The Predators team, which will be comprised of signed and unsigned draft picks, free-agent signings players attending on tryout agreements, will be led by Milwaukee Admirals (Nashville's AHL affiliate) Head Coach Karl Taylor and Assistant Coaches Scott Ford and Greg Rallo. Among the 23 players scheduled to participate are 2020 first-round pick Yaroslav Askarov, 2021 first-round pick Zachary L'Heureux and 2020 second-round pick Luke Evangelista. Also taking part in the showcase will be recent draft picks Egor Afanasyev (2019 second round), Luke Prokop (2020 third round), Juuso Parssinen (2019 seventh round) and Jack Matier (2021 fourth round) and several players who competed for the Admirals in the AHL last season, including Jachym Kondelik, Marc Del Gaizo, Jimmy Huntington and Spencer Stastney.
Before departing for Raleigh, the prospects will hold practices at 1 p.m. CT on Sept. 14 and 10 a.m. CT on Sept. 15, both at Centennial Sportsplex. Nashville will face off against prospects from the Carolina Hurricanes, Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers in the showcase, playing each team once during the four-day event. Nashville begins the showcase by taking on Tampa Bay on Sept. 16 at 12 p.m. CT at Invisalign Arena; the event then moves to PNC Arena - home of the Hurricanes - for the Predators' final two contests. After an off day on Sept. 17, Nashville will play Carolina at 9 a.m. CT on Sept. 18 and will conclude the showcase on Sept. 19 against Florida, also at 9 a.m. CT.
This will mark the 12th time in the last 13 rookie camps that Predators prospects will play games against another Sunbelt franchise, and the seventh time in the last eight games that a team of rookies will compete in a tournament. The 2021 NHL Prospect Showcase was held in Tampa, Fla.; the Predators previously hosted the event at Ford Ice Center Antioch in 2017 and 2019. Nashville prospects have also played two-game sets against Florida (2011 and 2010), Atlanta (2008 and 2009) and Columbus (2002 and 2003). In the franchise's first four seasons (1998-01), Predators prospects competed in the Traverse City Rookie Tournament. Nashville did not host a Rookie Camp prior to the 2020-21 campaign.
The NHL Prospect Showcase precedes the opening of Nashville's 2022 Training Camp, which begins Sept. 21 with physicals and team meetings. The Predators' first day on the ice will be Sept. 23 at Centennial Sportsplex, with five preseason contests scheduled from Sept. 26-Oct. 3, including three at Bridgestone Arena (Sept. 26 doubleheader vs. Florida and Sept. 30 vs. Tampa Bay). Nashville will conclude its preseason slate on Oct. 3 in Bern, Switzerland, by taking on SC Bern as part of the 2022 NHL Global Games.
Click here to view the full Rookie Camp roster
. See below for the full Rookie Camp and NHL Prospect Showcase schedule:
Wednesday, Sept. 14 @ 1 p.m. CT- Practice, Centennial Sportsplex
Thursday, Sept. 15 @ 10 a.m. CT- Practice, Centennial Sportsplex
Friday, Sept. 16 @ 12 p.m. CT- Predators vs. Lightning, Invisalign Arena (Morrisville, N.C.)
Saturday, Sept. 17 -Day Off
Sunday, Sept. 18 @ 9 a.m. CT- Predators vs. Hurricanes, PNC Arena (Raleigh, N.C.)
Monday, Sept. 19 @ 9 a.m. CT- Predators vs. Panthers, PNC Arena (Raleigh, N.C.)
