There has been plenty of commentary about the Predators’ struggles this season, and it is difficult to find many positives. The team has struggled in so many aspects of the game, most notably and impactfully, their offense is struggling to score goals, which in turn, has cost them games.
A quarter of the season has passed, and some people use Thanksgiving as a good benchmark to assess a team. Based on a team’s current seeding, it can serve as a good indicator of where they will stand when all is said and done. If this is true, the Predators are in serious trouble, but in some ways, we all knew that, and it was evident long before Thanksgiving.
However, it’s time to reflect on what we are thankful for, and despite the disastrous season the Predators have had so far, they can still find reasons to be thankful.
Juuse Saros
The Vezina-caliber goaltender has once again been nothing short of spectacular for his team. Of course, many of his stellar performances have been wasted due to the Predators’ lack of scoring or their inability to string together a full 60-minute effort.
Nashville is currently battling with the Chicago Blackhawks for last place in the Central Division, but if it weren’t for Saros' play, there probably wouldn’t be much jockeying for position. The Predators could be in stone-cold last place.
The Finnish goalie has a 2.58 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage. Although these aren’t historic numbers, you have to remember that there was a point at the start of the season when the Predators were allowing odd-man rushes and breakaways at an alarming rate. Saros was left to deal with these breakdowns. As a result, Saros leads the league in saves on high-danger shots.
The Predators have fallen short of playing well in front of Saros, yet he has still recorded two shutouts. Considering the league leader, Connor Hellebuyck, has three, it’s safe to say that blanking the opponent twice is pretty impressive.
Since Nov. 1, Saros has posted the fifth-best goals saved above average. So, the Predators have been bailed out by their goalie more than a few times.
Saros gives the Predators a chance to win every night, sometimes despite how the team plays in front of him. After every win, the team hands out a symbolic mini shovel, representing their effort to dig out of the hole they are in. If they are to save their season and surface from the depths, Saros will play a massive role. For that reason, the Predators should be thankful that he wears a gold jersey and they do not have to face him as an opponent.
Only 7 points back from a wild card spot
It may seem hard to believe when you see that the Predators are losing more games than they are winning, yet they are only 7 points behind the second wild card spot. Of course, for any of that to matter, they will need to string results together and go on a few streaks. But we can stay optimistic – they can turn things around. After all, this isn’t the time of year for negativity, and it isn’t an insurmountable task.
At times, the Predators seem to take one step forward and two steps back. They impress with a win against the number one team in the league, the Winnipeg Jets, only to follow it up with an absolute dud against the New Jersey Devils. With this pattern of play, you might expect the gap between the Predators and a playoff spot to be as large as the Grand Canyon, but it isn’t.
The Predators have star players, both existing and those signed in the offseason. The Predators should be contenders because of them. Although this year has strayed far from the original plan, Steven Stamkos is still a former Maurice Richard Trophy winner, Jonathan Marchessault is still a former 40-goal scorer, and so is Filip Forsberg. It wouldn’t shock many if the Predators turned the campaign around at some point. If they do, they could make up ground and push for a playoff spot. The fact that salvation is within reasonable reach is surprising, and the Predators should be thankful for that.
Filip Forsberg
The Predators sniper is perhaps the one bright spot on the entire offense. At times, it seems that he is dragging the team with him, willing them to victories. Forsberg leads the team in scoring with nine goals. His 17 points are also the second-most on the team.
Forsberg recently went six games without a goal, a slump by his standards, which was a season high. But aside from that drought, this season he has never gone more than three games without lighting the lamp. Last season, he recorded career highs in both goals (48) and points (94). Many speculated that the additions of Ryan O'Reilly and Gustav Nyquist contributed to Forsberg’s breakout season. This year, O'Reilly, who helped create a lot of offense for Forsberg last season, has been one of the many Predators struggling. Yet Forsberg still remains a threat from anywhere in the offensive zone and is a good bet to score in any game.
His shot release makes him a prolific goal scorer, and he can carry the puck as if it’s on a string. For these reasons, Forsberg can create a lot of his own opportunities. When the Predators are struggling to generate offense, Forsberg isn’t neutralized.
The Predators' offense seems to appear only when the team is on the power play. Despite their underwhelming performance at even strength, they have managed to produce when playing with the man advantage. They currently rank 14th in the league, converting 20.8 percent of the time. Forsberg has played a role in helping the team be much more successful at scoring with the man advantage. The Swedish forward has the second-most power play goals on the team, behind Stamkos.
Forsberg is instrumental in many aspects of the game for the Predators. He, like Saros, will play a big part if Nashville is to have a resurgence this season. Especially when all the other talented goal scorers on the roster are seemingly “snake-bitten,” the Predators should be thankful for Forsberg, who can still change the course of a game regardless of how poorly the rest of the team is playing.
Everybody in the hockey world is most likely surprised by how the Predators have looked this season. Fortunately, they still have roughly three quarters of the season to rectify it. They have the talent, they have a coach who led them to a franchise-best 18-game point streak last year, which saved that campaign, and they have a list of teams who have historically overcome similar hurdles, from themselves to the 2019 St. Louis Blues. The season may seem like it is hanging by a thread, but it’s not quite dead. The Predators should probably be most thankful for that.