Dallas Stars’ Enemies: Spying On Nashville Predators
Time to catch up with some of the other top contenders in the Murder Death Kill division. Up today, it’s the Nashville Predators.
Last season
Record: For 15-16, the Predators went 41-27-14 on their season and finished 14th overall in the league. Their goals for and against gap was pretty narrow, with 224 GF and 213 GA.
While their 2.60 goals against average per game and penalty kill percentage of 81.2 suggest a defense somewhat on par with the Stars’, the difference in the stats lie in their offense, whose goals for average per game of 2.72 and PP percentage of 19.7 fall behind the Stars’ 3.23 GF and 22.1 PP%.
The Preds and Stars met five times during the season, four of which the Stars came away victors. Although the Dallas Stars scored only two PPG (both credited to Jason Spezza) to the Predators’ 14 and killed only 3 penalties to the Predators’ 14, the Stars simply outscored them to take the series with their electric offense.
It wasn’t for an outstanding number of shots; the Stars took three less than the Predators over the span of the five games. What isn’t accounted for in the stats and tells a much more clear story of the season, was sheer firepower.
Postseason: The Nashville Predators almost made it through two rounds Stanley Cup Playoffs this year, finding themselves in a very similar boat as the Dallas Stars. Beating Anaheim in a full 7 games and then going on to lose to San Jose in another 7, the Predators didn’t make it out of the West. They improved on their playoff record from last season, which didn’t make it past 6 games.
Basically, the Predators found themselves in a similar position as the Dallas Stars this offseason, although the Stars outshone them offensively, which showed in a big way in the regular season league standings.
What did they gain this offseason that’s noteworthy?
The Predators’ biggest offseason gain, and maybe their biggest claim to fame in the gossip mill at the moment, was the acquisition of defender P.K. Subban from the Canadiens. Other noteworthy additions were the signing of several free agents: defender Matthew Carle, defender Matt Irwin, defender Yannick Weber, and goalie Jonas Gunnarsson.
Clearly, the Predators have noticed a deficiency in defense and are looking to beef it up. However, in the world of trades, sometimes you can only improve one area by detracting from another. Thankfully for the Predators, they did manage to lock up forward Filip Forsberg, one of the cornerstones of their offense, for another 6 years with a renewed contract.
What did they lose this offseason that’s noteworthy?
The Nashville Predators’ biggest lost this season was arguably Shea Weber. Another defender that has been integral to the Preds’ offense and one of the hardest shooters in the league (as he proved as an All-Star), Weber was traded to Montreal in exchange for Subban.
The Preds also traded away rights to forward Jimmy Vesey to Buffalo for a 2016 third-round draft pick. From the nature of these gains and losses, it seems that Nashville will be much more focused on building up their defense in the coming season, instead of working on their offense.
How might the Stars fare against them?
With the chips as they are falling now, the Dallas Stars could stand to do well against the Predators in the coming season. In their 15-16 season series, they were reasonably even in terms of defense.
What set the Stars apart (and above) was their exceptional offense. As the Stars start to hit their own stride defensively, the Predators may find that the holes left offensively may become a weakness when stacking up against the Stars’ system of forwards.
Next: Dallas Stars' Enemies: Looking Into Chicago Blackhawks
However, if the Predators accomplish what they seek to with their defense, the Stars may have a hard time adapting offensively. Still, defense can only keep you from losing hockey games. This season proved to be a showdown of offenses, and history could repeat itself this upcoming season based on the offseason moves that the Stars and Predators made.