The Predators have half a dozen pending unrestricted free agents to decide on this summer. Alex Daugherty of The Tennessean profiles each case, suggesting that of the six, wingers Jason Zucker and Kiefer Sherwood are the likeliest to stick around. Zucker provided some depth scoring for the Preds down the stretch, collecting five goals in 19 games after being acquired from Arizona at the deadline and while he’s almost certainly facing a pay cut from the $5.3MM he made this season, he could still command a fair-sized salary considering he’s only a year removed from a 27-goal campaign in Pittsburgh.
As for Sherwood, the 29-year-old was a full-time NHLer for the first time, getting into a career-best 68 games this season where he had 10 goals and 17 assists along with 234 hits in just over 12 minutes a night. Considering the effectiveness of that fourth trio and the fact that his linemates have already received two-year extensions, it stands to reason that the Predators would like to keep that trio intact. However, after playing for the league minimum for four straight seasons, Sherwood appears to be well-positioned to potentially double that on his next contract.
- Still with Nashville, Predators prospect Felix Nilsson has been loaned to IK Oskarshamn for 2024-25, his SHL team in Rogle announced. The 18-year-old was the 43rd overall pick last June and split the season between the SHL and Sweden’s junior league. He played in 41 games with Rogle but in a limited role, notching just three points. Meanwhile, at the junior level, Nilsson added 23 points in 22 regular season contests. The decision to loan him to the second-tier Allsvenskan level is an in-between step, allowing him to play at a higher level than he would have in junior but in a more prominent role than he’d have likely had in Rogle.