It has been just over three weeks since NHL free agency opened, and at this point in the offseason, teams are generally aware of what their opening night lineup will be. The Nashville Predators have usually not been exceptions to this concept, but this offseason might be a different story.
Their offense is a mystery, and the biggest question is not even about Luke Evangelista and when he signs a new contract. Even if you assume he signs, the roster still feels incomplete once you get to the middle six and down, and the Predators have done virtually nothing to change the center position.
The defense is much more complete in terms of purely available bodies, but is log-jammed with left shot guys, and nobody knows where each guy will end up. Between guys on the current roster, prospects, and positions left to address, we still have much more to find out before the puck drops in Nashville on October 9.
Nashville Predators might not be done making moves this offseason
When you look at the Predators forward core and who is legitimately expected to play in the top six, the guys you can point to with certainty are Filip Forsberg, Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, Ryan O'Reilly. Michael Bunting is in that mix too, but not with quite the same certainty as the others.
Outside of that, the Predators have Erik Haula, Cole Smith, Fedor Svechkov, Michael McCarron, Zachary L'Heureux, and Luke Evangelista, who has not even signed a new contract yet.
That is a total of 11 forwards, one short of the usual 12 that are dressed on game nights, with a top six that looks shaky at best. What that tells me is that the Predators are likely to give significant action to one of their current young prospects, or that they might have another move or two up their sleeve this offseason.
Rumor has it that there could be more league-wide offseason action in the next few weeks and months, which would make sense for a team like the Predators.
As mentioned, their forward core has an open spot that needs to be filled, and someone like Jack Roslovic would be a good player to add to the middle and bottom six. He is a super fast skater with center and wing versatility who has been a serviceable point producer throughout his career, and would mesh well with the young guys on the roster.
Aside from that, the center position was a huge issue last year and has not been made any better, if anything it might have gotten worse by trading away Colton SIssons. The Predators do not absolutely have to make a move here, but if so, guys like Marco Rossi and Mason McTavish come to mind as potential trade options.
Both are young centers with super bright futures in this league, which is exactly what the Predators should be looking for right now. The Predators have also been linked to Rossi at times during this offseason, so there is always a chance something could materialize at some point down the line.
Even if the Predators get their offensive questions sorted out before too much longer, their defense is still all over the place in terms of personnel fits. It is so up in the air that someone like Nick Blankenburg could be on the top pairing, or out of the lineup completely.
And if Blankenburg is in the lineup, as he deserves, the question becomes which left-shot defenseman does not get a spot? Anyone who says they have a real idea about that or any rest of the lineup is lying to themselves.
It is hard to remember the last time this far into the offseason when the Predators lineup was such a question mark, both offensively and defensively. Absolutely have your radar up regarding possible remaining offseason moves, and expect to learn more from training camp than you are used to in any other year.