The Nashville Predators have almost wrapped up their offseason signings. The latest two came with Jusso Parssinen and Marc Del Gaizo both signing one-year, $775,000 deals.
So where do both of these players fit into the organization this season? Parssinen is no longer exempt from waivers and the Predators will very likely lose him if he doesn’t make the team. For this season at least, he will be given a shot in the bottom-6.
While Parssinen is a center, he will likely see the most time on the wing this season with Ryan O’Reilly, Tommy Novak, Colton Sissons, and Michael McCarron down the middle already. If there is an injury, Parssinen will be one of the first to get a look at center on the Predators though.
Related: Predators sign Juuso Pärssinen to One-Year, $775,000 Contract
While his 2023-24 season with Nashville wasn’t all that impressive, scoring eight goals and 12 points in 44 games while averaging 14:36 of ice time, he is not a young player to overlook in the Predators’ lineup. In his rookie season (2022-23), Parssinen broke into the NHL at age 21 and scored six goals and 25 points in 45 games. He had a good faceoff percentage, was physical, and recorded a lot more takeaways than giveaways.
Parssinen had a scoring touch in the AHL last season, putting up seven goals and 25 points in 36 games. He is more of a passer than a scorer, but can do both as proven by his career totals. The 23-year-old appears to be a player that can fit in multiple spots in the lineup this season for the Predators when needed. There will be competition for ice time, but he should finally break the 50 game mark in the NHL in 2024-25.
Del Gaizo, on the other hand, should spend the majority of the season in the AHL again. Without injuries, there just isn’t space on the roster for him and Barry Trotz would likely rather Del Gaizo play on the top pairing in the AHL than sit out a lot of games in the NHL.
The 24-year-old played nine games for the Predators last season, recording three assists and averaging 16:28 of ice time. He has put up over 30 points in back-to-back seasons for the Milwaukee Admirals, so the talent is there, but it remains to be seen if he can break into the NHL and if Nashville has room to keep him up.
Del Gaizo will be a Group 6 UFA after the season if he meets some requirements. He is trending in the right direction and is a great first call-up to the Predators if something happens, but Spencer Stastney is ahead of him on the depth charts and should be the first option to make the team.
There is a possibility that this is the final season Del Gaizo spends in the Predators organization for lack of opportunity in the NHL if none comes. He could be a trade chip at the deadline, but his future is much more up in the air than Parssinen.
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