Predators Sign Aiden Fink To Entry-Level Deal
The Nashville Predators have signed 2023 seventh-round pick Aiden Fink to a three-year, entry-level contract. Fink began his pro career earlier in the month, signing an AHL tryout contract after the end of his junior season at Pennsylvania State University. He has since scored three goals and 10 points in his first six AHL games. Fink’s entry-level deal will begin this season, offering him a chance to make his NHL debut in the coming days.
On the heels of a red-hot start, Fink could now get the call to the NHL. The Predators have two games left in their season, just enough opportunity to give the young winger his first shot at NHL ice time. While Fink’s pro start has been exciting, it is far from a surprise to see him scoring at a top rate. The 21 year old scored 10 goals and 38 points in 30 NCAA games this season, good for third on the Penn State Nittany Lions in scoring. He racked up 23 goals and 53 points in 40 games of the 2024-25 season, finishing the year with the fourth-most points in college hockey. Through three seasons at Penn State, Fink’s confidence while driving the puck and ability to make fast-moving plays spoke volumes. In a small sample, it seems that hot scoring has continued into the pro level.
A breakout collegiate career has raised the attention around the Predators’ right winger. He flew under radars during two years in the AJHL, even after posting an impressive 97 points in 54 games during his draft season. Entering the draft class with proven scoring, two AJHL championships, and one AJHL MVP title wasn’t enough for the undersized winger, who had to wait until one of the final picks of the 2023 NHL Draft to hear his name. Now, an entry-level contract will give him a chance to prove that Nashville found a diamond in the rough. Fink becomes Nashville’s sixth 2023 draftee to sign his first NHL contract.
Predators Sign Aiden Fink To AHL Tryout
Predators right-wing prospect Aiden Fink signed an amateur tryout contract with the club’s AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals, on Tuesday, Nick Kieser of Lower Broad Hockey relays. The transaction signals Fink is turning pro, but gives Nashville more time to decide if they want to sign him to an entry-level contract with immediate effect or beginning next season.
If Fink signed an NHL contract that began now, he would be ineligible for AHL assignment. Signing the ATO first will allow the Penn State product to play a few games in Milwaukee to get up to speed before the Preds make the call on whether to work him into their lineup for their push for a wild-card spot.
Fink, 21, was a seventh-round pick in 2023 – as Kieser points out, the last selection that former general manager David Poile made. Since then, all the 5’10” winger has done is score.
Fink was drafted from the Brooks Bandits of the Alberta Junior Hockey League. The junior ‘A’ organization is far from a powerhouse compared to Canadian Hockey League clubs but has produced several NHL alumni, highlighted by Avalanche superstar Cale Makar. Fink was voted as the top player in all provincial junior ‘A’ leagues in his post-draft season, erupting for 41 goals and 97 points in 54 games for the Bandits.
After committing to Penn State University the year prior, he arrived in State College as a freshman in 2024. Fink scored a point per game or better in each of his three seasons as a Nittany Lion, wrapping up his collegiate career with a 38-point effort in 30 outings this season. Injuries and a goal-scoring slump meant he didn’t reach the heights of his 23-goal, 53-point sophomore season that truly put him on the map, but he was still one of the top talents in the Big 10.
Fink was particularly impressive on the international stage this year. The Calgary-born forward has never been part of the Canadian national junior or senior team but joined a select team of NCAA players that traveled to compete against top-flight European talent in the Spengler Cup invitational back in December. While they ended up losing the final to hosts HC Davos of the Swiss National League, Fink’s four goals and four assists in four games led the tournament in scoring.
His size and defensive limitations have kept Fink from being regarded as a legitimate top-10 prospect in a Nashville pool that’s on the deeper side. That said, his pure offensive ceiling is right up there among Nashville’s best – if he can handle the physical grind of the NHL and get to the areas he needs to in order to score.
West Notes: Eklund, Giles, Fink, Stadium Series
San Jose Sharks forward William Eklund missed the team’s loss yesterday to the Detroit Red Wings with a lower-body injury, but the team is reportedly “hopeful” that Eklund will be fit to play as soon as Wednesday, per Sharks Hockey Digest’s Max Miller. Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky told the media that Eklund has been dealing with the injury for about a week, but the fact that it “got a little bit worse” is what necessitated his removal from the lineup.
The injury did not appear to slow Eklund down much, as he had an exceptional three-game stretch to finish the month of October, scoring three goals and five points. The 2021 seventh-overall pick ranks second on the Sharks in scoring so far this season, behind only second-year sensation and emerging franchise face Macklin Celebrini. He scored a career-high 17 goals and 58 points in 77 games last season, and assuming he can stay healthy, should cruise past those totals if he can manage to sustain his early-season form.
Other notes from the Western Conference:
- The San Jose Sharks made a roster move today, sending forward Patrick Giles back to their AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda. Giles, 25, was elevated to the Sharks’ NHL roster on Oct. 28 when veteran blueliner Nick Leddy was placed on injured reserve. He ultimately played in three games for the Sharks, registering his second career NHL point (and first career assist) on top prospect Sam Dickinson‘s game-tying goal late in the third period of yesterday’s game. The goal was also Dickinson’s first career NHL goal and first career point. Giles played in a fourth-line role across his three games, averaging under nine minutes of ice time per game.
- Penn State Nittany Lions head coach Guy Gadowsky announced today, per Penn State CommRadio’s Matt Becker, that star forward Aiden Fink has suffered an upper-body injury and will be out “foreseeable future.” Fink, 20, is a Nashville Predators prospect, selected in the seventh round of the 2023 draft as Hall of Fame GM David Poile’s final draft pick in charge of the club. Fink was a finalist for the Hobey Baker award last season after he scored 53 points in just 40 games, leading Penn State to its most successful season in program history. He had scored nine points through nine games this season, but now sees his momentum stopped as he’ll need to recover from this upper-body injury before he can hit the ice again.
- The NHL announced today that the Dallas Stars will play in the 2027 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series at AT&T Stadium on February 20, 2027. AT&T Stadium, located in Arlington, Texas, is the home of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys, and has a seating capacity of 80,000. The game marks the second outdoor game hosted by the Stars in their franchise history, the first being the 2020 Winter Classic, played against Nashville at the Cotton Bowl. Per the league’s announcement, the Stars’ opponent will be announced at a later date.