Creating the Perfect Predators Hockey Player

Today is National Frankenstein Day, and it got me wondering - what player combination from the Predators roster would make the best hockey "Frankenstein"?

August 30 is National Frankenstein Day celebrating the 1818 novel written by Mary Shelley in which Dr. Frankenstein creates a creature from a variety of old body parts. While the novel delves into the complex ethics of science and life, we're focusing on the way Dr. Frankenstein made his creature - by combining parts of several bodies into one. To celebrate National Frankenstein Day, let's create the ultimate Predators hockey player combining skill sets from different players on the current roster. 

To get the most offense from this Predators creature, it would have to start with the shot of Filip Forsberg. Forsberg holds the franchise record for most goals with 239 and the most game winning goals in franchise history with 43. In 2021-22 he battled with Matt Duchene for the record for most goals in a single season, losing out by a single goal in nine fewer games. 

It isn't just the quantity of Forsberg's shots, it is the quality. The 29-year-old Swedish forward has a smorgasbord of quality shots from his wicked wrister, one timers from the circle on the power play, net front greasy goals, and even between the legs goals and one amazing "Michigan" score. 

This will be the season for Forsberg to showcase that shot. While Barry Trotz added players Ryan O'Reilly and Gustav Nyquist and is banking on young players Cody Glass, Luke Evangelista, and Tommy Novak to progress, the offense during this reset will fall on the shoulders of Filip Forsberg. 

It may be a bold choice to extract the skating of a player Nashville only saw for 8 games, but even in that small sample size it was evident that the hype around Spencer Stastney's skating is legit. Some have referred to the 23-year-old defenseman as the best skater in the AHL last season. His smooth, efficient moves contribute to a positionally sound game and his smart, no nonsense defensive style could earn him another chance sometimes this season for the Predators. 

A Norris Trophy winning defenseman who can score 96 points adds an impressive two way game to this hockey monster. Roman Josi holds the franchise record for career points and assists all while consistently being one of the top ten defensemen in the NHL. Josi's two way game kept him on the ice for the seventh most minutes of any defenseman in the league last season. He plays against the top offensive threats and quarterbacks the power play where he scored the most goals and assists of any Predator last season.

Next season the Nashville defense will look a bit different without Mattias Ekholm and with the addition of Luke Schenn. How the defensive pairings will work out remains to be seen, but the Predators will need both offensive and defensive production from Josi as they kick off this roster reset. 

Perhaps another surprising pick, but Kiefer Sherwood showed off his speed last season in 32 games with the Predators. His speed was the first thing that stood out about Sherwood in training camp last year. Sherwood played five games with Nashville before being sent to Milwaukee but returned in March when veteran injuries provided him another opportunity to showcase his talent. 

Sherwood's speed combined with his ability to chase down and win pucks made him a terrific linemate for two other fast players, Tommy Novak and Luke Evangelista. Sherwood will have a chance to show off that speed at training camp in September for new head coach Andrew Brunette who is looking to play a faster, more offensive game. 

With Josi and Forsberg off the board and Matt Duchene and Ryan Johansen off the roster, Tommy Novak becomes the puck handler for the Predators' Frankenstein. While the Minnesota native may not have all the moves of Forsberg, he clearly showed he can manage the puck well and make the smart play in his 51 games last season. 

Novak's performance for the Predators netted him 17 goals and 26 assists, third most assists on the team behind Josi and Duchene. Novak's puck handling isn't flashy, but the 26-year-old anticipates what is unfolding and gets the puck where it needs to be with spot on timing. 

Luke Evangelista's finishing skill is more about his hockey sense than his touch, and that was evident with his first NHL goal. Evangelista gathered up a juicy rebound off Vancouver Canucks goaltender Arturs Silovs and instead of quickly shooting it back at the goal, Evangelista skated past the goaltender to find the open net and score. 

Evangelista took 54 shots in his 24 games with the Predators last season and scored seven goals earning a 13% shooting percentage. If Evangelista can impress in training camp, he could see top six minutes in Nashville and get a chance to show off his finishing skills over the course of an 82 game season. 

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