Historical records of the Nashville Predators’ Gold Walk tradition are not formally kept, but it’s likely Bo Bunting, son of forward Michael Bunting, is the youngest to walk to carpet.
Or, rather, to be carried across it.
The Gold Walk, a tradition that began in the 2011-12 season, is Nashville’s version of the red carpet. Players dress in their finest suits and walk the gold carpet, taking pictures with fans and signing autographs, ahead of the home opener.
Players sometimes bring their families and children, but none as young as 13-day-old Bo have appeared until Oct. 9 against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
“It was a last minute decision for us,” Michael Bunting told The Tennessean on Oct. 10. “My wife said a lot of wives bring their kids down, so I said yeah let’s bring Bo. Just having that picture of him with me, that photo will be with us forever.”
Bo, the first child of Michael and wife Jordan, was born on Sept. 26, right in the middle of training camp.
“My wife’s such a trooper, she did a great job. I was just the support staff,” Bunting said. “We’re very fortunate that both are healthy.”
The Bunting family was prepared for a chaotic few weeks that combined the arrival of their child, a busy training camp schedule, and Nashville’s home opener against Columbus. To cap it off, Bunting scored the first goal of the season for the Predators in a 2-1 win over the Blue Jackets.
Bunting credits “dad strength” for his first goal and the presence of Bo at the game for the moment.
“I think it took me like 10 games to score my first goal (with Nashville) last year,” Bunting said. “Dad strength had me going there, so it was a bit special.”
Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex atjdaugherty@gannett.com. Follow Alex on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @alexdaugherty1. Also check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.