Nashville Predators still plagued with lack of Center Depth for upcoming season

NHL teams strive to have an identity. The Nashville Predators want to be known as a tough team to play against. Since Barry Trotz started his tenure as general manager, he made it clear he wants a team comprised of “serial winners.”

However, there is one trait that the Predators have been infamous for, almost to the point that it has become part of their identity: They consistently have a lack of depth at the center position.

Nashville Predators have always been stymied by finding a true #1 Center

For many seasons the Predators were exposed for not having a true number one center. Former General Manager David Poile realized this issue and acted in 2016, when he traded Seth Jones, a player who seemed to be a sure-fire franchise defenseman, for Ryan Johansen.

Of course, there were other factors to the trade. The Predators were spoiled with several high-caliber defensemen at the time, meaning they could afford to let Jones go. But more importantly, they were in such desperate need for a top-line center that they had to make the difficult decision.

Ultimately, Johansen did not work out in Nashville, and he never quite lived up to being the center the Predators wanted or needed. In the summer of 2019, the Predators signed Matt Duchene in hopes that he could be the center piece that they needed to contend for a Stanley Cup. As everyone is aware, that didn’t work out either.

So, the Predators have skated by with a cast of players who do just enough to get the job done. In July 2023 the Predators added Ryan O’Reilly who turned out to be one of the league’s better free agency signings. But in reality, the question of whether O’Reilly is a true top-line center has to be asked.

For a team that is content on making the playoffs and maybe sticking around for six games once they get to the postseason, then sure, O’Reilly is probably good enough to play as your top center. But the Predators have long stressed they want to win a championship.

Even at the end of the 2022-23 season when the Predators were fresh off trading many key veterans, such as Mattias Ekholm and Mikael Granlund, the Predators explained they were not rebuilding, but rather resetting.

Many thought a rebuild was necessary. It had been a while since their last playoff series win and the team showed no signs of going anyway positive. But the team remained adamant that a full rebuild was not in their plans, as they wanted to remain competitive and shoot for a Stanley Cup sooner rather than later.

Looking toward the Future at the Center Position

So here we are, the Predators remain a team who sees themselves as a contender. They have doubled down on being competitive this summer, shelling out $108.5 million on three key additions that include, Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brady Skjei.

The problem is, the center position was never addressed, even with all the cap space the Predators had to spend. Despite being listed as a center, Stamkos predominately plays on the wing, as he did last season in Tampa Bay.

The Predators’ 2024-25 projected lineup has Stamkos slated to play the wing position on the second line, centered by Tommy Novak.   

To be clear, the additions the Predators made at the start of July certainly helped. They are a considerably better team now than they were when last season ended. The expectations have risen substantially because of the improvements they have made to both the forward and defensive group. But while this may help the Predators move from a wild card seed to the top-three in the division, and perhaps now into the second round of the playoffs, does it stop them from being exposed down the middle of the ice?

When the Predators made the Stanley Cup Final in 2017, they were riddled with injuries, most notably, Johansen. The player who Nashville placed so much stock into suffered a heartbreaking injury in the Western Conference Final and his presence was missed when the Predators played the Penguins, as the Predators could simply not match up with Pittsburgh’s centers.

Not to set the expectations too high so soon, but if the Predators are to make a run in the playoffs, they may suffer a similar fate because their centers do not stack up against the other contenders.

The Colorado Avalanche have Nathan MacKinnon, the Dallas Stars have Tyler Seguin, the Winnipeg Jets have Mark Scheifele, and the St. Louis Blues have Jordan Kyrou. These are all just teams in the Central Division alone.

Of course, the season hasn’t even begun yet. The projected lineups we see today aren’t necessarily the lineups we will see on opening night. But considering the Predators pretty much maxed out their available salary cap space, it really lives them little to no wiggle room if they wanted to make a deal to acquire a center who could be considered elite.

It was highly reported that the Carolina Hurricanes and Martin Necas could part ways. The player and club are heading to arbitration later this summer if a new deal isn’t reached. A new contract doesn’t mean Necas will play in Carolina next season, although it is likely the forward will now stay in Raleigh. However, Hurricanes’ general manager, Eric Tulsky said that a potential trade hasn’t been ruled out.

Necas is a player the Predators could have pursued to vastly improve their center position. But that option is all but dead due to the direction the Predators chose.

Again, it’s important to state that the Predators were not wrong to make the signings that they did. The name of the game is to improve when free agency opens. But if their end goal is to hoist the Stanley Cup in the not-too-distant future, then they may come to regret spending so much money on players who contribute little to the problem that has been staring them in the face for so long, and an issue that has cost them greatly in recent seasons.

Arguably the problem reared its ugly head when the Predators were on the biggest stage when the ultimate prize was within grasp. For the Predators, they may come to realize, those who do not learn their history are doomed to repeat it.