The Nashville Predators hope to return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2024. Nashville missed out last season and spent their summer overseeing organizational change in the front office and behind the bench. However, the team has struggled to start the new season. And they will have to turn things around without veteran defenseman Luke Schenn.
Schenn has not played since the Predators lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in their season opener. On Wednesday, the club announced that the former fifth-overall pick would miss the next four to six weeks with a lower-body injury.
Schenn joined the Predators over the summer in NHL Free Agency. The soon-to-be 34-year-old signed a three-year contract with Nashville. He cashed in on a rather successful 2022-23 season that he split with the Vancouver Canucks and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Schenn entered the NHL as a draft pick of the Maple Leafs in 2008. He has also played for the Philadelphia Flyers, Arizona Coyotes, Tampa Bay Lightning, Los Angeles Kings, and Anaheim Ducks.
As mentioned, Nashville has not had the best start to this season. They have one win through their first four games. Furthermore, they find themselves at the bottom of the Central Division. Their 14 goals allowed tie them with the Winnipeg Jets for the most goals allowed in the Western Conference.
Schenn came to Nashville with the intent of stabilizing the bottom pairing while filling in on the second pair when needed. Now, the Predators will look to players such as Jeremy Lauzon and Alexandre Carrier to fill that role with the veteran out of the lineup.
The Predators will finish their road trip looking to rebound from a 6-1 loss against the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday. They face the New York Rangers on Thursday hoping to come away with a much-needed two points.
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