When Steven Stamkos departed the Tampa Bay Lightning organization, nobody thought it would be the Nashville Predators he’d join. To be fair, nobody thought he’d leave Tampa in the first place.

It all seems like a bad dream.

Tampa Bay’s 2008 first-overall pick, a franchise icon, a two-time Stanley Cup champion, and one of the greatest goal scorers of his generation, no longer wearing a Lightning Jersey. Stamkos posted 1,137 points (550G, 587A) across 16 seasons in Tampa Bay. His resume certainly speaks for itself. With the trade deadline still months away and Nashville enduring yet another inconsistent stretch, the question surfaces:

What does this mean for Steven Stamkos as a Nashville Predator?

Right now? Nothing.

Nashville, while rebuilding, are likely going to remain cautious when it comes to the pieces they move out of their roster. When a player of Stamkos’ stature joins a team that’s in an awkward phase of neither rebuilding or contending, everybody in the hockey world in going to keep tabs on the situation.

Having perspective from someone close to the organization, I’m told that Stamkos is likely not the first player moved, if he’s moved at all.

It’s certainly a decision to be made closer to the deadline, and only if it’s what’s best for him and his family.

“He’s already won Stanley Cups. To him, it’s a matter a family.”

That perspective matters. It’s a valuable peek into how the situation is going to be treated: with patience, respect, and a focus on the player’s life off the ice.

Nashville has a nice mix of veterans, young high-end talent, and cap commitments that make decisions a little trickier to make. Nashville sits in 30th place in the entire NHL standings. They’re underperforming, and they could be looking to make some moves.

There needs to be time to see how the Predators’ season settles. It may be early to say whether or not they’re going through an early season slump, or if they’re truly underachieving similar to last season. It goes without saying, if Stamkos were to be a player they consider to trade, he deserves to be part of those discussions and no move should be rushed.

There are realistically only two teams that make sense for Stamkos to move to at this stage in his career. Either he returns to the Tampa Bay Lightning, or he gets his homecoming in Toronto as a Maple Leaf.

Stamkos reuniting in Tampa Bay is familiarity for himself and his family. From coaching staff to city life, he wouldn’t need much time to adjust to the team and city. The organization also gets a clear window at what Stamkos provides, and Jon Cooper would certainly know how to maximize his minutes, even if Stamkos returned in a limited role.

The biggest thing to circle outside of familiarity for Stamkos is that Tampa Bay remains competitive year after year. If they’re in a playoff position and looking to add, the narrative writes itself. It’s not a ‘run for the cup’ match, it’s a ‘best personal fit’ match with a long history between the Lightning and Stamkos.

Whenever it comes to any superstar with Ontario ties, it’s even loosely connected to movement. Stamkos, a Markham, Ontario-born forward, has been speculated for years to land in Toronto in some fashion.

Any chance of Stamkos heading to Toronto creates an attention grabbing, emotionally driven, instant buy in hometown storyline that fans crave. The current construction of Toronto is ‘win now’, and Stamkos could provide another veteran presence to bolster that. It could be the necessary shakeup if it happened soon, but as I stated earlier, this is likely something that would happen closer to the trade deadline, if it were to happen at all.

The biggest barrier of all is the salary cap. Toronto would need considerable cap gymnastics to make a deal work. It makes this feel like a possibility in theory, but nothing that should be treated as a likely outcome unless major moves are made.

At the end of the day, the most important detail comes directly from the organizational voice: “it’s a matter of family.”

That tells us everything.

What happens now? Right now? Nothing.

There’s nothing imminent. If Nashville’s season doesn’t turn around, there’s nobody on their roster that isn’t untouchable. There’s restrictions, but nothing untouchable. They’ll need to look at all options, and when, or if that time comes, they’re going to prioritize what’s best for Stamkos and his family.

He has earned that. He deserves that.

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