Phil Kessel is a guy who can shoot the puck extremely well, scoring at least 30 goals in six of his 13 seasons. The Nashville Predators are a team that needs goal scoring, especially on the power play. Essentially, this is a perfect fit.
Kessel nixed a trade earlier this summer, which prevented the Penguins from sending the 31-year-old winger to Minnesota for Jason Zucker and Victor Rask. The Wild weren’t on his eight-team list on his no-trade clause, but maybe the Nashville Predators are.
The Preds are a team who have proven to be a contender, who are tied for the second longest active playoff appearance streak in the NHL (with the defending champion Washington Capitals) with five straight playoff seasons.