Forwards Ryan Johansen, Matt Duchene and Filip Forsberg, defensemen Roman Josi and Ryan Ellis, and goalie Pekka Rinne remain key to Nashville's fortunes.
Among those leaving were forwards Craig Smith (18 goals), Nick Bonino (18) and
Mikael Granlund
(17), who were next in goal-scoring behind Forsberg (21) on the Predators last season.
"The biggest question mark I would probably have is, are we going to have enough goals?" general manager David Poile said. "We're going to probably need goal scoring all through our lineup."
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Some of that has to come from the top, which means improvement is needed from Johansen and Duchene, Nashville's top two centers, each of whom struggled last season.
Johansen scored 36 points (14 goals, 22 assists) in 68 games, his fewest since becoming a full-time NHL player in 2013-14. Duchene, in his first season with the Predators after signing a seven-year contract July 1, 2019, scored 13 goals, his fewest in 11 NHL seasons, and his 42 points were his fewest since 2016-17 (41).
"Up and down," Duchene said of his season. "We went through a lot of adversity this year, myself included. I think every adverse situation you get put in is a chance to grow and a chance to learn and move forward. ... I love this team, I love this group and I believe in this group. Better days are ahead for sure."
Also expected to add to the offense will be some of the Predators' top forward prospects, among them Eeli Tolvanen, a 21-year-old who scored 36 points (21 goals, 15 assists) in 63 games with Milwaukee of the American Hockey League last season.
Tolvanen played seven NHL games the previous two seasons and was close to getting another promotion when the season was paused March 12. He continued to impress during his time with the Predators in the postseason and so far this season with Jokerit in the Kontinental Hockey League.
"Watching the video, it looks like he's a more complete player," Poile said. "Seems like his conditioning is really good, his play without the puck has really improved, and really looking forward to how he's going to look this year at training camp. Hoping that he can give us another younger offensive player that's on the rise."