The Nashville Predators had an immensely disappointing season in 2024-25. And one central figure of that disappointment was veteran forward Steven Stamkos. The future Hall of Famer signed with the Predators on a four-year contract in NHL Free Agency. It marked the first time he'd worn a jersey other than that of the Tampa Bay Lightning in his career.
Unfortunately, he did not show the elite, point-per-game talent he had in Tampa. In all fairness, Stamkos wasn't a liability by any means. He scored 27 goals and 53 points in 82 games. These numbers are fine for most players, but far below the level of someone like Stamkos.
This year, the Predators forward made changes to his offseason preparations. These changes have not worked out as hoped, though. Through 18 games this year, he has three goals and four points. Stamkos opened up about his struggles before the NHL Global Series in Stockholm, Sweden.
“This offseason I felt fantastic. I was more comfortable coming in, it felt great physically. I was doing things off the ice that I hadn’t done in a few years in terms of feeling really good coming into camp, changing some things with diet and sleep and things like that. It felt fantastic. And then sometimes it’s frustrating when you do all those things hoping results are going to come and they don’t come,” the Predators forward said, via NHL.com.
The Predators missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs after their big NHL Free Agency spending spree in 2024. Nashville hoped a simple retool could address its issues. Unfortunately, this hasn't happened. And there is no point in dwelling on what could've been.
“I think obviously things haven’t gone as good as we wanted [them] to,” Stamkos said, via NHL.com. “It’s crazy what a difference a year can make in terms of the expectations of our group with where we were last year.
“But, honestly, you’d drive yourself absolutely insane if you keep dwelling on that. … At this point, there’s no point in looking back. You have to look forward and figure it out.”
