nashville's go-to goal scorer for a good chunk of the season's opening.
He encountered a month-long dead zone where he scored zero points. However, he returned to the scoresheet in February. After switching to the center position, he found a new wave of success, helping his team reenter the playoff race. Even with this quiet stretch, Wood was still one of the team's better players and held a huge role for most of the season.
Adam Wilsby surprised many and became a core piece to Preds blueline
One player that shocked me the most was Adam Wilsby. In 58 games with Nashville, the left-handed defenseman racked up 16 points. He played just over 17 minutes a night, keeping the puck out of the net on almost every shift. Wilsby led all Preds defensemen in point-differential with a +2. The next full-time defender had a -1, showing that he was in the right moments at the right time.
He has a handful of other stats worth noting. For starters, had nearly had a 50/50 split in primary and secondary assists, with seven of his 15 being primary. This means on the plays Wilsby did tally an apple, he typically was the one to set up the goal. He also 15 takeaways, an above average stat in his position according to MoneyPuck.
One thing I will critique is his shot speed. NHL EDGE notes his average shot speed of 61.69 mph is below the 50th percentile. With goalie's getting quicker at stopping the puck, Wilsby's speed might haunt him if it doesn't get faster. It'll only lower his grade a tad, but overall, I liked his time in Nashville and look forward to next season.
Ryan Ufko might just be the next Ryan Ellis
Despite playing only 18 games this season, I'd pose the argument that Ryan Ufko already takes the crown as Nashville's best defensive prospect in the system. The 115th overall pick in the 2021 draft debuted a day before the trade deadline. In his first NHL game, Ufko stopped a runaway puck and set up a goal on the power play, tallying a secondary assist in the process. We all remember where we were when he scored his first NHL goal, and man it was a beauty.
RYAN UFKO HAS HIS FIRST NHL GOAL AND IT WAS GORGEOUS 😱 pic.twitter.com/Ge7plVWzEO
— NHL (@NHL) March 11, 2026
From that day forward, Ufko made it has goal to never let the fans down. He wrapped up the season by scoring once more and tallying eight more apples, finishing off with 11 points. Him skating on the ice gave off glimpses of Preds blueliner legend Ryan Ellis. Like Ellis, Ufko doesn't care if he's undersized, standing at 6-foot. He'll carry the puck into the zone and immediately get the play going.
In terms of defense, he was solid. he had three takeaways and 12 giveaways. While not the most appealing, his style of play is primarily offensive focused. If we're counting in the shooting percentage stat, he'll be second over Wood, ending the year with 18.2% of shots in the back of the net. However, like Wilsby, NHL EDGE clocks him at below the 50th percentile in average shot speed. For a guy who drives the offense, I'd like to see more speed, but he's only been in the league for just over a month, so I'll catch him a break.
Reid Schaefer adds physicality and size to the bottom six
"Big Red" is a suitable name for Reid Schaefer. Towering at 6-foot-5, 226 pounds, Schaefer has the ingredients to be a top grinder in the league. His 108 hits is one of the highest on the team, despite only playing 47 games. He isn't afraid to get down low and blast the opponent to Row J. Big Red reminds me a lot of Tanner Jeannot in his rookie season. While not as big of a goal-scorer as the Ox, Schaefer certaintly does know how to use the body.
On the topic of offense, Schaefer did perform well. Six goals and two assists in 47 games is a good number to round off your rookie campaign. When he did shoot, he was on-point, shooting at 15.4% accuracy. We could've seen more from the youngster, but he did only average 9:38 minutes of ice time per night, so he was limited.
His point-differential is a bit of a worry to me. His -12-plus/minus was the seventh lowest on the team, even though he played with them for just over half the season. He wasn't giving away the puck too much, matter of fact, his seven defensive zone giveaways are considered a good number according to MoneyPuck. Like I always say, he's one of the guys who put the smash in Smashville, and I'm all for it.
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