Novak, who signed a 3-year contract extension with Nashville last season, has been centering a line with free-agent acquisitions Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault at training camp.

When the Nashville Predators signed Tommy Novak to a three-year, $10.5 million contract last season, it was a clear sign that they saw the 27-year-old forward as a key piece of their future.

What was less clear, however, was where he would play. Then, when general manager Barry Trotz signed veteran wingers Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault to contracts in the offseason, Novak's role as the heir apparent to the second-line center position seemed all but certain. 

Stamkos entered the NHL in 2008 as a center, but he has played primarily on the wing since 2015. There had been some speculation that the Predators might return him to the middle, where Nashville lacks significant depth. But Novak is a highly skilled passer, and his ideal position is in between shooters like Stamkos and Marchessault. Marchessault’s 266 shots last season ranked 24th in the NHL, while Stamkos’ 262 shots ranked 26th.

"He's definitely a high skill forward," Marchessault said of Novak. "The way he passes the puck, he just lays it there perfectly. I think that's a gift that only really good passers in the league have, and he's one of them."

Novak has been logging time on a line with Stamkos and Marchessault during training camp, and the early returns have been positive. Given his experience at center, Stamkos has a unique perspective on Novak's skill at the position. 

“He’s a slippery player,” Stamkos said. “He gets into positions and somehow he comes out with the puck. As a centerman, that’s a great quality to have. He obviously has a good skillset. Didn’t know a ton about him before coming here, but ... you can tell the way he’s progressing [that] we have a really good two-way center in this league.”

Novak has 35 goals and 53 assists (88 points) in 122 games over the past two seasons, but Brunette has even greater aspirations for him. The hope is that pairing Novak with elite veteran wingers in Stamkos and Marchessault will elevate his game even further. 

"He's a really skilled player who can think the game at their level," Brunette said. "Obviously, those are two elite players he's with, but I think with his skill set and his brain, he could be on par with them."

Line combinations are rarely consistent early in the season, but if Novak can continue to develop chemistry with Stamkos and Marchessault, his scoring production should increase exponentially.

“If he ends up playing with [Marchessault] and I or whatever the lines end up, he’s a guy that can distribute the puck,” Stamkos said. “As a guy who likes to shoot it, that’s nice to play with.”

Playing in an elevated role invites higher expectations and higher levels of scrutiny, but Brunette is confident that Novak's slick playing style and easygoing personality have equipped him well to handle the pressure.

"He's like Gumby," Brunette said with a chuckle. "You see him get hit so many times, and he just manages to get out of the way at the right time... He just rolls off things so easily. It's kind of his personality."