The Nashville Predators have signed Grant Mismash to a two-year entry-level contract that will begin in the 2021-22 season, following his senior season at the University of North Dakota. Mismash actually could have become an unrestricted free agent had he waited until August, but will sign with the team that picked him back in 2017.
Mismash, 22, was a second-round pick back then, coming out of the U.S. National Team Development Program where he played alongside names like Josh Norris, Quinn Hughes, and Brady Tkachuk. Instead of turning pro at any point, he spent all four years at UND, developing his game and becoming a leader for the program. This season, he scored 10 goals and 19 points in 20 games on a team loaded with future NHL talent and joins several teammates in signing his ELC.
The Predators are dying for a little more homegrown offensive firepower, but it likely won’t come from Mismash. His role in the NHL is likely as an agitating bottom-six option that will only chip in a goal every now and again. That can still be a valuable piece, especially if his penalty-killing skills can continue to develop, but the young forward is unlikely to be an impact offensive player at the next level. Last summer, Scott Wheeler of The Athletic suggested a player like Scott Laughton would be Mismash’s ceiling but noted that he would have to prove himself in the AHL first.