Juuse Saros had a giant magnifying glass on him coming into this season. 

In July 2024, he signed an 8-year, $61.92 million extension that will keep him in Nashville until he's the ripe old age of 38.

Following that contract signing, Saros posted a .896 save percentage and 2.98 goals against average in 58 games during the 2024-25 season. The pressure was now on for the Finnish goalie to live up to the contract, or it'd go down as another "bad signing." 

Through 14 games this season, while his numbers aren't superb, he's done a ton of the heavy work to give the Predators a chance to win every night and is making up for struggles on offense. 

Saros has a 3.11 goals-against average and a .893 save percentage.

His GAA shot up and his save percentage dropped on Monday following a 6-3 loss to the New York Rangers, in which Saros was yanked to start the third period after allowing five goals on 12 shots. 

His numbers haven't been superb, but given the number of shots he's facing and the saves he's making, Saros' role for the Predators this season has been massive. 

He has faced 398 shots this season and has made 355 saves, which both rank second in the league. 

While Saros is not facing an extreme amount of shots, averaging about 29 per start, it's more so about Nashville's ability to put the puck in the net and take the pressure off Saros a bit. That has not happened much this season. 

The Predators are the 10th-lowest-scoring team in the NHL, scoring 46 goals. That total got a healthy boost following 5-4 losses to Vancouver and Dallas. Their 2.56 goals per game is the fourth lowest in the league. 

In all the games Saros has played this season, the Predators have had a lead of two goals or more only four times, and three of those games resulted in wins, including one in a shootout. 

It's also worth noting that the Predators have the third-highest goals-against per game in the league at 3.61. While goaltending is part of the reason that number is so high, Saros isn't getting much support from his defense. 

Adding on top of all of this, Saros has already been named to Finland's 2026 Winter Olympic roster, representing his nation in a best-on-best tournament for a second straight season. 

It may not be an ideal year for Saros, but he is playing an important role in net, specifically in keeping Nashville in games. He's had a few bad nights, but his numbers show that if he has a good team in front of him, Saros could emerge as one of the top goalies in the league. 

And that could be an issue for the Predators. 

The Athletic's Jesse Granger posted on X/Twitter on Nov. 8: 

"Yes, I know it's a big contract, but if I'm the Edmonton Oilers, I'm calling Nashville asking about Juuse Saros every single day from now until the deadline. Find a way." 

Saros is a good goalie on a bad team. Edmonton is still very much in its Stanley Cup window and hasn't been getting what it wants or needs out of Stuart Skinner.

The Oilers would need to make some moves to open up their cap space, but it's more about the idea that if a good team can afford Saros' contract, why wouldn't he want to leave? 

The conversation lately has been around whether head coach Andrew Brunette will remain in his position, but there should be some thought given to players wanting to leave by the deadline. 

While it's unlikely that Saros will be gone by March 6, it's worth noting that it makes sense why he'd be interested in playing for a different team.