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We’re back with a new edition of the THN Hot Seat, an ongoing off-season series of THN.com columns where we point out someone from every NHL franchise who will be dealing with a ton of pressure in the upcoming season. The person we pick for the Hot Seat could be an NHL player, GM, head coach, or team owner. In this edition, we’re breaking down the Nashville Predators.
PREDATORS HOT SEAT: JUSSE SAROS, GOALTENDER
WHY: The 27-year-old Saros is in the prime of his netminding career, and coming off a stellar 2021-22 campaign in which he posted a 2.64 Goals-Against Average and .918 Save Percentage. That earned him his first Vezina Trophy nomination as the NHL’s best goalie, and although he lost that award to New York Rangers superstar Igor Shesterkin, Saros would fetch a king’s ransom if ever Predators GM David Poile lost his marbles and chose to trade him. At a $5-million annual salary for this coming season and the next one, Saros is one of the best financial bargains in the league.
Saros also led the NHL in games played last season, with a whopping 67. And that’s what’s concerning about the Preds’ salary structure situation. Because Poile managed to re-sign unrestricted free agent center Filip Forsberg to an eight-year, $68-million contract extension, Nashville has had to go on the cheap in (a) their forward depth – their bottom-two forward lines are not imposing. – but more importantly, in (b) their goaltending depth. Poile signed UFA goalie Kevin Lankinen to a one-year, $1.5 million contract, and although the 27-year-old Finn’s numbers (3.50 GAA, .891 SP) were generated on an abysmal Chicago Blackhawks squad last season, he’s going to be relied upon. to give Saros some breathing room and ensure Saros is fresh and ready for the playoffs.
Saros set a new career-best in games played last season, appearing in 27 more games than he did in his previous career-high of 40 games, in 2019-20. The Predators barely snuck into the post-season last year because of him. When he suffered a foot injury at the end of the regular season, his absence from the playoffs was the key reason Nashville got mauled and swept by the eventual Stanley Cup-champion Colorado Avalanche in the first round. They can’t have that happen again, which is why Saros’ load will likely be lessened this year. But it won’t be by that much, especially if Lankinen is shaky. They’ll still need Saros to steal games for them.
Saros will have more help from his defense corps this season, as Poile added veteran D-man Ryan McDonagh from Tampa Bay. The Preds now have three solid defensive pairings, including superstar Roman Josi and big Swede Mattias Eklholm. Their offense is still above-average in the top two lines, but this is still a defense-first group, and Saros is central to their likelihood of success. If his numbers take a hit – or, in a worst-case scenario, if he’s injured for any significant period – and Lankinen underwhelms, the Predators have insufficient depth to replace him. There’s 25-year-old Connor Ingram in the system, but his first taste of NHL action last year (three games-played, 3.73 GAA, .879 SP) was not ideal.
Poile currently has nearly $2.4 million in salary cap space, but it’s not like there’s an abundance of goalie talent available. In some ways, a veteran like Cam Talbot – traded by Minnesota to Ottawa this summer – would have been a more reassuring fit as Saros’ backup. Instead, they’re going to lean on Saros as much as any NHL team leans on their goaltender this year. They did have an above-average backup in Ville Husso, but he was priced out of their market and traded to Detroit.
So, it’s Saros who’ll be in the spotlight, all season long. The Preds aren’t assured of a playoff position even with Saros in the lineup night-in and night-out, but without him, they’ll almost certainly miss the post-season completely.
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