Even if you have never been there, Nashville holds a special place in everyone’s heart. The same is true of the Nashville Predators, which has managed to remain a respectable team despite some bad referee calls that arguably stole many a game from them at the last minute. They are the team everyone will be looking to in the years ahead, seeing if they can defend their titles, and keep up an impressive series of feats they have thus far been maintaining.
The Players
A team is only as good as its players. Rounding out the roster for the Nashville Predators at the moment are:
No. Player
33 Viktor Arvidsson
2 Anthony Bitetto
13 Nick Bonino
14 Mattias Ekholm
4 Ryan Ellis
25 Alexei Emelin
22 Kevin Fiala
9 Filip Forsberg
38 Ryan Hartman
17 Scott Hartnell
52 Matt Irwin
19 Calle Jarnkrok
92 Ryan Johansen
59 Roman Josi (C)
35 Pekka Rinne
20 Miikka Salomaki
74 Juuse Saros
10 Colton Sissons
15 Craig Smith
76 P.K. Subban
11 Eeli Tolvanen
8 Kyle Turris
51 Austin Watson
7 Yannick Weber
Fan favorites at present are Forsberg and Arvidsson, scoring 64 and 61 points, respectively. They are trailed shortly behind by Subban and Johansen at 59 and 54 points, the ordering of which also reflects their number of assists. As a team, they scored a total of 691 points this season, which is really great, and played a total of 82 games, going right to the wire on many of them. They had a wonderful season, winning 53 games and only losing 18, many of which were tightly contested at the end. This is well above average for the league, which may be part of the reason they are picking up some love this season by fans old and new. The only member to get injured this season was Austin Watson, who will face a potential suspension over his actions.
There probably is not as eclectic group of players as there is here on the Nashville Predators, hailing from all over the world across many continents. This is likely part of the reason they receive so much love. Fans are so into them, in fact, that they have begun wondering if the league was conspiring against the team due to a ruling on goalie interference.
Why Fans Love Them
Passion like this from the team and fans is part of the reason that the Nashville Predators are and remain one of our favorite teams at the moment. Anyone taking it out on the ice against them has a lot to contend with, and that is only looking to remain true in the near future. There is a reason they received and embraced the Presidents’ Trophy, which they will continue to defend, along with their Central Division title, which they will do despite having to play 10 games back-to-back. Specifically:
At Calgary, at Edmonton (Oct. 19-20); at Anaheim, at San Jose (Nov. 12-13); at Ottawa, at Chicago (Dec. 17-18); at Washington, vs. Philadelphia (Dec. 31-Jan. 1); at Detroit, at Montreal (Jan. 4-5); at Chicago, at Columbus (Jan. 9-10); at Florida, vs. Dallas (Feb 1-2); at St. Louis, vs. St. Louis (Feb. 9-10); vs. Edmonton, at St. Louis (Feb. 25-26) and at Pittsburgh, vs. Columbus (March 29-30).
The Bottom Line on the Nashville Predators
We look forward to seeing what the Nashville Predators can and will continue to do. They have historically been a force to be reckoned with, and that is not looking to change in the slightest any time soon. They are clearly the team to beat, which has everyone gunning for them.
