It doesn't appear to be clear cut on where future NHL Hall of Famer Steven Stamkos will be in the starting going into his second year with the Nashville Predators.
Stamkos received a lot of criticism in his debut season with the Predators after coming in with enormous expectations riding the wave of the free agency spending by GM Barry Trotz. And despite being third on the team in points, that didn't matter when the team finished near the bottom of the NHL standings.
This team struggled to find chemistry with their additions right out of the gate and the season got away from them before we could even blink it felt like. Stamkos was in the center spotlight for the wrong reasons while taking him until his fifth game in a Predators sweater before registering his first point.
Stamkos was moved around a lot to start his Nashville Predators career last season. Who should be his linemates to start 2025-26?
After his first 10 games, Stamkos would have just one goal while the team stumblined to a 3-6-1 record. Stamkos couldn't find his place early on in the lineup, getting time in the season debut against Dallas primarily at 5-on-5 with Tommy Novak and Jonathan Marchessault. He also lined up with Colton Sissons on his line at 5-on-5.
In Stamkos' second game with Nashville, a frustrating 3-0 loss to Detroit, he also saw most of his time at 5-on-5 with a combination of Sissons, Marchessault and Novak. Novak and Sissons are no longer on the Predators currently, while Marchessault projects to be on Nashville's top line this season. The question is, where will Stamkos initially be? Also on the top line?
There is the option for the Predators to opt for Stamkos as the top line center and stick Filip Forsberg and Marchessault on the wings. The Predators experimented with this combination briefly as soon as the third game of last season, but only for 1:05 of game time.
Then in Stamkos' fifth game with Nashville, he saw his linemates change again. This time for a total of 9:35 of 5-on-5 action, Stamkos played center with Luke Evangelista and Tommy Novak. It looked very clear from the start that Head Coach Andrew Brunette was desperately trying to throw something at the wall and hoping it would stick for Stamkos.
Eventually when it was all said and done, Stamkos saw the most 5-on-5 action at center with Forsberg and Marchessault for 304 minutes, per MoneyPuck. That line combination led the team in most ice time together among the forwards, but was less efficient per 60 minutes than the line combination of Forsberg, O'Reilly and Nyquist.
This brings us to Ryan O'Reilly and if he can hold down the 1C role for the Predators for another year. We know he has outstanding chemistry with Forsberg, which is a huge plus in his column if you're making an argument for O'Reilly over Stamkos at 1C. There's also the overwhelming belief that Stamkos is much better suited being on the wing at this stage in his illustrious career.
However, the Predators are in a precarious situation of lacking center depth. Maybe one of the worst center depth situations in the entire NHL, so with that in mind, you might have to force Stamkos into a center role.
Then of course there is the ongoing saga with Evangelista, who is still an unsigned RFA with training camp almost here. The ripple effect of Evangelista not being in the lineup doesn't really impact Stamkos' position all that much in my eyes. With or without Evangelista, the Predators have to decide where Stamkos can be most successful.
Here is the true x-factor to where Stamkos ultimately lines up, and it's not Evangelista. It's Fedor Svechkov. He is the lone young center who the team is relying on to take a big step this season. If he can seize the 2C role and earn the confidence in the coaches to keep him there, then that could allow Stamkos to stay on the wing.
If you go with Stamkos on the top line, then you bump O'Reilly down to second line and where does that leave Svechkov? You also have veterans Erik Haula and Michael McCarron as likely options in the bottom-six at center. It squeezes Svechkov out in that scenario, and that's not a great look for a franchise that has fumbled every young talent they've had in recent memory.
Unless Svechkov shows absolutely he's not ready for an elevated role at center, then it's going to be hard to put Stamkos at center. You have to see what you have in Svechkov early on, and you can't yank him out after a couple games and face the same dilemma you put yourself in last season with Novak. No, instead you have to let things play out much longer and see what Stamkos can build with consistent linemates.
If Svechkov does prove to not be ready, then Nashville is already going to be in bigger trouble than they already appear to be anyway. Then my Plan B would definitely be trying Stamkos at 1C with Forsberg and Marchessault. Move O'Reilly to 2C, but that second line will be a revolving door of different players. Not an ideal scenario at all.
Ultimately we know that Stamkos is going to do almost all of his damage on the top power play unit with most likely Forsberg, O'Reilly, Marchessault and Roman Josi. In a crazy way I actually think that power play unit can do some damage for the Predators, but 5-on-5 this team looks outmatched against most NHL teams on paper.
Even in a rocky first season with the Predators, Stamkos still mustered up 14 power play goals. Now in Year 2 he really needs to shoot the puck more. He saw his shot attempts total crater from 490 in his last season with Tampa Bay down to 356 with the Predators.
Worst case scenario is the Predators have to bounce Stamkos around the lineup again, playing a combination of center and wing and never getting comfortable. I like the idea to start off of him mentoring Svechkov and bringing out the best in the young center playing alongside a future Hall of Famer.