With a new season upon us, there is a new class of Predators prospects whose exclusive negotiating rights with the team expire at the end of the year. Last year Nashville chose not to sign three prospects in this position (Karel Vejmelka, Jacob Paquette, and Pavel Koltygin) and added the remaining two on AHL deals (Tommy Novak and Adam Smith).
This season, I wanted to do a quick assessment—before the year got underway—of the likelihood any of these entry-level contracts are handed out before next June. I intend for these to be quick posts with a recap of each prospect’s career since Draft Day, what you can anticipate this season, and how they’ve established themselves versus their peers.