One perk of the Nashville Predators possessing a handful of some of the league's oldest players is the frequent occurrence of witnessing history.
Players like Roman Josi, Steven Stamkos and Ryan O'Reilly have achieved impressive career milestones, and in some cases, even etching their name into NHL history in Nashville. That's one of the biggest perks of being the league's retirement home, and while we aren't necessarily seeing the most ideal success from it, you have to admit it's fun to watch some of the most iconic names on your jersey.
Another plus of having a lot of veterans in your system is the bragging rights that comes when such player enters the Hockey Hall of Fame. Being able to say "that player played for my team" never gets old.
The Athletic recently dove into its predictions on whom will be inducted, and a few Predators came up. It has a few players who will or are on track to be being inducted, which is always a good thing to see. Let's go through and take a gander at what current names could be honored leaguewide, and what names may become legends purely in the Smashville community.
Steven Stamkos is the easiest pick
Stamkos is the most obvious of the bunch to be named to the HOF. He is 19th all-time in goals with 624 and rising, only two behind Joe Sakic and Jarome Iginla for 17th. He is also seventh all-time in power play goals with 242, sitting just five goals behind Phil Esposito for sixth. The 2008 first overall pick has a full trophy case, including two Stanley Cups, two Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophies and the Mark Messier NHL Leadership Award. He is one of the greatest goal scorers of all time, and it would be crazy if the former 60-goal scorer didn't make it in.
100% Chance
Roman Josi is up next
Josi has all the reasons to be considered as one of the greatest offensive defensemen of all time. He's made it hard for the league to hate him. He is an excellent captain and the greatest skater in franchise history. His career is highlighted by an impressive 96-point outing in the 2021-22 season. While injuries have decreased his numbers since then, he certainly hasn't lost his touch. He may have a Norris Trophy to his name, but a Stanley Cup could make his case better. If Shea Weber can make it into the Hall however, then Josi most likely can.
80-90% Chance
Ryan O'Reilly has strong case, may be outside of view
O'Reilly is one of the greatest two-way forwards of his generation. He's put up multiple 60-point campaigns over his 17-season career, racking up nearly 900 points. Factor is consistently among the league's best faceoff takers, averaging a 55.6-win percentage throughout his career. He helped the Blues secure their first Stanley Cup, winning the Conn Smythe as playoff MVP. On top of that, he's won the Frank J. Selke and Lady Byng Trophy. He may not be a first-year inductee, but he'll be on the minds of the voters for many years.
60-70% Chance
Filip Forsberg has a handful of years to make his case
We now enter the territory where it's just less than a coin flip of an induction. Forsberg is an incredible player and is an extremely underrated player in the NHL. He is one of those players that may need a few more years to pique the interest of voters though. Thankfully for him, he is 31 years old and has plenty of time to do so. In 862 games, he's scored a franchise-setting 358 goals, additionally sitting behind Josi in franchise points with 756. He doesn't have any individual hardware to his name which may be a bit worrying to some, but three 40-goal seasons could be enough to get them considering.
30-40% Chance
When looking at other names, there aren't any that make sense. Jonathan Marchessault is a Stanley Cup-winning, Conn Smythe-awarded winger, but his late bloom in the NHL and recent consistency issues hold him back drastically. At one-point Juuse Saros, while far away still, was on track to become a reasonable consideration, but like Marchessault, he hasn't particularly gained the same traction he once had earlier in his career.
It will be interesting to see what voters have to say about these listed players over the coming years. Who knows, maybe the Predators are cooking up one or two more HOF considerations in their system? Only time will tell.
Add us as a preferred source on Google