The Nashville Predators have been going extremely aggressively with their offseason house cleaning under new general manager Chris MacFarland, and it doesn’t seem to be stopping.

Earlier today, he swung a deal with the Vancouver Canucks to bring in 25-year-old winger Nils Höglander for a 2029 third-round draft pick.

It’s the typical buy-low, swing-big gamble. Höglander had an injury-ridden season, starting it with a preseason surgery that sidelined him until December and produced just five goals and one assist in 38 games.

He never quite got settled in the highly dysfunctional Vancouver lineup, with a constant rotation in and out of the scratching lineup and dwindled playing time.

However, the Predators are not acquiring the 2023-24 version of Höglander, but rather the player who scored 24 goals—all at even strength—two seasons ago.

The 5’9” winger plays with a ton of energy, has a high motor, and has a relentless forecheck that made him an absolute nightmare for opponents along the wall last year and this year. The contract is extremely affordable at $3 million with two seasons remaining, meaning the Predators have acquired a reclamation project that has a high-impact middle-six potential for a future draft pick in five seasons.