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Predators Hire Darby Hendrickson As Assistant Coach

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The Predators are close to announcing Darby Hendrickson as their newest assistant coach, reports Minnesota’s FOX 9 Sports. The Predators later announced that the longtime Wild coach and player will reunite with former Minnesota teammate Andrew Brunette behind the Nashville bench.

Hendrickson and Brunette spent parts of three seasons together with the Wild shortly after their inception, including one of the great Cinderella runs of the decade when they advanced to the 2003 Western Conference Final. The Twin Cities native began his coaching career as an assistant with the Wild in 2010, a role he held under multiple head coaches until being fired last month.

The Preds didn’t say which responsibilities would fall under Hendrickson’s purview. He held a variety of different roles during his time in Minnesota. General manager Barry Trotz had this to say on Hendrickson’s addition:

After spending more than a decade as a professional player, he has now been a quality coach in the NHL for a long time and further strengthens our staff’s ability to communicate and teach the game at a high level. His familiarity with Andrew Brunette – having been both teammates and coaches together in the past – adds to the cohesiveness of our group, and his experience as an NHL player and coach makes him very relatable to today’s player. With Darby now on our staff, our coaches own more than 2,200 combined games of NHL playing experience, something we feel is incredibly valuable for our team’s growth as we strive to achieve our goal of winning the Stanley Cup.

Hendrickson also worked with Brunette on the Wild bench between 2014 and 2016. He fills out Nashville’s staff for next season alongside assistants Derek MacKenzie and Todd Richards and goalie coach Ben Vanderklok. He replaces Dan Hinote, who the team parted ways with last month after four seasons behind the Preds bench.

The Preds also announced that former defender Cody Franson is joining their amateur scouting department. Now 36, Franson retired after the 2021-22 campaign but last played in the NHL with the Blackhawks in 2017-18. A third-round pick of the Preds in 2005, Franson also spent last season in the Wild organization as an assistant coach with AHL Iowa.

Free Agent Focus: Nashville Predators

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Free agency is now just a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Predators.

Key Restricted Free Agents

F Jaret Anderson-Dolan – The 24-year-old played just one game with the Predators this season after being claimed off waivers from the Los Angeles Kings. The Calgary, Alberta native played 31 games total, posting just a goal and three assists. A former second-round pick in 2017, Anderson-Dolan was thought to be a player who could develop into a bottom-six scoring option, but to this point in his career, his game hasn’t translated well to the NHL. His size is an issue as he does get overpowered by stronger defensemen, and he isn’t a great passer by NHL standards. However, he brings energy, can shoot the puck, and is a good forechecker. Given his lack of NHL success, it’s possible that Nashville may elect not to issue Anderson-Dolan a qualifying offer.

Other RFAs:  F Egor Afanasyev, RW Wade Allison, D Marc Del Gaizo, G Gustavs Grigals, D Spencer Stastney, D Adam Wilsby, F Liam Foudy, C Juuso Parssinen, F Philip Tomasino

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Anthony Beauvillier – Beauvillier picked a bad time to have the worst offensive season of his career as the 27-year-old registered just five goals and 12 assists while being traded twice during the season and three times in the last 18 months. The former first-round pick looked as though he’d developed into a reliable secondary scorer in the middle six, but his numbers fell off a cliff last season. Beauvillier is a good shooter, brings good energy, and isn’t afraid to get dirty, he’ll find an NHL job next season, but he will be looking at a significant pay cut from the $4.15MM he made last season.

D Tyson Barrie – Barrie was a consistent healthy scratch last season in Nashville and voiced his displeasure at one point. He could be a good option for a team looking for some offense from the backend without a massive financial commitment. Barrie remains a good power play producer, and isn’t the worst defender in his own zone, although he does struggle to contain his opponents if he loses position. Barrie is just one year removed from posting 55 points in 85 games and will likely receive a one-year NHL contract for next season with the hopes that he bounces back to form.

D Alexandre Carrier – Carrier will be an interesting player to watch in free agency as he doesn’t have a long NHL track record, but he has been effective and could be a good second-pairing defenseman for a team. He is quick, has good gap control, and can keep plays alive in the offensive zone with smart pinches, and strong side-to-side work on the blue line. He isn’t afraid to push back in the defensive zone and doesn’t get overpowered by opposing forwards. The 27-year-old made $2.5MM last season on a one-year deal and is due a healthy raise on a multi-year deal.

G Kevin Lankinen – Lankinen is capable of playing like a starting goaltender in short stretches but lacks the consistency of a full-time NHL starter. He has good size but doesn’t play big and has a pretty average skill set. His 4.1 goals saved above expected (as per Money Puck) was pretty solid work in 24 games, although it represented a drop off from the 8.6 goals saved above expected he posted in 2022-23. With Predators star prospect Yaroslav Askarov ready to make the jump to the NHL, it looks as though Lankinen will be looking for a new NHL home. Given the weak goalie market, the 29-year-old should be able to find a multi-year deal with an AAV in the range of $2MM to $2.5MM.

F Jason Zucker – Zucker was in a very different position last summer when he signed a one-year deal worth $5.3MM. Zucker was coming off a 27-goal season and had been healthy for the first time in a while. A multi-year deal never materialized for the 32-year-old, and he opted to bet on himself with the shorter term. Unfortunately, the bet didn’t pay off as Zucker struggled to 14 goals and 18 assists in 69 games and was traded to Nashville at the deadline for a sixth-round pick. Zucker can still skate and isn’t afraid to get physical, he will fetch a multi-year deal, but it will likely come in under $4MM annually.

Other UFAs: G Troy Grosenick. D Jordan Gross, D Roland McKeown, F Kiefer Sherwood, C Jasper Weatherby

Projected Cap Space

The Predators have almost $12MM of dead cap space to contend with due to buyouts and retained salary. Despite this albatross on the books, the Predators still have plenty of room under the salary cap to shape their roster this summer. Nashville has nearly $26.4MM in space to make improvements and re-sign any pending free agents. The Predators are well-positioned to make a splash this summer and might opt to bolster their offense on the trade market. The team could also pursue top players in free agency as they aren’t limited by short-term cap issues. The Predators will need to find a direction with star netminder Juuse Saros and might need to tread lightly when handing out long-term deals if they want to have cap space to re-sign Saros long-term.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

Offseason Checklist: Nashville Predators

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The offseason has arrived for all but the two teams who are still taking part in the playoffs.  For the rest, it’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at Nashville.

It looked like Nashville was pivoting to a rebuild with the moves they made last summer but instead, it wound up being more of the same even with some core pieces gone and other new core players in place.  The Preds went on a major hot streak in the second half of the season, recording at least a point in a franchise-record 18 straight games which helped secure them a Wild Card spot.  However, they weren’t able to muster up much offense in the playoffs, resulting in a first-round elimination.  Now, assuming they’re not looking to rebuild now, GM Barry Trotz will have several objectives to try to accomplish this summer.

Replace McDonagh

Trotz made one notable move this offseason, sending Ryan McDonagh back to Tampa Bay, fulfilling a request from the blueliner.  In doing so, he took one of their more notable defenders out of their lineup.  While they offloaded his full $6.75MM cap hit and got a second-rounder, they didn’t get anything back that could help the current roster while creating a big hole to fill.

This past season, McDonagh was second on the team in ice time behind only Roman Josi.  He was also second in points by a blueliner and blocked shots while leading all Nashville players in shorthanded ice time.  Suffice it to say, they need to find an impactful replacement.

Brandon Montour is the only pending unrestricted free agent who averaged more than McDonagh’s 21:47 per game in 2023-24.  Having said that, veterans like Brady Skjei and Brett Pesce can also fill that void.  Chris Tanev would be a shorter-term addition to cover some hard defensive minutes while Matt Roy could be more of an under-the-radar fit.  Alternatively, they could look to the trade market.

With Alexandre Carrier and Tyson Barrie also set to hit the open market next month, the Preds will also have some work to do in terms of adding some depth.  But on top of that, they’re going to need to find a top-three defender if they want to hang around the playoff picture.

Decide Saros’ Future

This time a year ago, there was speculation that the Predators were open to moving Yaroslav Askarov with an eye on making a splash either at the draft or to upgrade their roster.  Clearly, that never materialized and the young netminder had a strong season with AHL Milwaukee and remains their goaltender of the future.

How close the future is remains to be seen, however.  Veteran goaltender Juuse Saros is set to enter the final year of his contract next season, one that carries a below-market $5MM AAV.  The 29-year-old’s numbers for the year weren’t spectacular but he was much better in the second half of the year and had a strong showing in the playoffs.  That has him well-positioned to earn a considerable raise on his next deal.  On the surface, he could make a case for a contract similar to the seven-year, $59.5MM pact ($8.5MM AAV) that Connor Hellebuyck signed with Winnipeg last season.

With Askarov in the picture, is it advisable for them to commit that type of deal to Saros?  If they feel they should do that, then it’s possible that Askarov could be in play once again.  On the flip side, if Trotz feels that it’s not worth paying that type of contract, then the decision becomes about trading him now or keeping him into next season and re-assessing closer to the trade deadline.

If they look to move him in the coming weeks, it might be tough to elicit top value with Jacob Markstrom and Linus Ullmark (among others) believed to be available as well.  While that means there could be more demand for starting goalies, the higher supply could lower the offers coming Nashville’s way.  Generally speaking, teams typically get better returns if they move a goalie in the offseason but it’s certainly possible that this isn’t the case this year with the other netminders in play.

On the surface, this could be Nashville’s biggest decision of the summer.  Is it time to hand the reins to Askarov?  They’ll have to determine the answer to this question probably within the next few weeks.

Add Scoring Depth

Under Andrew Brunette, the Predators went from 27th in goals scored in 2022-23 to 10th this season, gaining 40 extra goals in the process.  However, they struggled considerably in that department in their opening-round loss to Vancouver, scoring just a dozen times in six games even with the Canucks playing most of that series without starting goaltender Thatcher Demko.

To that in, despite their improvement in the regular season, Trotz told Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic (subscription link) that he’s looking to add up front, particularly in their top nine so they’re not as reliant on the top line as they were at times.  Before looking at the external options, they will need to consider some internal ones, however.

Youngsters Juuso Parssinen, Philip Tomasino, and Egor Afanasyev all spent time in the minors this season (the latter almost the entire year) but are all now waiver-eligible moving forward.  Parssinen and Tomasino have had some success in Nashville at times but haven’t been the most consistent so far.  Trotz will need to identify which ones are in the plans for 2024-25 and if any aren’t, this might be the time to try to move them before running the risk of having to sneak them through waivers.  But one (or more) of them establishing themselves as regulars next season should help their offensive depth at a minimum.

As for free agent options, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them take a run at re-signing Jason Zucker who fit in pretty well after being acquired at the trade deadline.  Beyond that, since their focus seems to be on improving their depth, they’re probably not going to be targeting the top end of the UFA class.  But veterans like Tyler Toffoli and Vladimir Tarasenko could appeal as multi-year veteran options while Jake DeBrusk and Teuvo Teravainen could be longer-term fits.  With $26MM in cap space per CapFriendly, they will have room to add a forward or two even after addressing their defensive situation.

Improve Penalty Kill

During the regular season, Nashville’s penalty was a trouble spot.  Their success rate dropped to just 76.9%, good for 22nd in the league.  For comparison, they were at 82.6% in 2022-23, good for a three-way tie for fourth in the NHL in that regard.  The slippage shorthanded likely played a role in their decision to let assistant coach Dan Hinote go late last month as one of his responsibilities was running the penalty kill.

For starters, they’ll need to find a replacement for Hinote behind the bench who will likely take on his old role.  That’s something they’d probably like to have in place before free agency opens up next month.

It wouldn’t be surprising if penalty killing acumen will be among the priorities that Nashville uses to round out their back end to replace Carrier (assuming he doesn’t re-sign) and Barrie.  There are plenty of depth defensemen available on the open market, several of which can handle heavy penalty killing roles while the lower-end blueliners are typically easier to get on the trade market.  They should be able to address this in the coming weeks.

Things get a little harder when it comes to their forwards.  They already have ten returning forwards, not including the three now-waiver-eligible ones mentioned earlier.  If they bring Zucker back and/or add another offensive forward, that fills one hold but probably doesn’t address the penalty killing element unless they’re bringing in a notable two-way player.  It might require shaking up the fourth line that was quietly effective or moving out someone already there to open up a roster spot to bring in more of a penalty killing specialist to help get this unit back on track.  It’s not a must-fix priority but it’s one that Trotz will likely try to address nonetheless.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Predators Optimistic In Extending Juuse Saros

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Star Nashville Predators goaltender Juuse Saros has been deeply entrenched in trade rumors for much of the season, largely thanks to the emergence of top goalie prospect Yaroslav Askarov in the minor leagues. But the two sides might not be set for the departure many are expecting, with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman sharing that, “the player wants to stay and the team wants him to say,” in the latest episode of the 32 Thoughts Podcast. Friedman added that a source close to the team has expressed optimism in Nashville’s chances of extending Saros.

But despite the strong stats, Nashville has shared they’re not in a rush to re-sign the former Vezina Trophy finalist. Instead, they’ll monitor how the goalie market develops under a growing cap, specifically watching for how extension talks between the New York Rangers and Igor Shesterkin play out. That patient approach should give time for trade candidates like Jacob Markstrom, John Gibson, and Linus Ullmark to be moved as well, giving the Predators a sense of what a return for Saros may look like.

Juuse Saros Likely To Wait To Sign Extension

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Andrew Fantucchio of Boston Hockey Now writes that in his opinion the Boston Bruins have no reason to be in a hurry to trade goaltender Linus Ullmark as he has one year left on his deal and the Bruins could conceivably keep the netminder for the remainder of his deal. Ullmark has a lot of contractual control over where he is traded and could nix trades to nearly half of the league.

Goaltenders have been traded in recent years for a minimal return, including recent Vezina Trophy winners. However, as Fantucchio writes, the Ullmark situation is different than that of Marc-Andre Fleury who was dealt in July 2021 in what amounted to a salary cap dump. Fantucchio theorizes that if the Bruins are patient with the Ullmark trade it could drive up the asking price as teams might become desperate for goaltending as the market dries up.

In other morning notes:

  • It appears that Nashville Predators goaltender Juuse Saros is prepared to let the goaltender market develop before signing his next deal. Jonathan Bailey of Nashville Hockey Now writes that Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet made his weekly appearance on 102.5 The Game on the Caroline, Willy, and D-Mase show to discuss the future of the Predators netminder. On the show, Friedman said that Saros is willing to see what kind of a contract New York Rangers netminder Igor Shesterkin signs before he signs a new contract. Shesterkin figures to sign the richest goalie contract ever, and while Saros won’t reach the same kind of money, he can likely command a large percentage of that.
  • Dan Kingerski of Pittsburgh Hockey Now writes that he doesn’t think the Pittsburgh Penguins will offer restricted free agent Emil Bemstrom a contract before the June 25th deadline to submit a qualifying offer. Bemstrom was acquired from the Columbus Blue Jackets and struggled to carve out a role in Pittsburgh despite the Penguins having a very poor bottom-six forward group. The 25-year-old is due a $945K qualifying offer and given the Penguins’ shortcomings it would be reckless to allocate that kind of cap space on a player that would be a 13th forward.

Dylan MacKinnon Traded In QMJHL

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  • Predators prospect blueliner Dylan MacKinnon has been traded in the QMJHL. Moncton announced that they acquired the 19-year-old from Halifax in exchange for a trio of draft picks, one in each of the first three rounds.  MacKinnon was a third-round pick in 2023, going 83rd overall and is coming off a three-goal, 16-point campaign.  Nashville holds his rights until June 1, 2025 so MacKinnon will be hoping for a big year to secure a contract.

Maple Leafs, Predators Linked To Brett Pesce

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Expect the Maple Leafs and Predators to be two of the top suitors for Hurricanes defenseman Brett Pesce if he hits the open market next month, The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reports.

The Hurricanes are still attempting to extend Pesce after general manager Don Waddell resigned last month, but they haven’t been close to a deal since discussions started last summer. In fact, most believed he would be traded last summer to avoid losing him for nothing at the end of this season, but they took him off the trade block during training camp and decided to continue negotiations.

Recent reports around Pesce’s pending free agency suggest more of the same. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman believed the Canes were holding firm at an offer of around $5MM annually on a five-year deal that Pesce wasn’t willing to accept.

Nashville was one of the teams interested in acquiring him when he was made available for trade last summer, Pagnotta notes, so it’s of no surprise to see them linked to Pesce again. They’re looking for a top-four defender to replace Ryan McDonagh, whom they traded back to the Lightning last month after acquiring him from Tampa in the 2022 offseason.

Pesce would be a similar stylistic fit, but unlike McDonagh, he’s a right-shot. That gives him a greater potential of sliding upward in the lineup to play alongside captain Roman Josi, also a left-shot, on the team’s top pairing.

He’s used to heavy usage, averaging over 20 minutes per game for eight straight seasons. The 29-year-old is coming off a down year offensively with only three goals and 13 points in 70 games, but his career averages suggest the two-way blue-liner is more of a 25-to-30-point producer over a full season.

The New York native has earned sparse Norris consideration in the past, receiving votes in 2018 and 2020. His possession numbers are still strong, controlling 54.4% of shot attempts at even strength throughout his career. He’s also had an expected goals share north of 50% for the past four years, per Hockey Reference.

It’s no surprise to see Toronto engaged in Pesce rumors, either. They’ll be in on nearly all of the top defensemen on this summer’s UFA market, but especially right-shots. Ideally, second-year GM Brad Treliving is looking for a stable partner for top offensive blue liner Morgan Rielly, who’s had a rotating cast of shutdown partners over the past few seasons.

The Leafs lack puck-movers outside of Rielly among their defense corps, and while it’s not a hallmark of Pesce’s game, he would be a small upgrade over Jake McCabe and the outgoing T.J. Brodie in that regard. He’s eclipsed 20 assists four times in his career, including a career-high 25 helpers in 2022-23.

Evolving Hockey’s contract projections peg Pesce to land a six-year, $5.5MM AAV deal on the open market, slightly lengthier and richer than his rumored extension offer in Carolina. That would be feasible for both the Leafs and Preds, who enter the offseason with a decent amount of salary cap flexibility.

Latest On Martin Necas’ Trade Market

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Martin Nečas’ availability in a potential trade has been one of the dominant early storylines of the 2024 offseason. The Hurricanes have been considering moving his signing rights as contract negotiations with the pending restricted free agent remain in a stalemate, and while there was a sense they may make one last pass at re-signing him with interim GM Eric Tulsky now at the helm temporarily, that seems unlikelier with each passing day.

To that end, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli said on the site’s podcast today that a Nečas trade may come over the wire as soon as this week. Previously, we’ve covered reports that the Canucks, Flames and Canadiens have displayed some level of interest in his services. Recently, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period confirmed that at least 12 teams have Nečas “on their radar” and added the Flyers, Kraken and Predators to the existing list of teams that have dictated their interest to Carolina.

Notably, no single team has been named a frontrunner throughout the reporting process over the last few weeks. It’s also been quiet about what the Hurricanes might be able to get in return for their 2017 12th-overall pick, who has 52 goals and 124 points in 159 games since the 2022-23 season.

Nečas, 25, still has another offseason of RFA status ahead of him, but it’s clear he wants to ink a long-term deal this summer. Contract projection models indicate his value is likely in the $7.5MM area on a max-term deal, a figure the Hurricanes don’t seem willing to oblige with the younger Seth Jarvis surpassing him on the depth chart and also needing a new deal this summer. They have a multitude of UFAs to try to retain this summer as well, including one of the best forwards available in Jake Guentzel, who Pagnotta also reported Monday will likely test the market next month before deciding whether to return to Carolina.

Afternoon Notes: Jeannot, Parekh, Bourque

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Winger Tanner Jeannot is once again facing trade rumors, as the Tampa Bay Lightning look to clear enough cap space for a serviceable off-season. The team is facing the loss of their franchise player Steven Stamkos with just $5MM in cap space – not nearly enough to afford the services of the future Hall-of-Famer. That could push them to try and move Jeannot’s $2.665MM cap hit, though Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times shares that there’s been no legitimate discussions of a move just yet. Though Encina did speak to the idea being a tantalizing one for the Lightning, with many teams around the league still interested in acquiring Jeannot.

The Lightning acquired Jeannot from the Nashville Predators ahead of the 2023 Trade Deadline, sending the Music City defenseman Callan Foote, the picks that turned into Dylan MacKinnon (2023 third-round, 83rd-overall), Jayson Shaugabay (2023 fourth-round, 115th-overall), and Kevin Bicker (2023 fifth-round, 147th-overall), as well as a second-round pick in 2024 and a first-round pick in 2025 in return. Nashville traded the Shaugabay pick back to Tampa four months later, in exchange for a 2024 fourth-round pick, and moved the Bicker pick to the Detroit Red Wings to move up in the 2023 second-round.

Jeannot scored just four points in his 20 games with Tampa after the trade, though that didn’t dissuade their faith in him, with the Lightning signing Jenanot to a two-year, $5.3MM contract last summer – a deal that avoided the arbitration hearing Jeannot filed for. The rough-and-tumble winger wasn’t able to rekindle his spark on the new deal, though, scoring just 14 points in 55 games this season. He added 75 penalty minutes and a -10 – and tallied just one assist in four postseason games.

There’s still reported interest in Jeannot around the league despite his lacking scoring. Teams like the Calgary Flames have been looped into trade rumors, though Encina emphasized that a trade isn’t likely Plan A. Tampa will need to get a hefty return in any Jeannot trade, if only to hedge their losses from a costly 2023 move.

Other notes from around the league:

  • Saginaw Spirit defenseman Zayne Parekh has won the CHL’s Defenseman of the Year Award, beating out Memorial Cup Finals competition Sam Dickinson. Parekh was dazzling this season, posting a position-leading 33 goals and 96 points in just 66 games this season. He’s just the second OHL defenseman to top 95 points since 2000, joining Ryan Ellis’ 100-point season in 2010-11. But while Ellis was already an NHL draftee, Parekh is headed into his first year of eligibility in the 2024 NHL Draft. He’s seen as one of the top defensemen in the class and should rival a top 10 selection.
  • The Dallas Stars are swapping talented young forwards, with Ty Dellandrea stepping out of the Game 6 lineup in favor of Mavrik Bourque, shares Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman (Twitter link). Bourque won the AHL’s ‘Les Cunningham’ MVP Award this season after posting 26 goals and 77 points in 71 games this season. Bourque formed a dynamic duo with Stars standout Logan Stankoven in the first half of the season. Dallas will look to use that pairing as their X-factor, as they face elimination at the hands of the Edmonton Oilers.

Predators To Part Ways With Assistant Coach Dan Hinote

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The Predators have elected to make a change behind the bench for next season.  The team confirmed to Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean that they will not renew the contract of assistant coach Dan Hinote when it expires at the end of June.

Hinote was an energetic winger over his nine-year NHL career split between Colorado and St. Louis.  He opted to play in Sweden for one final season in 2009-10 before hanging up his skates.

However, Hinote wasn’t out of a job for long as after retiring, he was named an assistant coach with Columbus.  The 47-year-old spent four seasons in that role before moving into scouting where he spent four more years with the Blue Jackets.  From there, he spent two seasons with the U.S. National Team Development Program before former Nashville GM David Poile brought Hinote onto their staff back in 2020.  After four years in that job, Hinote will now be on the lookout for another job.

While Hinote won’t be returning, their other assistants will.  Daugherty added that Nashville’s two other assistant coaches, Tom Richards and Derek MacKenzie, are expected to return next season so there will only be one new voice behind the bench on Andrew Brunette’s staff.

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