Nashville's 2014 draft class will be represented on the ice tonight, except they'll be wearing Kings uniforms.
The Nashville Predators face off against the L.A. Kings tonight, but two familiar faces will be on the opposing bench - former Nashville Predators Kevin Fiala and Viktor Arvidsson. Fiala and Arvidsson were drafted by the Nashville Predators in 2014. Fiala was the 11th pick overall in 2014 and Viktor Arvidsson was selected by David Poile later in the fourth round. Hindsight affirms the reasoning behind the picks, but the initial reaction to drafting Fiala and Arvidsson was mixed.
Fiala, a 17 year old forward from Switzerland, ranked high among European skaters in 2014, but he wasn't what many felt was the top option available when Nashville's turn came around at number eleven. Some wondered about the 5'10" forward's size and ability to develop his NHL game even as a first round draft pick. Size was also a deterrent with regards to Arvidsson's draft journey. Arvidsson was projected to be a 2013 draftee, but when that didn't materialize, he waited until the fourth round in 2014 to hear his name called by the Predators.
Kevin Fiala
Fiala played one NHL game in the 2014-2015 season and earned his first NHL goal in only his second NHL game the following season on January 14, 2016. His early time in Milwaukee saw noted improvements in many aspects of his game. In 66 games in the 2015-2016 season, Fiala finished first in points, second in assists, and third in goals for the Admirals.
Fiala became more of a Nashville regular in 2016-2017, playing 56 regular season games before making a name for himself in the playoffs. His first standout moment came in game three of the first round series against the Central Division champion Chicago Blackhawks when Fiala score the overtime goal to get Nashville one game closer to their eventual sweep.
Unfortunately, Fiala exited the playoffs in the next round against the St. Louis Blues after being driven into the boards by Robert Bortuzzo and suffering a fractured leg. Fiala came back with a vengeance the following season, playing 80 games in 2017-2018 when he had his best season in a Preds uniform scoring 23 goals and 48 points. He came up big again for Nashville in one of the playoff games that will go down in franchise history - the double overtime game against the Winnipeg Jets in the second round.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkiLzVKGag0[/embed]
The next season changed the trajectory of Fiala's career. After playing 64 games in gold and scoring ten goals, Fiala was abruptly traded to the Minnesota Wild for Mikael Granlund right before the trade deadline.
The trade raised eyebrows in Nashville as Fiala appeared to be a homegrown star on the rise. Since the trade in February 2019, Granlund steadily cemented his importance to the Predators team through several difficult seasons that including a coaching change and the COVID affected seasons. Fiala found success with the Minnesota Wild in the same time period culminating in his career best season in 2021-2022 when he scored 33 goals and 85 points.
Fiala anticipated a career move at the end of last season based on the financial situation of the Wild. In June, Fiala was traded to the L.A. Kings for a 2022 first round pick and the rights to prospect Brock Faber. Just a day later, Fiala inked a seven year, $55.125 million contract with his new franchise. He plays alongside Adrian Kempe and Anze Kopitar.
Viktor Arvidsson
Arvidsson, a fourth round pick in 2014, became a staple in the Predators offense in his seven seasons in Smashville. In 385 games in gold, Arvidsson scored 127 goals and 239 points. The Swedish winger quickly became a fan favorite with his speed, rocket-like shot, tenacity, and his highly effective jump screens in front of opposing goalies.
Ready to prove himself immediately, Arvidsson played 70 AHL games in the 2014-2015 season and topped the stats sheet for the Milwaukee Admirals scoring 22 goals and 55 points. He also saw ice time in six Predators games that season, but didn't become a line up regular until midway through the 2015-2016 season when he played 56 games in gold.
The 2016-2017 Stanley Cup Finals season served as Arvidsson's breakout season. He played 80 games and scored 31 goals and 30 assists. In his 22 post season games, he scored 3 goals and dished out an important 10 assists. The 2017-2018 Presidents Trophy season was another impressive performance by Arvidsson, but he became a franchise record setter the following season in 2018-2019.
Despite only playing 58 games in 2018-2019, Arvidsson absolutely dominated offensively, leading the Predators and setting the franchise record for goals in a season.
Part of Arvidsson's success could be credited to his line mates. Ryan Johansen, Filip Forsberg, and Arvidsson became known in Nashville as the JoFA line, and the trio consistently collected the most points of any Preds forwards from 2016-2019.
Arvidsson's record setting season was the pinnacle of his tenure with Nashville as injury and a coaching change affected his next two seasons. On November 23, 2019 Arvidsson was crosschecked twice in front of the net by St. Louis Blues Robert Bortuzzo. Arvidsson missed a portion of the season with a lower body injury and Bortuzzo received a four game suspension for the beyond questionable play.
In January 2020, then head coach Peter Laviolette was relieved of his coaching duties and GM David Poile brought in John Hynes to take over the team. Hynes' plan to construct a team focused more on physicality and checking resulted in less and less ice time for Arvidsson's style of play. On July 7, 2021 fan favorite Arvi was traded to the L.A. Kings for two draft picks.
The response in Smashville was nearly universal disapproval. Fans mourned the loss of the speedy Swede, and his line mates expressed their dissatisfaction as Ryan Johansen posted a passive aggressive, but very clear thumbs down on social media. Arvidsson found his place with the Kings organization, and last season scored 20 goals and served up 29 assists. This season he has played in three of the Kings first four games, missing one game due to ill
The Kings come into Bridgestone Arena with a 2-2 record after last night's overtime win over the Detroit Red Wings where Kevin Fiala earned two assists. While both Fiala and Arvidsson visited Nashville in opposing uniforms before tonight, it still deserves a moment to pause and appreciate these two Nashville homegrown players and all they did for the franchise while they were here.