The Steven Stamkos experiment in Nashville didn’t exactly get off to a storybook start. After a splashy 2024 offseason where the Predators brought in Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brady Skjei with eyes on a deep playoff run, the team found itself not chasing the Stanley Cup-but ping pong balls in the draft lottery.
Fast forward to this season, and for a while, it looked like more of the same. But lately?
The narrative is shifting, and fast.
Suddenly, the Predators are heating up, and so is Stamkos. Nashville now finds itself neck-and-neck with the Seattle Kraken, San Jose Sharks, and Los Angeles Kings in a tight race for the final Western Conference wild-card spot. Just a single point separates all four teams, and with the way the Predators are playing, they’re not just hanging around-they’re pushing.
And at the center of that surge is a familiar face playing some vintage hockey.
Stamkos Turns Back the Clock
Thursday night might’ve been the high point of Nashville’s season so far. Down 3-0 to the Ottawa Senators, the Predators stormed back, led by a Stamkos hat trick that reminded everyone why he was one of the marquee signings of the 2024 free agency class. It was the kind of performance that doesn’t just change the outcome of a game-it can shift the trajectory of a season.
That comeback win didn’t just tighten the playoff race; it sent a message. The Predators aren’t going quietly, and neither is Stamkos.
Last season was rough by his standards. Stamkos put up 53 points in 82 games-solid for most, but underwhelming for a player of his pedigree.
More glaring was the goal total: 27. For a guy who’s made a career out of lighting the lamp, it was just the third time he failed to hit the 30-goal mark in a season where he stayed relatively healthy.
Naturally, questions started to bubble up. Was this the start of the decline? Had Father Time finally caught up to the former Lightning captain?
Not so fast.
Through 50 games this season, Stamkos already has 24 goals. That puts him on pace for 39-just a whisper away from 40, a milestone that would reassert his place among the league’s elite scorers. And more importantly, it’s the kind of production that could carry Nashville into the postseason.
What It Means for the Predators
With the trade deadline looming, teams on the playoff bubble often face a tough decision: push forward or sell assets and regroup. But given how Stamkos and the team are trending, it’s hard to imagine the Predators waving the white flag.
This isn’t just about one player getting hot-it’s about a team that’s finally starting to click. The chemistry that seemed missing early in the season is now showing up in big moments, and the leadership of veterans like Stamkos is clearly resonating on the ice.
If this version of Stamkos sticks around-and if Nashville can keep stringing together wins-they might just turn that offseason gamble into a playoff payoff. And for a franchise that’s been searching for postseason relevance, that would be a welcome change of pace.
The Predators are far from a finished product, but right now, they’re dangerous. And with Stamkos playing like it’s 2012 again, the rest of the Western Conference would be wise not to overlook them.