Top 5 Players Who Have Outperformed Preseason Expectations for Nashville Predators
You can make a case for nearly every player on the Predators outperforming expectations to some degree, but these five stick out the most for a team performing way ahead of schedule.
By Chad Minton
Quite frankly you can call the entire Nashville Predators team overperformers, but which players have stood out the most to propel this first season under Head Coach Andrew Brunette to heights no one really expected?
The Predators currently have a franchise record 18-game point streak going. They just made a thrilling three-goal deficit comeback in the third period to defeat the Vegas Golden Knights, and the entire NHL landscape has their attention on the Predator as a legit threat in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The show goes on! Nashville 16-0-2 in its last 18 after a crazy comeback win. This isn't a bubble - the Preds are legit. @NHLNetwork #OntheFly pic.twitter.com/GYohKgsLBp
— Mike Kelly (@MikeKellyNHL) March 27, 2024
Preseason predictions for the Predators were all over the board last summer after free agency commenced. There were some analysts out there who were bullish on the Predators, but almost all of them was due to the Juuse Saros effect. The overwhelming narrative was the Predators would be a work-in-progress in Year 1 under Brunette, and it certainly appeared to be the case up until mid-February.
It's wild to think that this couldn't even be happening if General Manager Barry Trotz had decided at the 2024 trade deadline to punt the ball and think more long-term. He was even taking calls on Juuse Saros. But then the winning started happening, and Trotz couldn't imagine breaking up this special group of players.
That looks like a very wise decision three weeks later. So with that, here are my top-five players who have exceeded expectations the most to propel the Predators into a chance at even finishing in the top-three of the Central Division.