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There is nothing to suggest Nashville Predators head coach Andrew Brunette’s job is in jeopardy at this point, other than the team’s record and the fact that general manager Barry Trotz is upset with where the team is.
As he should be.
Expectations were sky high for the Predators coming into the season, not only for the way they finished the 2023-24 regular season but also because the team spent big money this offseason on Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault and Brady Skjei in free agency, while also re-signing star goalie Juuse Saros.
There was every reason to believe this team was capable of something big this year.
The Predators were one of the best 5-on-5 teams in the NHL during the second half of last season, they added high-end finishers in Stamkos and Marchessault to that roster, and there was reason to believe Saros could bounce back from a pedestrian (by his standards) season.
Instead of doing something special, they find themselves with the second-worst points percentage in the NHL (.395) through 19 games, ahead of only the Chicago Blackhawks (.342).
That is not where anybody wanted or expected this team to be.
Trotz has already threatened potential changes to the roster if things do not turn around (and they haven’t since he made that declaration), but it is difficult to change 23 players. It’s far easier for an underachieving team to try a new coach.