The Nashville Predators are known for producing very good defensemen as their drafting has its impact all over the NHL. While the current group is still strong and more talented young players are on the way, let's check in with one of the more recent departures in Mattias Ekholm who is having himself a very underrated season.
As the Predators and now Edmonton Oilers know, Ekholm brings so much to the table. He is sneaky good offensively, thinks the game well, plays a strong game at both ends of the ice, and can shut teams down. The Predators were a very good team for a while thanks to his contributions.
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Ekholm is surging for the Oilers in all facets while injuries have impacted the Predators recently, the team comes down from their high as the 18-game point streak has ended, and there has been 15 goals scored against them in the past two games.
Half of February and through March, the Predators went on an incredible run, setting a new point streak record at 18 (16-0-2), but it was inevitably going to end and it has hit them pretty hard in the last two games. As the Predators come back down to Earth, Ekholm had himself a great month of March, showing just how much of an impact he can have. The veteran d-man scored four goals and recorded 14 points in 14 games while finishing the month at a +18.
While we can't fully look at the trade yet since the prospects aren't developed or even in the NHL, it's looking very good for the Oilers. Ekholm is a +68 in 103 games with the Oilers since the trade, has 60 points (53 of them coming at even strength), and 183 hits on top of positively impacting defense partner Evan Bouchard and more. That plus/minus is by far the best in the league over that time with Gustav Forsling of the Florida Panthers second to him with a +51. Some people brush off plus/minus, but those players do something right at both ends of the ice to have numbers that high.
The Predators will always be connected to Ekholm as they drafted the Swede in the fourth round in 2009 and saw him dress for 794 regular season and playoff games for the team. With the Oilers sneaking up on the Vancouver Canucks for first in the Pacific Division, the hope is that the Predators don't see the Oilers in the first round as history hasn't been kind to Nashville in recent years.
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