Luke Evangelista emerging as key catalyst in Nashville Predators’ offensive surge

"He's been terrible." 

Ryan O'Reilly smiled and chuckled at his joking response while making eye contact with his linemate, whom he had just been asked about. Luke Evangelista, off to the side, shook his head and grinned. 

The Nashville Predators have been playing well, winning seven of their last 10, and a critical part of that success has been via Evangelista's play.

In the romping 7-2 win over the St. Louis Blues on Dec. 11, Evangelista had three assists, marking a quiet, but impactful 13 points (2 goals, 11 assists) in nine games for the 23-year-old. He leads the team in assists and is third in scoring with 23 points (four goals, 19 assists) in 31 games. 

Ever since being bumped up to the first line with O'Reilly and Steven Stamkos, Evangelista has kept up the Predators' two veteran stars and, even more impressively, has set them up for success. 

"Just the poise, patience,  he's (Evangelista) one of the best on the team and doing that," O'Reilly said following the Dec. 11 game. "Putting the pocket right area, having them bite, and then making them play. The poise that he has is a big spark to our offense and it's been huge and a big part of these last few games."

Evangelista has not been shy about crediting the fact that he's playing with two "future Hall of Famers," and they've helped amplify his game.

On top of that, Evangelista is seeing the ice a lot more compared to previous seasons. He's averaging 16:09 minutes of playing time, which is about two minutes higher than what he logged in 68 games last season and in 80 games during the 2023-24 season. 

"Finding that chemistry with those guys on the ice has been great," Evangelista said. "That opportunity to play more minutes, being in that rhythm and going every third, fourth shift is a good feeling for sure." 

There's also a learning aspect for Evangelista in playing with two veterans. Specifically, O'Reilly, Evangelista said, on top of just talking with him and playing with him, he keeps an eye on O'Reilly. Evangelista takes note of the work ethic and leadership that O'Reilly brings to his game. 

In wanting to take advantage of every opportunity to play with O'Reilly, Evangelista doesn't limit it to just the hockey played on the ice. 

"There's a lot you can learn just from watching, playing and talking to them (O'Reilly and Stamkos)," Evangelista said. "Factor (O'Reilly), you keep an eye on him. His work ethic after practice is like another coach out there, just with his wisdom. 
You can learn a lot from these guys, for sure." 

In his individual game, Evangelista has consistently credited his offseason training, saying, "It was the best summer of my life." He changed his diet, trained harder and even switched up his skating stride. In his eyes, that effort is paying off. 

"I feel like the work that I put in the summer is kind of paying off now," Evangelista said. "My body feels good and I just feel confident on the ice and in my body." 

He also feels that he's grown mentally, specifically in that overarching word: consistency. Evangelista felt like, earlier in his career, he'd follow a handful of good games with a couple of bad games. 

This year, he explained that he's come into every game with the approach that he wants to make an impact and do as much as he can to contribute to the team effort. 

"I think that's something (consistency) that every player tries to find," Evangelsitsa said. "Last year, that was an area in which I struggled. I was having a good game, two games, three games, together. Then, you know, maybe one or two bad ones to follow that up.

"This year, I'm just finding that confidence, that consistency in just going in every game feeling like I can make an impact, be a positive player for the team, help the team get wins." 

Evangelista returned to Nashville with a lot of pressure on his shoulders, and nearing the halfway point of the season, he has met expectations. 

The contract disputes leaked in from the offseason into training camp, forcing Evangelista to miss a chunk of the preseason and he went back to Canada to train.

Even when he returned to the ice early in the year, he was receiving some flak from Nashville fans. Ahead of the Predators' Nov. 3 game against the Vancouver Canucks, a fan held a sign along the glass that said "YO, YO, YO EVANGELISTA. EARN YOUR MONEY, OR YOU GOTTA GO, GO, GO." 

Evangelista had two points that night and has recorded three goals and 14 assists since then.

He came to Nashville with new expectations and continues to meet them. 

"When he's (Evangelista) skating like that, he could arguably be our most dangerous player," head coach Andrew Brunette said.