The Nashville Predators prospect group is just hours away from their first puck drop of the 2023 Southeast Rookie Showcase - a 3 p.m. CT contest against the Tampa Bay Lightning's rookie squad in Estero, Fla.
Led by Milwaukee Admirals (Nashville’s AHL affiliate) Head Coach Karl Taylor and Assistant Coaches Scott Ford and Greg Rallo, Nashville’s prospects will take the ice in front of an audience of Predators and Admirals coaches, scouts, hockey operations and player development staff. But what exactly will this group of evaluators be looking for?
“It's a hard environment because they're all in front of the brass and they want to do well,” Taylor said. “The guys that were with us in Milwaukee have a bit of an advantage just feeling comfortable. But the message is, do what you do really well. Why did you make someone bring you here? You want to do those things that make you stand out. Try to execute what we're looking for.”
The rookies had just one team practice in Nashville before heading to Florida for the Rookie Showcase. While this practice was an opportunity to teach them the systems, Taylor and his staff are focusing more on the intangibles when evaluating the players.
“It’s not like we expect them to execute all the systems perfectly,” Taylor said. “We just want to see them try to. So we're going to have extra energy and a little aggression in our play. Make sure we're getting after it and making aggressive mistakes. We don't want to be sitting around watching.”
This year’s rookie camp presents a unique situation for Nashville, with four players – Egor Afanasyev, Luke Evangelista, Spencer Stastney and Yaroslav Askarov – possessing a combined 50 games of NHL experience among them. Taylor and his staff have named Afanasyev team captain for the Rookie Showcase, while Evangelista and Stastney will serve as alternate captains.
“We expect those guys to lead us,” Taylor said. “We expect them to help the younger players and guide them.”
While one might think that this leadership group should be held to a higher standard of evaluation than their peers, it’s easy to forget that Stastney and Evangelista only have one season of professional hockey under their belts.
“We're coming out of summer,” Taylor said. “They’ve only had a couple of skates. So you really have to temper the expectations for everyone. Like the young kids who are just drafted, they're going to be overwhelmed. That's just the way it is. But… [Stastney] is only a second-year player. [Evangelista] is only a second-year player.”
At the rookie showcase, everyone will be playing with something to prove. Some are trying to turn pro for the first time in their careers, while others are fighting for NHL roster spots. This makes for a unique style of competition as players try to showcase their skills in a game setting against rookies from other teams.
“The other team’s excited,” Taylor said. “Our team's excited. Both teams have only had one or two practices. Usually it's a lot of crazy energy, and a lot of breakaways and things that happen, there are bigger mistakes than you're used to, and it's just the nature and the timing of it, but it feels really important for them.”
The excitement and the nerves among the rookies are palpable. But it’s the responsibility of Taylor and his staff to remind the players of the bigger picture of why they are here.
“We try to temper that and let them know you're getting three games here to really set yourself up for main camp,” Taylor said. “Do we want to go there and win? Yes. Do we want to play well? Yes. But the goal is to get these players prepared for when they come back.”
The rookies’ next – and most important – challenge awaits them when they return to Nashville for training camp. This weekend’s showcase is an opportunity for them to gain both experience and confidence as they prepare to train alongside Nashville’s more veteran players.
“You want to see coachability,” Taylor said. “We know they're going to make mistakes. We taught a lot of stuff in the last two days. The Preds are going to run three weeks of training camp to teach what we taught in two days, so it's really unfair to ask them to do as well all the time. We want to see the energy. We want to see the effort. But they have to be themselves. If they're playmakers, be a playmaker. If you're a hitter, be a hitter. Do what you do well, and make yourself stand out.”
The full rookie camp roster can be found here, and the schedule is below. Both are subject to change. All three showcase games will be streamed on NashvillePredators.com.
2023 NASHVILLE PREDATORS ROOKIE CAMP SCHEDULE (All times CT)
Thursday, Sept. 14, 10 a.m. - Practice, Centennial Sportsplex
Friday, Sept. 15, 3 p.m. - Predators vs. Lightning, Hertz Arena (Estero, Fla.)
Saturday, Sept. 16, 5 p.m. - Predators vs. Panthers, Hertz Arena (Estero, Fla.)
Sunday, Sept. 17 - Day off
Monday, Sept. 18, 9 a.m. - Predators vs. Hurricanes, Hertz Arena (Estero, Fla.)
