Should the Nashville Predators Pursue Trevor Zegras, Jake Guentzel, or Martin Necas? | NHL Podcast

Should the Nashville Predators Pursue Trevor Zegras, Jake Guentzel, or Martin Necas? | NHL Podcast

Trevor zis Jake gensel or Martin NIS who would be the best fit for the Nashville Predators your locked on Predators your daily podcast on the Nashville Predators part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day welcome to the lockon Predators podcast and thank you for making us your first listen of the day we are your free daily Nashville Predators podcast part of the lock on podcast Network your team every day want to kick off this Thursday episode with a shout out to our locked on pred heads those are our everyday listeners who tune in each and every weekday to talk about Nashville Predators hockey with us we appreciate your support and we love that we get to spend just a little bit of your day with you I’m an Kimmel I am a writer at Penalty Box radio and friends I have a partner in crime yes you do I’m Emma lingan and I am the Predators site editor and reporter for the hockey news on today’s show Emma and I are turning the page we’ve been looking back at the 2023 24 performances of the Nashville Predators players but it is time friends to look ahead today we are going to take a look at three offensive players that the Predators could potentially Target this offseason and we’re going to tell you the up upsides and the downsides to each of those three moves but before we dive into all of that want to let you know today’s episode is brought to you by Game Time download the game time app create an account and use code locked on NHL for $20 off your first purchase terms apply all right Emma so we’ve wrapped up the past we’re looking ahead and it’s an interesting place for the Nashville Predators because it’s clear that there’s more work to be done when it comes to this roster Nashville has some cash to spend what do you think they need to be looking for specifically and let’s focus mostly on offense right now like offensive players what do they need to find they need a legitimate one C and or 2C or 2C with the potential to become a onec because look Ryan O’Reilly fantastic but not getting any younger and then you’ve got you know Colton sizin was your second line Center fantastic player brings a lot to the table but he’s not a second line Center he is a third line Center like or should be but he’s been forced into this second line role um got Tommy Novak and Cody glass who are both kind of you know question marks in terms of will they stay at Center or will they be moved to the wing so I think if we’re strictly talking about offense I mean I think they they need some things on defense too including I mean offense from the blue line I think is something that they could get absolutely um but yes I think in terms I mean you need you need to score more goals it’s really not that hard I mean Barry Trot said it and and that’s what they need they need more goal scoring right you talk about Ryan O’Reilly is not getting any younger let’s talk about a younger option that the Nashville Predators could potentially you know have a little chat about and let’s talk about Trevor zis of course with the Anaheim Ducks he is a young Sprout my friends 23 years old only played 31 games last season six goals 15 points uh he is on a deal right now 5.75 million through 2025 26 this was a rough season for zis a lot of injury and of course that was something that the Nashville Predators fans saw firsthand because ended up breaking his ankle at Bridgestone Arena and it was it was that was rough it was a rough look but he also had an injury earlier in the season so again we’re looking at last season 31 games played when you hear people kind of throw out the name Trevor zis with the Nashville Predators what’s your initial reaction Emma I mean my my initial reaction is he certainly like on paper he fits the bill of what they need um that he’s a young Center that could potentially benefit from a change of scenery and is going to you know put up points I mean like you said last year was a bit of an outlier and I mean he’s still got a very young career he’s only got four NHL Seasons really um but I mean really only two full full NHL Seasons now in those two seasons he put up 61 and 65 points so okay not nothing yeah I’m I’m intrigued by that and so you know normally if I see I want to see a pattern right I don’t want to just see like oh my God he had one 60o season give him a contract for the rest of his life like I like to see a pattern there and he’s shown somewhat of a pattern um but I also just I wonder I’m like he’s Young is he going to be coachable like I I just I don’t know and and I think that again he is not a free agent um so you you would have to trade for him so it would and Anaheim certainly got to know how valuable he is on the on the market and they might be asking teams to overpay I’m sure there would be teams that will overpay and so I it just to me you know if you could get him at the right price then I think he would be a good fit uh like on the ice for for this Predator team but I I don’t know how realistic it is I agree with you I I think when you look at a deal like this what’s it going to cost Nashville and Nashville is trying to bring pieces in and there’s not as much fat right now to move around with the Nashville Predators on the roster you know they’ve got some young players coming up through but you don’t really want to trade some potential prospects with where the Predators are it’s going to be a big asking price to get Trevor zis and I’m not sure that Nashville’s going to want to pay that I do think he’s interesting to think about of course very creative playmaker um not afraid to try things and it’s funny when Barry trotz took over one of the things he talked about during this reset is he wants it to be exciting hockey he wants it to be entertaining well friends I don’t think it gets much more entertaining than Trevor zeris on ice I mean this is a kid who he’s just not afraid to try anything offensively um very uh like kind of just just a a unique personality in the hockey Sphere for sure and like you said you know he’s young he hasn’t had a ton of NHL experience but you’re talking about somebody who put up 20 goals in his four four his two full seasons wow um you know so this is somebody that could score some goals for Nashville so there is a lot about this idea that is intriguing the price for me is a concern and you know you look at you know 5.75 million that’s his you know aav Nashville only pays two players more than that right now Philip forsburg and Roman Yosi are you 100% sure that you are G to get what you want for that price at this point you know to bring him on board so for me you know I I know he’s worth it to a lot of teams I’m not 100% sure he would be worth it to Nashville I don’t know he’s there’s also you got to look at where Anaheim is too like he zis zis is a natural Center like that’s he was you know the top Center in their system and then has since come up and performed well at the NHL level it looked like after that though Anaheim was devoting a lot of their high draft picks to centers so it’s like is the plan for zis to move to the is is this a contingency plan that they’re planning to get rid of him like I I really don’t know and so I think that there there’s a lot I mean there’s a lot that we don’t know about it’s not just a one-sided thing like oh here’s what Nashville needs it’s also like oh no here’s what Anaheim is trying to accomplish and and I really don’t know the answer to that right now um so I think that that plus another another thing about him about zis that kind of I don’t know that it’s escalated to the point of being a legitimate concern but it’s not a trend that I love is um he takes a lot of penalties uh and and he kind of lets his emotions get the best of him sometimes which you know he’s a young guy and he’s very competitive and very passionate and you know you don’t fault him for any of that but he lacks a little bit of the discipline uh that I think that Andrew brunette and Barry trots are going to demand from a player on their team um so again not saying that that can’t be coached out of him um right but I I don’t know how coachable he is I also I just I feel like he needs to be we were talking about this before we started recording I feel like he needs to be humbled now I think I think Andrew brunette could be a guy to do it but if there was ever a coach not named John torella yeah like he you know listen his ceiling Sky High but you have to put in the work and and I’m not saying he’s not but I think that Andrew brunette is very specific very particular about what he’s looking for from his players and you’ve got to rise to the occasion and do exactly what he’s looking for you know to be to be successful and again I don’t know I think this is a guy that again on the ice fits perfectly with this team I think but there are just a couple like question marks around him that I’m not completely Allin on him yeah there aren’t maybe necessarily bright red flags but there are some pink ones I think for sure uh and and I’m kind of along with you in that coachability thing because remember one of the things that Andrew brunette has been very uh vocal about especially with regards to like Phil thomasino is you can have all the talent in the world but you have to do what I need you to do you have to do more than the things that are flashy that you’re good at and you know you have to bring in a player with that the other thing and and you and I talked about this real briefly before too is Nashville and Barry trots especially is very protective I think of the locker room Vibe and certainly not implying in any way that Trevor zer would be some sort of locker room cancer or anything like that but he is a very different personality and I think whoever Barry trots looks at there is a factor for him of what is this player going to be like in the locker room with this team what is this you know personality going to do to the Dynamics of the team and I don’t know where Barry trotz would fall with somebody like Trevor zis there’s a risk there when you have somebody who is high flash and coming you know big personality coming into the locker room so I I agree with you there are there are some things on paper that make this look like Nashville needs to pursue it but what is the cost and what are the Dynamics too so zis yeah this is one to keep an eye on uh coming up we’re going to talk about another player who could go from Nashville Zero to Hero if he joined the Predators can Nashville Predators fans Overlook the 2017 Cup finals and embrace Jake gensel first today’s episode is brought to you by our great friends at game time if you are looking to attend some fun summer events and you want to avoid all those ticketing hassles you need to check out game time game time is the fastest and easiest way to get tickets to your favorite sporting events concerts theater and more the game time app takes all the guest work at of buying tickets they show 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you what we would want to ask some of these young players but we are still focused on ice right now we’re talking about some offensive players that Nashville could potentially be interested in we’ve talked about Trevor zis let’s talk about Jake gensel so first question Emma can Predators fans get over the fact that he was a part of the Penguins cup run in 2017 we are a bitter lot my friend look as someone and I say this in the most respectful way that I can Predators fans need to let 2017 go on a number of levels Let It Go on a number of levels like SMI it’s one of those you know smile because it happen and keep that as a memory as a core memory and some like look if you’re a Predators fan and you like you remember that that cup run I mean that was of course that the best time to be a predator’s fan I’m not saying oh it it didn’t count it didn’t matter like forget about it don’t don’t forget about it keep it as a treasured memory but it is 2024 we need to stop trying to recreate 2017 and stop holding these grudges like again if you can get a guy of Jake gel’s caliber a player of his caliber on your team yeah you throw that Grudge in the trash like I don’t care who you are you absolutely get him now do I think it’s likely that the Predators get him no because um he’s 29 years old he at this point he’s gonna be a free agent you know the and he is going to be seeking the payday of his life right now right as he should because he he was going through a lot with with Pittsburgh and everyone was saying you know oh but he’s only good because he’s playing with Sydney Crosby and then he gets traded to Carolina and just blew everyone’s socks off saying like Okay he maybe it’s not just Sydney Crosby that was making him good um but I think because of that I think that he he is exactly the kind of guy that people that teams would overpay for Barry trotz has made it clear he’s not going to overpay for anybody um especially a guy that’s likely seeking the kind of big contract that that he is and so you know I could see him signing CU he was making 6 million on his last contract I mean he’s going to be making at least seven but likely more than that uh on on the free agent market and there are teams out there who will pay him for pay him that and you know probably teams that are looking at contending for a Stanley Cup like this year which the Predators are still probably a few years away from that and that’s fine but you know you don’t want to you don’t want another Ryan Johansson Kyle turus Matt duchan situation on on your hands and Barry TR has made it pretty clear he’s he’s not interested in in doing that so I think he’s a guy that gensel is a guy that you absolutely you kick the tires and you see like you check in and see what his asking price is because it would be kind of irresponsible not to when you’re when you’re the Predators and you have you know you have a a player of this caliber on the market he fits a lot of your needs you know he good like volume goal scorer he’s fast and he um has has a lot of playoff experience and those are all good things but I mean knowing that there are going to be teams out there that are going to pay him I would I would venture to guess somewhere in the seven and a half million ballpark I to me that’s a nonstarter yeah especially at 29 years old and I agree with you this is going to be the cont this is going to be his big fat long-term juicy contract and and it should be like that’s what he should go ahead and get but if Nashville is going to pay a big juicy long-term contract you want to do it to somebody who’s not about to turn 30 you know and I oh hey like I could be his mom no judgment I’m talking in hockey years hockey years but he is I think it was great what like you mentioned we saw him do in Carolina because the narrative around him has been you know he’s good because of Sydney Crosby well friends Carolina got a lot of bang for their buck with that move to get him there but I agree with you you’re looking at somebody who is going to try to get seven seven and a half million dollars and that number should probably make Predators fans feel a little bit Twitchy because of duchane Johansson like you and the a you know what I’m saying like I I think not that he is not a veteran with a lot of good years and not that I wouldn’t love to see him with some of the younger players that Nashville is bringing up I think there’d be some really interesting upside but it all comes down to is it worth it longterm is this the long-term investment that’s going to get the nationville Predators through a reset and back to cup contention in a time frame where it’s not money wasted and and this is this is tough you know I I think it might be a little bit too late in the game to make this a smart move yeah or I think that if the Predators were closer to their you know their cup window like if they could contend this year then I say yeah make a run at him because he could be very impactful and a big you know differen maker on your team with the Predators kind of where they are right now it’s just to me that would be an overpay for something that’s not going to be as valuable when you need them to be right and I think two years from now you have a better idea of what you have in Evangelista in Novak in Yokum camel in Fedor stetchkov you know in some of these younger players Zachary laroo where you would know you would have a better idea of how close you really are it’s still a little bit of a guessing game really how close are the predators to that cup window again there’s still enough question about it that you might not want to drop a chunk of change on somebody that’s a little bit older for a long-term contract here is the other problem with Jake gensel friends we already have a number 59 on this team like there is one number 59 why don’t we start with that that’s the biggest problem nonstarter friend like you you can’t you’re gonna have to know your place Jake yeah and you’re gonna have to pick like something that’s not 59 but he is such an interesting player and this is somebody who I know Carolina in theory would love to keep but boy Carolina’s got a lot they’re going to have to do a lot of financial dancing to figure out what they’re gonna end up with on their roster for next season this is a player I think it’s going to be very interesting to keep your eye on and I agree with you kick the tires on at Barry trots and just see but I think there’s going to be so much interest in him it just may drive up the price to where it’s not going to be a great deal for the Nashville Predators interesting player might be like right player wrong time yeah wrong price yeah well coming up we do have one other player from Carolina that I feel like we really have to talk about he’s generating a ton of conversation in Nashville should the Predators go all in on Martin NIS we’re going to talk about that all right locked on Predators fans we are sitting here debating what GM Barry trots would do but I want to take a minute to bring up one of our partners the mobile game ultimate hockey GM if you have ever dreamed of being an NHL GM and managing your own hockey franchise if you think you could run the Predators better than Barry trots well friends your dream can come true and this game is most definitely for you you can manage every strategic aspect of your team play through the seasons and Lead it to Glory hire the right coaches and staff trade players or draft pi navigate through free agency in the draft all in a challenging and realistic game world as a PRS fan you know there is no offseason GMS are constantly making moves at every point of the year to improve their team’s chances and that’s why I think you are going to love this game ultimate hockey GM is completely free and playable offline you can play on the go as you want and when you want to by the way locked on network listeners get a 100% free boost to their franchise when using the promo code locked on NHL in the game store so make sure to check it out to download the game just visit hockey gm. apppp or look it up on the App Store ultimate hockey GM start your Dynasty today all right Emma now we’re going to get to the juicy player the one that I think a lot of people in Nashville are intrigued by for a number of reasons and that is Carolina Carolina’s Martin NIS 77 games played this past season 24 goals 53 points he is a RFA here’s what what is interesting to me he’s just a little 25 years old 25 years old aav of $3 million if you are trying to get kind of a high-end player who can grow with the Predators through a reset Martin NES is a very intriguing option he is he is I mean he fits he’s got that scoring touch he’s young he’s a center like he his asking price is high it’s going to be high like it’s certainly going to be High I mean yes he was making three million but that was on his you know his rookie contract so he’s going to be making you know going to be looking for more than that and I think plus again with him being an RFA you do have to trade for him you have to trade for his rights and so the asking price is going to be even higher and I think this one’s interesting because he’s definitely you know on paper again looks like the kind of guy the Predators really need couple concerns number one um I have had the pleasure of knowing and watching Marty NIS uh through the early years of his career as I was working in Carolina at the time that he made his NHL debut when he’s on he is on but he is very streaky and I don’t know like again if he was maybe going to be demanding less money then that might not concern me as much but if you’re talking about paying a guy at least like5 million i’ I’d want him to be pretty consistent um and he would just kind of disappear for stretches of games and you just not not even just not having points like not being on the score sheet but he just you I feel like he just kind of disappeared on the ice too um so that’s something that’s maybe a little bit of a cause for concern the other being I just don’t know if the Predators have what Carolina is going to be looking for in return for this because I I think they have part of it but not all of it like Carolina is going to want draft picks Predators have draft picks they’re going to want highlevel prospects uh and I’m not saying they’ll want all of this and you know like they want Zack laroo and Yokum kemel like I’m not saying that but I I think that you know they’re gonna want a top level kind of prospect of that caliber someone who’s close to being NHL ready um and they need goal tending and yep I you know because they’re in this weird spot where they have a you know this was this year this past year was supposed to be their year because they had all these guys like not just NES but you’ve got you know Jordan martinook and Brett peshy and Brady Shay and all these guys who are going to become free agents and it’s like well we’re not going to be able to keep all of them so like this is our chance to do it and you know now you see they’re going to want to keep that window open if they can you know they’re one of those teams like ironically that we’re saying that might try to sign gensel because he’s you know he’s a guy that could help a team that’s in win now mode but I think that you know they also have to look at the future for their organization because they they have been so focused on the now that they you know might need to build up their their Prospect pipeline a little bit more and so that’s that’s why I’m like I think the Predators have the pieces that Carolina could want but I don’t know that they’d be willing to part with them I agree with you right there you know talking about what does Carolina want in return you know they’re going to want either a high-end player they’re going to want top prospects and when you are in Nashville and you are in a reset right now so many eggs are in that Prospect basket you know you know Nashville’s not in WID now but when you look at some of these prospects that we have kind of coming up in the next year two years you know maybe three seasons coming in that’s when Nashville’s window is really going to start opening up and are you willing to set back that window to go all in on this the other thing I worry about too is price you know Frank sarelli had kind of speculated that he could you know an upward figure would be like seven years 7 and a half million that’s a lot of money Barry is out on that 100% out it’s a lot of money and that’s a lot of term and again when you’ve got such a Nashville has like I think the sixth best Prospect pool in the NHL right now um and you have so much there that you just don’t want to bank on something else long term that’s going to cost you you have to play the long game and I agree with you on paper this one is very very intriguing but again is Barry trots that close to pulling the trigger on a big piece I don’t know that he is I think that again if they could get n and again you know we’re still in the you’re just negotiating or you would just be trading for his rights right now correct then there’s like I mean one thing and this is just off the top of my head and now this would could be a whole other conversation but it’s like someone could get involved in a three-way trade for him because that would be interesting maybe someone who has what Carolina wants would get n and then they get the leverage by having NES and then they can go trade NES for something they need I mean these are just fun offseason things to think about but I think that he is the again he’s the kind of player people will overpay for him um doesn’t mean they should but they will and you know if like again if if you’re martinous and a team out there is offering you seven time seven and a half you got to take that like you got to take that right uh but that team is not going to be the Predators so it’s going to be interesting to see what Barry trotz is willing to spend what Barry trots is willing to sacrifice this offseason to improve the Nashville Predators of course we’re going to keep our eye on all of the moves that he makes all that good stuff is going to start kicking off July 1st so buckle up friends it’s going to be a crazy offseason I think coming up on tomorrow’s show it is going to be fun Friday y’all we are going to talk about what defensive player we are intrigued about in the offseason but we’re also going to tell you how we would redo some things at the combine but before we get to that and before we end this episode Emma tell everyone where they can find you and find your work they can find me at Emma lingan and you can find my work at the hockey news and you can find me on social media at ankor Mama on Ice you can find my work at penalty boox radio that’s going to do it for today’s episode of the locked on Predators podcast thanks for making us your first listen of the day we’ll be back tomorrow with an all new episode

The Nashville Predators are looking to add offensive punch to their roster, and GM Barry Trotz may make some calls about Trevor Zegras, Jake Guentzel, and Martin Necas. On today’s Locked On Predators podcast we talk about the upside to each of these three players, how they might fit in the Predators system, and the deals Nashville would likely have to make with the Anaheim Ducks and Carolina Hurricanes to make a love happen this offseason.

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