Nashville Predators’ Defensive Roots Are All Around the NHL

No NHL franchise produces quality defensemen and stars quite like the Nashville Predators. This has been evident for years and can be traced all the way back to the team's fourth draft where Dan Hamhuis was selected in the first round.

While Hamhuis was a great NHL defenseman playing 1148 regular season games in his career, it only got better from there. Shea Weber, drafted in 2003, is one to also remember. He's not so long retired and did play for the Montreal Canadiens at the end of his career before he hung up the skates.

The Predators have been great at drafting defensemen who turn out to be very good or become everyday NHLers, but in recent years, the focus has more been on selecting forwards as Nashville has always been a defense-first team. While the saying goes 'Offense wins games. Defense wins championships', the Predators would still like to have themselves solid offensive players as well.

The drafted defensemen the Predators have on their roster include Roman Josi, Dante Fabbro, Spencer Stastney, Marc Del Gaizo, and Alexandre Carrier for the time being at least. When we move around the NHL and how the many different high level defensemen drafted by the Predators got there, this is where it gets even more interesting.

Scattered High-End Former Predators D-Men

Ryan Suter

Going back all the way to 2003, Ryan Suter is the first former defenseman of the Predators playing elsewhere. Suter is almost at the end of his career at age 39 and has one more year left on his deal. He's slowed down now, but for so many years he was a top pairing defenseman that was very underrated.

Suter only signed a four-year deal with the Predators after his entry-level contract, making him a UFA at the end of his second deal. He signed that dreaded 13-year deal with the Minnesota Wild after that and it's still impacting the team even though he has since been bought out and has been on the Dallas Stars since 2021.

Suter received Norris Trophy recognition (votes) for 11 consecutive seasons covering his final three with the Predators and the rest with the Wild. I don't think he's quite a Hall of Famer, but he's been stellar defensively and contributed offensively throughout his entire 19-year career.

Mattias Ekholm & Ryan Ellis

It wasn't until 2009 when the Predators really flexed their scouting and drafting ability again when it came to defensemen by selecting Ryan Ellis in the first round and Mattias Ekholm in the fourth round.

Ekholm has been a force to be reckoned with ever since the Predators traded him to the Edmonton Oilers at the 2023 trade deadline. The highlight of the package was the Oilers' last first-round pick and another first-round draft pick that the Predators used to select a defenseman (Tanner Molendyk).

Ekholm was really good in Nashville, but his game has risen to a whole new level. He's always been able to contribute offensively to an extent, but his meanness and defensive play are key components to his effective play style. He will still be in Edmonton for another two years as his contract runs through 2026.

As for Ellis, it is unfortunate for the Philadelphia Flyers that his playing career is assumed to be over because of injuries even though he hasn't officially announced retirement. He isn't at the level of Weber, Suter, Josi, or Ekholm, but was still a very good d-man for the Predators. He played all but four of his 566 games for the Predators.

Related: Former Predator Ryan Ellis May Have Played His Final NHL Game

Seth Jones

At a time, Nashville was so stocked with defensive talent that there wasn't much room. This led to Seth Jones being traded 1-for-1 for Ryan Johansen in 2016. This worked out at the start, but less so towards the end of the Johansen era in Nashville.

Jones is the number one defenseman on the Chicago Blackhawks now and a leader. He is talented, but again, not on the level as the four pillars on defense the Predators had at a time.

Sam Girard

The next and final skilled defenseman that started in the Predators organization but is now on another team is Sam Girard. He had only played five games for the Predators at the time of his trade to the Colorado Avalanche, so Nashville really missed on this one.

What did the Predators get in return? Kyle Turris as part of the three-team trade with the Avalanche and the Ottawa Senators. Girard has been moving the puck and speeding around for the seven years since and is still a big part of the Avalanche's great back-end. The Predators normally give their defensive prospects more of a look and this was an anomaly.

I don't expect this trend of drafting high-end defensemen to stop as the Predators are likely going to continue to produce a lot of NHL talent. All they can hope for is that they keep coming and contribute more to this team than they do elsewhere.

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