Five 2024 Free Agent Forwards Nashville Predators should target on July 1

Tyler Bertuzzi

Bertuzzi has bounced around quite a bit throughout the past year and a half, as he has played most of his career in Detroit but was traded to Boston at last year's deadline. He once again finds himself hitting free agency after a one-year contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and would honestly be a very sensible acquisition for a team like the Predators.

For starters, he has a physical edge to his game that stands out and can be very tough for other teams to play against. That has still proved to be important even in an Andrew Brunette system that is predicated on new age offensive tactics, as tenacity and high effort are still a requirement for him and Trotz.

He has a nose for the net, always getting to the front and battling there, and that is where he scores most of his goals. He is by no means known as a sniper, but his shot is not half bad, as he has shown ability to score from the high slot and weird angles near the net front.

He has also scored several goals finishing plays that started off the rush, which fits well for a Predators team that wants to be able to execute with things such as speed and stretch passes. He plays hard and has offensive skill, and there is a good chance that he has yet to truly reach his ceiling.

Bertuzzi has had two relatively down years since recording 62 points in 68 games in 2021-22, a year in which he hit the 30-goal mark. That year, he averaged almost 20 minutes of ice time per game and did not even reach the 16:30 mark in the past two seasons, and could increase his production again if he is given more ice time.

He is 29 years old, which is not exactly young, but plenty young enough to where he should have several years of juice left in the tank. Lots of players even hit their primes at age 30, so it is plausible to believe that the same could happen to Bertuzzi.

With how the past two years have gone for him, he will almost certainly not command a ton of money or term, which is perfect for the Predators. If he were to stay the way he has recently been, it would not be a big deal, but if he broke out, the Predators would reap the rewards big time.

He is exactly the kind of player that can help out in the present and be a serious contributor for the future, so he should absolutely be on Trotz's radar.