Nashville Predators Talk - 2024/2025 Season

[Predsanddead24]

So to make the playoffs we need to win something like 64% of the remaining games... (40-23-0).

Considering we are currently 6-10-3, i think it is pretty safe to say that it isnt happening. Even on this semi-successful road trip, we have only managed to go 1-1-2 so far (50%). 50% of the points has us finishing with 78 points. Last season that'd put us around 25th in the league. Our home record and away records are similar. Home 4-6-0 (40% points) away 2-4-3 (38.9% points).

Yeah this is the point last season where we started to turn things around and while it's still possible for us to do it again it's going to require us to once again be one of the better teams in the league down the stretch.

 

[herzausstein]

Yeah this is the point last season where we started to turn things around and while it's still possible for us to do it again it's going to require us to once again be one of the better teams in the league down the stretch.

The underlying numbers for the team are much worse than last year 19 games into the season.

2024 vs 2023 (through 19 games)
2.42 vs 3.37 Goals/game
3.21 vs 3.26 Goals Against/game
21 vs 38 5v5 goals
15 points vs 18 points

So 19 games into the season:
We are scoring almost a full goal a game less
Allowing just as many goals against per game
Scoring 1.105 5v5 goals a game vs 2 5v5 goals a game
Actually somehow have 3 less points in the standings
All this with Saros actually putting out decent numbers (excellent if you compare them to last season at this point)

Saros 2024 vs 2023
.914 vs .894 sv%
2.55 vs 3.13 GAA
5-8-2 vs 6-9-0
Saros is a top 10 starter this season instead of a bottom 10 like last season (more than 10 games played).

 

[Legionnaire11]

There's been a lot of talk about how we brought in a bunch of slow, aging players and many point that as the main problem with the team. However, if you look at them relative to the team, aren't they performing as expected?

Among forwards, when they were signed, we pegged Stamkos and Marchessault as 2nd liners here. Implying that they should be somewhere in the 3-6 range of forward scoring with the team. Currently they are tied for 3rd in forward scoring behind only Forsberg and O'Reilly. Really, exactly where they were expected to be.

Skjei was expected to be the second best defenseman on the team, either anchoring the second line or supporting Josi on the first line. And indeed, he is currently second in defense scoring, exactly where he was expected to be.

However, it's not their position of success relative to the team that stinks, it's the overall numbers that really stinks. Stamkos for example, for all of the talk about how old and slow and cooked he is, he still went over point-per-game each of the last three seasons with 104, 84 and 81 point seasons. Now he's on pace for 43. Did he somehow regress that horribly with the stroke of a pen? or is Brunette just not getting the most out of this roster?

I know which answer seems more likely.

 

[Predsanddead24]

The underlying numbers for the team are much worse than last year 19 games into the season.

2024 vs 2023 (through 19 games)
2.42 vs 3.37 Goals/game
3.21 vs 3.26 Goals Against/game
21 vs 38 5v5 goals
15 points vs 18 points

So 19 games into the season:
We are scoring almost a full goal a game less
Allowing just as many goals against per game
Scoring 1.105 5v5 goals a game vs 2 5v5 goals a game
Actually somehow have 3 less points in the standings
All this with Saros actually putting out decent numbers (excellent if you compare them to last season at this point)

Saros 2024 vs 2023
.914 vs .894 sv%
2.55 vs 3.13 GAA
5-8-2 vs 6-9-0
Saros is a top 10 starter this season instead of a bottom 10 like last season (more than 10 games played).

We've also to this point played one of the easier schedules in the league and according to Tankathon's method have the hardest remaining schedule in the league. Definitely not much there to suggest a turnaround is coming.

 

[JR303]

As a day 1 fan, surely I can't be the only one that finds this to be the stupidest f***ing timeline as a Predators fan.....
I'll give Trotz all the praise he deserves as a coach, but if you don't think right now we wouldn't be largely better as a team if you swap O'Reilly and Schenn out with Duchene and Ekholm, I don't know what to say... (I think Ekholm was Poile, but if I remember correctly, BT was helping him that season)

This is largely ignoring the use/handling of our young players, but I think all of that's been discussed already.

All that said, the players honestly don't look like they are playing for the "team", I know that's easy to say from my couch, but we've watched some bad teams over the years, but you could see they were usually giving a concerted effort. Not to mention, able to make/receive a pass with at least a little bit of acumen.

Sorry, I'm still frustrated even after that win. Was luck and Saros that we got that one.

 

[Bringer of Jollity]

There's been a lot of talk about how we brought in a bunch of slow, aging players and many point that as the main problem with the team. However, if you look at them relative to the team, aren't they performing as expected?

Among forwards, when they were signed, we pegged Stamkos and Marchessault as 2nd liners here. Implying that they should be somewhere in the 3-6 range of forward scoring with the team. Currently they are tied for 3rd in forward scoring behind only Forsberg and O'Reilly. Really, exactly where they were expected to be.

Skjei was expected to be the second best defenseman on the team, either anchoring the second line or supporting Josi on the first line. And indeed, he is currently second in defense scoring, exactly where he was expected to be.

However, it's not their position of success relative to the team that stinks, it's the overall numbers that really stinks. Stamkos for example, for all of the talk about how old and slow and cooked he is, he still went over point-per-game each of the last three seasons with 104, 84 and 81 point seasons. Now he's on pace for 43. Did he somehow regress that horribly with the stroke of a pen? or is Brunette just not getting the most out of this roster?

I know which answer seems more likely.

Kucherov

 

[glenngineer]

As a day 1 fan, surely I can't be the only one that finds this to be the stupidest f***ing timeline as a Predators fan.....
I'll give Trotz all the praise he deserves as a coach, but if you don't think right now we wouldn't be largely better as a team if you swap O'Reilly and Schenn out with Duchene and Ekholm, I don't know what to say... (I think Ekholm was Poile, but if I remember correctly, BT was helping him that season)

This is largely ignoring the use/handling of our young players, but I think all of that's been discussed already.

All that said, the players honestly don't look like they are playing for the "team", I know that's easy to say from my couch, but we've watched some bad teams over the years, but you could see they were usually giving a concerted effort. Not to mention, able to make/receive a pass with at least a little bit of acumen.

Sorry, I'm still frustrated even after that win. Was luck and Saros that we got that one.

The good that came out of moving Ekholm was Molendyk. That's all that I've got.

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

The good that came out of moving Ekholm was Molendyk. That's all that I've got.

And generally speaking, folks were surprised we picked Molendyk that high... he was rated a bit lower in the draft. Likely some other team out there had an eye on him too. But if we need to pick as high as #24 to get him, well, we also had the 2 2nds we used on Nilsson/Lind (and other stuff) which could conceivably have been packaged to move up, if our scouts loved Molendyk that much. It's not necessarily Only-By-Trading-Ekholm that we could have landed Molendyk, since he was considered a bit of a reach on draft day.

 

[herzausstein]

We've also to this point played one of the easier schedules in the league and according to Tankathon's method have the hardest remaining schedule in the league. Definitely not much there to suggest a turnaround is coming.

Yeah i didnt even consider strength of schedule here. Not sure how it compares to last season but our good run last season had a fair amount of lower end teams or teams that were slumping.

I looked at our performance in November this season as well. The GA/Game is really the only thing that is improved overall 2.78 GA/GP and 2.44 GF/GP for the 9 games in November. Still bottom 1/3 of the NHL in those and our 5v5 goals for is still near the very bottom of the NHL with the only teams that are worse having played less games then us. It is an improvement from the first half of qhat we have played but still nowhere near enough to make the playoffs.

 

[Armourboy]

As a day 1 fan, surely I can't be the only one that finds this to be the stupidest f***ing timeline as a Predators fan.....
I'll give Trotz all the praise he deserves as a coach, but if you don't think right now we wouldn't be largely better as a team if you swap O'Reilly and Schenn out with Duchene and Ekholm, I don't know what to say... (I think Ekholm was Poile, but if I remember correctly, BT was helping him that season)

This is largely ignoring the use/handling of our young players, but I think all of that's been discussed already.

All that said, the players honestly don't look like they are playing for the "team", I know that's easy to say from my couch, but we've watched some bad teams over the years, but you could see they were usually giving a concerted effort. Not to mention, able to make/receive a pass with at least a little bit of acumen.

Sorry, I'm still frustrated even after that win. Was luck and Saros that we got that one.

I'll give you the Ekholm one, not sure Duchene makes that big of an impact if he is expected to be the top center here. Now Duchene vs Marchessault or Stamkos and you might have a good argument.

 

[triggrman]

Yeah I’d also take ROR over MD. Now if you also consider cap hits, well that changes things.

 

[herzausstein]

Considering we desperately need centers, i take RoR over MD all day, every day. Not saying MD is a bad player, he just isnt a center unless you are out of options.

Duchene vs Stamkos feels like a wash though

 

[Bringer of Jollity]

Bruins start well below expectations and fire their coach.

The Perds?

 

[glenngineer]

And generally speaking, folks were surprised we picked Molendyk that high... he was rated a bit lower in the draft. Likely some other team out there had an eye on him too. But if we need to pick as high as #24 to get him, well, we also had the 2 2nds we used on Nilsson/Lind (and other stuff) which could conceivably have been packaged to move up, if our scouts loved Molendyk that much. It's not necessarily Only-By-Trading-Ekholm that we could have landed Molendyk, since he was considered a bit of a reach on draft day.

You're making the assumption that the 2 2nds would've allowed us to move up to select TM if we hadn't selected him at 24.

Much like we did with Surin this year, we picked a guy off the board because other teams were circling.

Do either of these picks turn out well? Only time will tell. Will guys selected shortly thereafter turn out better and we'll Monday morning QB them, possibly.

Remember the 2008 draft? We dealt the 15th overall pick to move down to 18th and select Pickard? If all else goes the same and we keep that pick, we end up with Wilson, Karlsson and Josi in that draft. That changes the trajectory of this franchise as we have chips to trade for assets that were needed.

Drafts and trades are always crapshoots. You win some, you lose some and other times you just shake your head. If the goals of moving out Ekholm and MD was to get younger and change the culture, we succeeded and failed at the same time. Not sure what we did more of and I wish we had kept along the trajectory of letting the young kids play. But that's an already beaten to death horse.