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Nashville Predators Extend Jeremy Lauzon

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A busy day of signings continues today. The Nashville Predators announced they’ve extended defenseman Jeremy Lauzon to a four-year contract worth $8MM in total, carrying an average annual value of $2MM.

Nashville acquired Lauzon at the Trade Deadline this season from the Seattle Kraken in exchange for a second-round pick (49th overall in the 2022 draft). He was Seattle’s expansion draft selection from the Boston Bruins.

Strictly a bottom-of-the-lineup player, Lauzon tallied two goals and seven points in 66 games combined between Seattle and Nashville this season. While he was in the lineup more consistently in Nashville, he often found himself as a healthy scratch with the Kraken. He averaged 17:40 of ice time per game this season, only a few seconds above his career average.

The veteran of 142 NHL games has some serious career stability now. He is decent defensively at even strength but has struggled on the penalty kill when used there, making more an ideal complementary player to a more high-end, offensively-inclined defenseman. If all goes well, he could end up being a good, cheap solution to partner with Roman Josi, but that’s assuming he maintains his solid defensive play post-trade. He’s known to be inconsistent at times, which raises a few red flags around the four-year term for this deal.

However, Lauzon is still just 25, and will still likely be in his prime at age 29 when the deal expires in 2026. It’s somewhat of a risky deal since the $2MM isn’t fully buriable in the minors, but it could just as well work out just fine. Lauzon was slated to become a restricted free agent with arbitration rights this offseason, and he’ll be an unrestricted free agent at the contract’s end.

2022 Ted Lindsay Award Finalists Announced

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This week, the NHL has started to release the finalists for all the major regular season awards. After the Hart Trophy came out yesterday, the Ted Lindsay Award, given to “the most outstanding player in the NHL” as voted on by members of the NHLPA, is up.

The finalists this year are Roman Josi of the Nashville Predators, Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers.

While the Lindsay very often mirrors the Hart, the notable difference is that the finalists are peer-selected. McDavid has already won the trophy three times, even taking it home in 2018 when he somehow finished fifth in Hart voting, despite leading the league in scoring. There’s no doubting his place among his fellow players, widely considered the best player in the world at the moment. After setting new career highs with 44 goals and 123 points, there’s certainly reason to believe they’ve put him on top of the mountain once again.

Matthews has more than a fighting chance though, after becoming just the third player in the salary cap era to score 60 goals in a single season. The Maple Leafs forward is the no-doubt best at putting the puck in the back of the net, and reached a new high with 106 points in just 73 games. Perhaps the front-runner for the Hart this season, it will be interesting to see if the players feel the same about the Toronto sniper.

Josi, meanwhile, is the only one of the three that didn’t end as a finalist for the Hart, as Igor Shesterkin took the third spot yesterday. It shows just how outstanding his season was and how much respect his peers have for the historic 96-point campaign he put together. That’s more than just a good year–it puts Josi among a list of the best offensive defensemen to ever play the game. Whether that was enough to draw the votes to pass the two big centers won’t be revealed until later on but it is still an impressive feat to get named a finalist in a year with so many incredible offensive performances.

Who will win the Ted Lindsay?
Auston Matthews 39.51% (194 votes)
Connor McDavid 38.49% (189 votes)
Roman Josi 22.00% (108 votes)
Total Votes: 491

2022 Norris Trophy Finalists Announced

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The NHL has started to release their award finalists, this time announcing the three nominees for the Norris Trophy. The award is given out to the top defenseman “who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position.” Last year’s winner was Adam Fox of the New York Rangers, but he won’t be defending his title this time around.

This year’s finalists are Roman Josi of the Nashville Predators, Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, and Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Josi, winner of the award in 2020, nearly reached an unfathomable offensive level this season when he scored 23 goals and 96 points for the Predators. He became the highest-scoring defenseman in nearly three decades and joined a group of Hall of Fame defensemen with at least 96 points in a single season. Only Bobby Orr, Paul Coffey, Al MacInnis, Brian Leetch, Denis Potvin, Phil Housley, and Ray Bourque have ever reached those heights previously, nearly a Mount Rushmore of offensive NHL defensemen. It is the second time he has been named a finalist, following his win two years ago.

Makar, still just 23 years old, has now been a finalist in back-to-back seasons after finishing second in voting last year. The Avalanche phenom led all defensemen with 28 goals and racked up 86 points, pushing his career total just over a point-per-game through three seasons. It’s hard to fathom the ceiling for the 2017 fourth-overall pick, who also took strides defensively this year and once again was one of the most valuable players in the league by many metrics. Makar averaged nearly 26 minutes a game and set highs in more traditional defensive statistics like +/- (+48), blocks (110), and hits (95).

Hedman is probably used to this by now, after being a finalist in each of the last five seasons previous. He won the award in 2018, a season that paled in comparison (at least offensively) to this year. The big Tampa Bay blueliner racked up his first 20-goal season and pied on a career-best 85 points, while playing in all 82 games for the first time in his 13-year career. Averaging more than 25 minutes a night in all situations, Hedman is carving out a career that will have him considered among the very best the game has ever produced when it is all said and done.

Tomorrow, the award announcements will continue with the three finalists for the Vezina Trophy.

Roman Josi, Evgeny Kuznetsov Headed To All-Star Game

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The NHL announced today that in light of injuries to the Central Division’s Nathan MacKinnon and the Metropolitan Division’s Adam Fox, Nashville Predators defenseman Roman Josi and Washington Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov will serve as their replacements at the 2022 All-Star Game in Las Vegas next weekend. Dallas Stars forward Joe Pavelski will replace MacKinnon as Central Division captain.

Josi heads to the game as Nashville’s second representative, joining goaltender Juuse Saros. The 2020 Norris Trophy winner has a spectacular 43 points in 43 games this season, enjoying what’s on pace to be the best offensive campaign of his 11-year-career. He’ll be the team’s second defenseman alongside Colorado’s Cale Makar.

Kuznetsov is enjoying somewhat of a renaissance campaign, seeing increased production back alongside Alex Ovechkin. His 43 points in 42 games put him on his first point-per-game pace since the 2017-18 season in which Washington won the Stanley Cup. He’s seeing heavy usage this year, playing over 21:25 per game under head coach Peter Laviolette.

 

Roman Josi Activated From COVID Protocol

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The Nashville Predators have their captain back just in time. The team will take on the Chicago Blackhawks this afternoon in their first game of 2022 and Roman Josi has been activated from the COVID protocol in time to participate. Josi returns along with Colton Sissons, who has also been activated. Meanwhile, Michael McCarron has been recalled from the taxi squad and Mathieu Olivier takes his place.

Unfortunately, just a few minutes later, the team announced that Dante Fabbro has entered the protocol.

Nashville has lost the first two games following the holiday break, both played without Josi in the lineup. The 31-year-old defenseman is the most important skater on the Predators roster, playing in all situations and driving the offense almost single-handedly at times.

In 30 games, the 2020 Norris Trophy winner has ten goals and 29 points, good for the team lead (tied with Mikael Granlund). Josi averages almost 25 minutes a night, though it remains to be seen whether he’ll see that much ice time in his first game back.

Sissons too is an important player to have back in the lineup, given his role as one of the team’s regular centers. While not a huge offensive contributor, his 13 points in 29 games are still a good bit of secondary scoring.

With these two back, the Predators were almost completely out of the woods when it comes to their current COVID placements. Fabbro’s presence will obviously be missed, meaning they won’t be at full strength for a little while longer.

Roman Josi Activated From Injured Reserve

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The Nashville Predators have activated Roman Josi from injured reserve and are expecting him to play tonight against the Detroit Red Wings. It would be Josi’s first game since March 7, just over two weeks ago. The team has also recalled Michael McCarron and Alexandre Carrier from the taxi squad, moving Jeremy Davis back to it in the process.

Josi’s return comes just as more reports emerge about their other defensemen, including Ryan Ellis and Mattias Ekholm. Today on TSN’s Insider Trading, Pierre LeBrun reported that the ask for Ekholm now is a big one, including a first-round pick, an elite prospect, and a third asset. Ekholm of course is not on an expiring contract as his deal won’t finish until after the 2021-22 season.

If the Predators are going to move a big name off of the blue line, Josi’s return could be an important one. Without him, the team wouldn’t have much left to carry the rest of the season, given Ellis isn’t expected back from injury anytime soon. If he can prove he is once again healthy enough to log 25+ minutes a night and drive offense from the back end, perhaps it changes GM David Poile’s mind on whether to move Ekholm in the coming weeks.

The reigning Norris Trophy winner has 16 points in 25 games this season and will try to add to that total tonight against Detroit.

Roman Josi Out Week-To-Week

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The Nashville Predators have struggled on the ice even when healthy, but now healthy they are not. The team’s injured reserve is already filled with important names like Matt Duchene, Ryan Ellis, Luke Kunin, and Juuse Saros, but now the final blow has been dealt. Captain Roman Josi has been listed as “week-to-week” by the team with a lower-body injury despite playing more than 25 minutes and scoring the shootout winner on Sunday night.

The team has recalled Mathieu Olivier, Rem Pitlick, and Jeremy Davies from the taxi squad for tonight’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes. Erik Haula will also not be available to the team after appearing on the COVID Protocol Related Absences list.

If there was any hope still left in Nashville that the Predators could turn things around, losing Josi for any length of time should kill it. The team is 11-14-0 on the season but carries a -21 goal differential, one of the worst marks in the entire NHL. Their best two defensemen, younger goaltender and top-line center are all sidelined by injury for the time being and the team has to play the Carolina Hurricanes, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Florida Panthers for the next six games.

There’s no doubt that Josi, the reigning Norris Trophy winner, is still the team’s most important player (even if Filip Forsberg has been carrying the entire offensive load on his back this season). The 30-year-old captain is averaging more than 25 minutes a night once again and is second in team scoring, with 16 points in 25 games. Losing Josi and Ellis in quick succession suddenly leaves a Predators blueline looking awfully thin, especially when considering that Mattias Ekholm is apparently available for trade. Perhaps this is the push that GM David Poile needed to really embrace the firesale that seems inevitable in Nashville.

Nashville Predators Place Mattias Ekholm On IR

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The Nashville Predators will be without one of their top defensemen for the time being. The club has announced that Mattias Ekholm has been placed on injured reserve with an undisclosed lower-body injury. Additionally, checking forward Mathieu Olivier has also been transferred to the injured reserve. Taking their places on the active roster in the meantime are defenseman Ben Harpur and young forward Eeli Tolvanen. 

The Predators will be without Ekholm for at least ten days from his most recent appearance on Tuesday as a result of moving him to IR. However, without more intel on the injury or a timeframe for his return, the talented two-way defender could be out beyond that date. Ekholm actually missed the Predators’ first game against the Tampa Bay Lightning this week, on Monday, February 8th, but returned to the roster the next night for the second game of the back-to-back. It’s possible that he reaggravated the injury or that this has simply been a lingering issue. Either way, the Predators will have to cope with losing Ekholm, a stalwart on the back end for eight years now.

This is an important season for both the Predators and Ekholm and this injury absence puts pressure on both. A Stanley Cup finalist in 2017, Nashville looked like they had the core to contend for years to come. Instead, it has been a steady decline of playoff failure from a second-round upset as the President’s Trophy winners in 2018 to a first-round exit in 2019 and finally a stunning qualifying round loss in 2020. Now they might simply be fighting to even qualify for the postseason this year. The Predators currently sit in seventh in the Central Division with a disappointing .385 points percentage and the third-worst goal differential in the NHL.

If Nashville needs to make major changes to get back on track, one of the key questions is whether Ekholm will be part of that future. With the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft waiting ahead, the Predators will have to decide if they want to protect seven forwards and three defensemen – likely to be Roman Josi, Ryan Ellis, and the future of the blue line in Dante Fabbro – leaving Ekholm exposed or whether he is worth opting for the eight-skater protection scheme which could leave some young forwards exposed. A rebuilding team might give up (or alternatively trade beforehand) a 30-year-old core defenseman rather than a promising prospect forward. So far this year, Ekholm’s per-game production and ice time are both down considerably compared to the past few years and if he has an extended injury absence or is unable to turn things around upon is return, it could certainly influence the team’s decision.

 

Roman Josi Named Winner Of The 2020 Norris Trophy

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The NHL Awards roll on with the presentation of the James Norris Memorial Trophy, presented to the league’s top defenseman. This year’s winner is the Nashville Predators’ Roman Josi, as voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association. Josi took the award against stout competition, with the Washington Capitals’ John Carlson and the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Victor Hedman as his fellow finalists.

Josi, 30, has received Norris votes in the past but made it impossible for the PHWA to ignore him this season with a career-high 16 goals and 65 points in just 69 games. Josi led all defensemen in goals and trailed only Carlson in assists, points, and points per game. He also led all defensemen in shots by a wide margin. Josi additionally averaged the third-most total time on ice and even strength time on ice this year and finished in the top-ten among defensemen in plus/minus.

With all that said, this was expected to be one of the tighter awards races given that the well-rounded Hedman is a previous winner and multiple-time finalist, while Carlson enjoyed a career year of his own that was arguably superior to Josi’s offensively. Yet, the voting was convincingly in favor of Josi. The Predators star received 109 first-place votes to Carlson’s 56 and finished more than 200 voting points ahead. Meanwhile, Hedman finished closer to the St. Louis Blues’ Alex Pietrangelo in fourth than he did challenge Josi and Carlson. Call it a reflection of his career more than this season alone if you like, but Josi undoubtedly deserved a Norris and was terrific in 2019-20.

Poll: Who Should Win The 2020 Norris Trophy?

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The finalists have been announced for all the major awards, but like every year there is much debate over who should take home each piece of hardware. In fact, with a shortened season and unorthodox playoff scenario, the views and reasoning behind each vote will perhaps vary even more wildly.

So as we get closer to the return of NHL hockey in Edmonton and Toronto, where 24 teams will try to chase the Stanley Cup, we’re going to ask you, the PHR faithful, to explain who you would vote for if given the chance.

After looking at the Calder Trophy finalists and Jack Adams nominees let’s shift our focus to the James Norris Memorial Trophy, given to “the defenseman who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability at the position.”  Almost exclusively, the Norris is given to one of the top-scoring defensemen in the league, though winning that race doesn’t necessarily guarantee you the award.

This year’s finalists are the top three in points from defensemen and include John Carlson of the Washington Capitals, Roman Josi of the Nashville Predators, and Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Carlson, who tallied 75 points to lead all defenders, finished fifth in Norris voting for 2018 and fourth in 2019. He’ll finish at least a little higher than that because of his outstanding season, in which he became just the third defenseman in the last decade to score at a better than point-per-game pace for a full season. In fact, his 1.09 points-per-game put him at the top of that list, ahead of Brent Burns (1.01 in 2018-19) and Erik Karlsson (1.00 in 2015-16).

Interestingly, both Burns and Karlsson finished second in the Norris race when they put up those numbers and Carlson certainly could follow their footsteps here. That’s because of the presence of his other finalists, especially Josi who appears to be the favorite by many accounts.

The Predators captain but up his own outstanding season, tying for second among defensemen in goals with 16 and setting a new career-high in points with 65. Routinely when the Nashville offense was sputtering they would turn to Josi to show them the way, while he also carried a huge weight defensively as one of the most-used players in the league. The 30-year old averaged close to 26 minutes a night for the team, including two short-handed, significantly more than what Carlson did for Washington.

When you’re talking about team back-bones though, it’s hard to overlook Hedman who has been one of the best in the business for a decade now in Tampa Bay. The 6’6″ Swede has been a Norris finalist in each of the previous three seasons, winning the award in 2018 after recording 63 points in 77 games. Hedman actually eclipsed that offensive pace this season by recording 55 in 66. A true do-it-all defender, Hedman is equally effective at either end of the rink and gives his team a chance to win every night.

Even beyond the three finalists, there were some very deserving candidates this season, including a pair of rookies who will have to settle for a Calder Trophy battle. Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar may not be quite at this level yet, but after coming fourth and seventh among defensemen in scoring you can bet the two first-year talents will be battling for a Norris down the line.

There’s also Alex Pietrangelo, the steady St. Louis Blues captain who has quietly been one of the most effective and consistent players in the league for the last ten years. Pietrangelo has never been a finalist, despite recording double-digit goal totals in six different years and posting at least 40 points in eight of his ten full seasons.

There may be others too who deserve your vote, so feel free to make a case for them in the comments! Cast your vote below.

Who should win the 2020 Norris?
John Carlson 38.52% (448 votes)
Roman Josi 38.44% (447 votes)
Victor Hedman 17.71% (206 votes)
Other (leave in comments) 5.33% (62 votes)
Total Votes: 1,163

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