Nashville Predators general manager Barry Trotz talked to at least five teams about moving out of the No. 5 overall pick in the 2025 Draft, according to a behind-the-scenes series released by the NHL.
The second episode of “Welcome to the NHL,” which premiered on Sportsnet in Canada on Oct. 16, features video from draft night, including interactions between Trotz, his front office staff, other NHL general managers, and the Predators‘ eventual top pick Brady Martin.
The Predators have been high on Martin since taking him at No. 5 overall. They even put him in the opening night lineup with Filip Forsberg and Ryan O’Reilly, confident that the 6-foot, 190 pound center is a big part of their future. The series reveals that the Predators’ confidence in Martin began immediately after making the selection.
“Thanks for taking a chance on me, I appreciate it,” Martin told Trotz on the phone, to which Trotz replied: “There’s no chance taken on you, you’re gonna be a great player.”
But according to earlier scenes, Nashville wasn’t locked into picking at No. 5.
Predators’ GM Barry Trotz spoke with five teams about trading out of No. 5 overall pick
In the episode, Trotz is seen discussing his draft night trade negotiations, accompanied by assistant general managers Brian Poile and Jeff Kealty.
“I’ve talked to six, seven, eight, nine and (texted with) ten,” Trotz told his team, referring to the draft positions of the Philadelphia Flyers (No. 6), Boston Bruins (No. 7), Seattle Kraken (No. 8), Buffalo Sabres (No. 9), and Anaheim Ducks (No. 10).
“When you’re in the top five, you don’t want to be there year in and year out. So when you’re in there, you want to make sure you get a core player or move back and turn it into multiple picks,” Trotz said.
Then Trotz is seen discussing a potential deal with an unknown team.
“They want to give us a fifth (round pick) and we want a third,” Trotz tells Poile. “So you cut the baby at a fourth and try to squeeze them for a conditional (pick).”
This suggests Nashville was looking for a third-round pick to move out of the top five, but stay in the top 10. As the draft began, with the New York Islanders selecting defenseman Matthew Schaefer at No. 1 and the San Jose Sharks taking Michael Misa at No. 2, the Predators seemed to still be fielding offers on No. 5.
“Right now we are drafting, what are you offering?” Trotz is saying on the phone to an unknown caller.
But apparently the offers weren’t juicy enough. In the next scene, Trotz declares, “Well, so we are definitely drafting (at No. 5).”
Nashville took Martin, who was watching the draft from his home in Elmira, Ontario, with his family. After the celebration was over Martin had a moment of humor with his mother Sheryl.
“What now? We don’t got to watch the rest,” Martin said.
The episode will be available for streaming in the U.S. on ESPN+ on Oct. 17 and will also air on NHL Network on Oct. 18 at 4 p.m. ET.
Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at jdaugherty@gannett.com. Follow Alex on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @alexdaugherty1. Also check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.