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Nashville Predators Recall Zach Sanford

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With just five games left in their season, the Nashville Predators are still in the race. They remain just three points behind the Winnipeg Jets and Calgary Flames, with one and two games in hand, respectively.

They’ll try to make up some ground tonight with the Carolina Hurricanes in town and have recalled Zach Sanford to give them some reinforcements.

It would be quite the feat should the Predators pull it off, given how their trade deadline went. Tanner Jeannot, Nino Niederreiter, Mattias Ekholm, and Mikael Granlund were all moved, leaving Nashville with several young players in the lineup nightly.

They’ve also been without captain Roman Josi since the middle of March, and his return is still questionable. Despite that, the Jets and Flames have each failed to really grab hold of that final playoff spot, opening the door for some Juuse Saros-led magic in the final few weeks.

Sanford, 28, has played just 11 games in the NHL this season, the fewest total of his career. The big forward has scored two points with the Predators and 28 with the Milwaukee Admirals during his time in the AHL.

Predators Place John Leonard On Waivers

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April 5: Leonard has cleared waivers and been assigned to the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals, Nashville announced today.

April 4: Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the Nashville Predators have placed forward John Leonard on waivers. Leonard was recalled by the Predators on an emergency loan yesterday. The forward was acquired by the Predators from the San Jose Sharks in the trade for Luke Kunin.

Leonard was originally drafted in the sixth round of the 2018 NHL Draft by the Sharks out of the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. As he made his transition to the NHL, Leonard scored three goals and 10 assists in his first 44 games in the professional leagues.

During last year, Leonard primarily played for the Sharks’ AHL affiliate San Jose Barracuda, scoring 17 goals and 15 assists in only 45 games played. Although he was scoring over a 0.5 PPG basis in the AHL last season, Leonard posted a dreadful -28 +/-, leading to serious questions about his play on the defensive side of the puck.

As he was acquired from Nashville over the summer, Leonard has once again played a majority of his year in the AHL, this time playing for the Predators’ AHL affiliate Milwaukee Admirals. Although he is still scoring over a 0.5 PPG basis, his offensive output is slightly down this season. Playing in 61 games for the Admirals, the forward has 14 goals and 24 assists. For the next 24 hours, Leonard will be sitting in roster limbo, as every team will have the opportunity to claim him, or the Predators will stow him back down in the AHL.

Nashville Predators Recall John Leonard

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The Nashville Predators disclosed Monday that the team has recalled forward John Leonard from the AHL’s Milwaukee Admirals. With a road-home back-to-back upcoming over the next two days, recalling Leonard gives the team a 13th healthy forward on the roster should an unforeseen injury occur.

Leonard is the most experienced recall option among forwards still waiver exempt. The 24-year-old winger has accumulated 62 games of NHL experience over the past three seasons, with four coming in Nashville this season. He has one point, his first goal as a Predator, coming in a March 2 game against the Florida Panthers.

This is Leonard’s third recall of the season after he was recalled twice in three days on an emergency basis in the first week of March. Acquired along with a third-round pick from the San Jose Sharks last summer in exchange for the rights to Luke Kunin, Leonard has 14 goals and 38 points in 61 games in the AHL this year.

A pending restricted free agent with arbitration rights, Leonard could be a candidate to not receive a qualifying offer and head to unrestricted free agency in July. The 2018 sixth-round pick has seen a step back from last season’s offensive production in the minors, and with his NHL opportunities diminished, the Predators may opt not to retain his services.

Predators Recall Spencer Stastney

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Spencer Stastney has had a good first full professional season and he is being rewarded for his efforts as the Predators announced that they’ve recalled the blueliner from AHL Milwaukee.  It’s the first recall of his NHL career.

The 22-year-old was a fifth-round pick of the Preds back in 2018 (131st overall) and spent four years at Notre Dame where he picked up 63 points in 143 games before turning pro late last season.  He got into a couple of games with the Admirals down the stretch but this has been his first extended campaign in the pros.  Stastney has five goals in 56 games for Milwaukee, good for third on the team in goals by a blueliner.

Nashville is dealing with multiple injuries on the back end with Roman Josi, Alexandre Carrier, and Mark Borowiecki out of the lineup.  That list is growing by one more as Jeremy Lauzon will not play today due to an upper-body injury, opening up a spot for Stastney to make his NHL debut against St. Louis.

Nashville Predators Sign Jake Livingstone To Entry-Level Contract

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The Nashville Predators have nabbed one of the top college free agents left on the market, signing defenseman Jake Livingstone to a one-year entry-level contract for the remainder of the 2022-23 season, per a team release.

The 23-year-old defender has been the highlight of Minnesota State’s blueline for the past two seasons, earning CCHA Defenseman of the Year honors and conference tournament championships in back-to-back years. Livingstone will be a restricted free agent in just a few months and will need a new contract.

Livingstone certainly has NHL-ready size at 6-foot-3 and 205 pounds, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him report directly to Nashville and earn his first NHL experience down the stretch. With Alexandre Carrier still out with an upper-body injury, there’s a natural place in the lineup for the right-shot Livingstone.

Defensively sound in his own right, Livingstone is also intelligent in transition and makes clean passes to his teammates. He approached the point-per-game threshold with Minnesota State this season, recording eight goals and 27 assists in 39 games, finishing second on the team in scoring.

He becomes the second member of his defense pairing at Minnesota State to put pen to paper on a contract today, joining now-Vancouver Canuck Akito Hirose.

Nashville does not have a particularly deep prospect pool at defense, making this signing impactful for a team looking to retool under a new management regime this offseason.

Predators Recall McCarron, Gravel

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The Nashville Predators announced they have called up Michael McCarron and Kevin Gravel from the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL. Emma Lingan of NHL.com added that both will be in the lineup tonight when the Predators take on the Boston Bruins tonight. The Predators will be looking for two points against the league’s best team as they look to stay in the Western Conference playoff race. They currently sit five points back of the Winnipeg Jets for the final wildcard spot.

McCarron is a big, physical forward who has already played 22 games with the Predators this season. He has scored one goal and two points in that time, while also scoring two goals and six points in 16 AHL games this season. He will slot in on the team’s fourth line and use his 6-foot-6 frame to add some energy to the lineup for the Predators.

Gravel adds a physical presence himself at 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds. The 31-year-old defenseman has one point in 18 NHL games this season as well as two goals and 13 points in 48 AHL game for the Admirals. Gravel has bounced around many teams over the years, but has 127 games of NHL experience under his belt and will provide a physical, defensive presence for the Predators.

Predators Recall McCarron, Gravel

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  • The Nashville Predators have recalled Michael McCarron and Kevin Gravel from the minor leagues, as they prepare for action against the Boston Bruins. While not officially eliminated, the Predators now find themselves five points out of a playoff spot with ten games to play after losses to Toronto and Seattle.

Jordan Gross Clears Waivers; Reassigned To AHL

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March 28: Gross has cleared waivers and was reassigned to the minor leagues.

March 27: The Nashville Predators have waived defenseman Jordan Gross, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported Monday afternoon.

The move could signal that Roman Josi, who’s been out of the lineup since March 18, is close to returning. He’s listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury.

Players returning from injuries is one of the few reasons why a player would land on waivers post-trade deadline, given the absence of the normal 23-player roster limit. But with their AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals, near the top of their division, Nashville is carrying a trim roster in an effort to bolster their minor league club.

Gross, a 27-year-old product of Minnesota, has three goals in 15 games with the Predators this season. In Milwaukee, he leads the team’s defensemen in scoring despite seeing many days on the NHL roster, recording eight goals and 23 assists in 45 games.

Gross is expected to clear waivers, as he would be ineligible to play for any team in the playoffs or during the brief remainder of the regular season.

Predators Send Michael McCarron, Kevin Gravel To AHL

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As Ryan McDonagh re-enters the lineup in tonight’s game against the Buffalo Sabres, Nashville Predators general manager David Poile announces that the team has sent defenseman Kevin Gravel and forward Michael McCarron to their AHL affiliate Milwaukee Admirals.

Filling into the lineup for the injury to McDonagh, Gravel managed to play in four games for the Predators, averaging about 14 minutes of action a night. Over the entire year, that makes 18 games played for Gravel, only mustering one point this season. Playing in the minor leagues for most of the year, Gravel has put up two goals and 11 assists in Milwaukee. The transaction made by the Predators today marks the fifth time this year that Gravel has been sent down to the minors, clearing waivers twice.

Much like Gravel, McCarron has been caught in a call-up carousel of late. Having returned to hockey from a stay in the NHLPA player assistance program, this will mark his second demotion in one week. Although a valuable depth option for Nashville last season, McCarron’s production in the NHL has undoubtedly dipped this season. Playing in a total of 22 games for the Predators, McCaron has one goal and one assist. He’s fared a bit better in Milwaukee, scoring six points in 13 games, a 38-point pace over an entire season.

 

Ryan McDonagh Returns For Predators

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During this morning’s meeting with the press, head coach John Hynes confirms that defenseman Ryan McDonagh will be back in the lineup for tonight’s game against the Buffalo Sabres. Not having played since March 12th, McDonagh returns after missing four games. Hynes also confirms that after missing the team’s last game against the New York Rangers, captain Roman Josi will remain out of the lineup with an upper-body injury.

McDonagh’s steady presence on the back end will be a welcomed return for the Predators, especially with Josi out of the lineup. McDonagh does not have the same point-scoring ability that Josi has, but McDonagh’s ability to block shots and limit mistakes makes him a valuable defender nonetheless. Even off the ice, a recent winner of two Stanley Cup rings with the Tampa Bay Lightning, McDonagh will be a solid veteran piece to put around Luke Evangelista and Egor Afanasyev as they look to fully graduate to the NHL long-term.

Cooling down a bit of late, the Predators are still well within the playoff race in the Western Conference. They currently sit five points behind the last wild card team, Winnipeg Jets, and have three games in hand against their central division rival. As the season comes to an end, they still have one remaining game against the Jets, and will also play another wild card team twice, the Seattle Kraken.

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