Next up in our 2023 Fantasy Hockey Sleepers series is the Nashville Predators. The Predators look a lot different going into the 2023-2024 season. Barry Trotz opened up a lot of playing time for his young players. He traded Ryan Johansen to the Colorado Avalanche and bought out Matt Duchene.
There’s no shortage of sleepers to choose from on this team.
Nashville Predators Sleepers for 2023-2024
Cody Glass
Drafted sixth overall by the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017, it has taken a lot longer than expected for Glass to reach the NHL. Things started to come together in 2021-2022 with the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL. He was also able to stay healthy for the majority of that season. This was the first time he played 60 or more games at the pro level.
Glass took advantage of being healthy and was able to put up 62 points in 65 games. In 2022-2023, Glass made the Predators roster out of camp. There’s a great video clip of him receiving the news he would travel to Europe with the team for opening night.
He started the year slow, with only three points in his first 13 games. Owning him in one pool, I was questioning my decision to trade for him. In November things began to click and the points started to come. Glass ended with 35 points in 72 games, capping a successful first full year in the NHL.
Glass finds himself entering camp in a battle with Ryan O’Reilly and Thomas Novak for a top-two center spot.
Philip Tomasino
Unlike Glass, Tomasino’s rise to the NHL has been steady. After a solid rookie season in 2021-2022 with 32 points in 76 games, Tomasino took a step back in 2022-2023. Splitting the year between the AHL Admirals and the Predators.
With 107 NHL games played, Tomasino won’t see a real breakout for another year. Breakouts usually occur around the 200-game mark. When you look at the depth chart, he sits behind Filip Forsberg. Gustaf Nyqvist has an edge on the second line going into camp. Seniority will only carry so much weight. By season’s end, Tomasino should have entrenched himself on the second line.
This should be a growth year for Tomasino. The steady rise should continue. Hitting 50 points for the first time is reasonable. If he can lock down regular minutes on the first power play (that will be tough) there’s an outside shot at 60.
Once he hits his prime, he has clear point-per-game potential. He’s not there yet. Anything over 50 points should be seen as a successful year. Looking ahead he should develop into an impact, point per game forward.
Luke Evangelista
Drafted in 2020 as a second-round pick. He projected as a third liner with offensive flair and an elite compete level. Since then, Evangelista has since exploded. In his draft year plus one, he dropped a tidy 55 goals, and 56 assists, for 111 points in the OHL.
In 2022-23 he turned pro, joining the Admirals. He never missed a beat, putting up 41 points in 49 games. The Predators took notice and called him up mid-season. His point production slowed somewhat, with 15 in his first 24 NHL games.
There’s not a lot of depth at right wing. While it is a very small sample size, Evangelista did drop 54 shots in those 24 NHL games. His Corsi For was a smooth 55%, demonstrating when on the ice, his line carried the play.
All signs point to Evangelista picking up where he left off. He holds under-the-radar value.
Thomas Novak
Coming off 43 points in 51 games some might argue he doesn’t qualify as a sleeper. I guess that depends on how many people realize Novak produced a .84-point per-game rate. There are still a lot of people who don’t know who the heck he is. On that level, he’s a sleeper.
Drafted 85th overall in 2015, it took him forever to reach the NHL. No one expected him to pop like he did. It often takes a second or third year of production to convince doubters a player with this path is for real.
Novak and Glass will battle on the depth charts at center. Right now, I would give the edge to Novak.
It would be wise to hedge expectations. He has yet to play a full season in the NHL. Projected over 82 games, Novak was on a 69-point pace. Ten points should be chopped from that pace due to the rigors of the NHL season. Sure, there is the potential he does maintain that .84 point per game pace. With so many young players making up the supporting cast around him, the Predators will hit on hard times. Novak will hit a slump. Sixty would still be a solid first full season.
It’s always better to hold conservative expectations and be surprised than to hold lofty expectations and be disappointed.
Yakov Trenin
I can’t help myself with multicast players. In the last two years, Trenin has averaged over two hits per game and just under two shots per game. Sitting at 223 career games, it’s now or never if he’s going to break out.
A little more puck luck and he could reach his first 20-goal season. If he doubled his production from 24 to 48, it wouldn’t surprise me.
Trenin is a player I’ve kept an eye on for several years. Originally, I preferred him over Victor Arvidsson as a prospect in the Predators system. Fifty points is where Trenin should be. I’m more surprised he’s not there already.
If he can break out his value would be pretty close to that of Lawson Crouse. For a guy that’s been a bottom-six forward, that’s not too shabby
Thanks for reading. Hope you enjoyed it and found this useful as you prep for your draft.
Give me a follow on twitter @doylelb4; where you’ll find as many hiking musings as you will fantasy hockey.
Make sure to check out all of the sleepers and breakouts of the 2023 fantasy hockey season!