Jeannot talks Stadium Series, rookie season in Q&A with NHL.com

NHL.com's Q&A feature called "Sitting Down with…" runs each Sunday. We talk to key figures in the game, gaining insight into their lives on and off the ice.
This edition features Nashville Predators forward Tanner Jeannot.

NASHVILLE -- Tanner Jeannot has been having a dream season with the Nashville Predators, playing his way into being a surprise candidate for the Calder Trophy voted as the NHL rookie of the year.
Jeannot, who signed with Nashville as an undrafted free agent in 2018, enjoyed another pinch-me moment Saturday when the forward scored the first goal in a 3-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2022 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series at Nissan Stadium.
"Definitely a special occasion and you don't know how many times you get to experience this in your life," Jeannot said. "Just getting to come out here and having all these new experiences and getting to share it with family, the group we have here, it's pretty incredible."

Also undrafted as a junior before playing four seasons with Moose Jaw in the Western Hockey League, Jeannot began last season playing five games with Florida in the ECHL before moving on to Chicago of the American Hockey League and making his NHL debut with Nashville against the Carolina Hurricanes on March 2, 2021.
After scoring seven points (five goals, two assists) in 15 NHL games last season, the 24-year-old has played in all 53 games with the Predators this season, is tied for the League lead among rookies with 18 goals and is sixth in points with 32. Jeannot also uses his 6-foot-2, 208-pound frame to play with a physical edge and leads all rookies with 179 hits and 94 penalty minutes.
Jeannot talked further with NHL.com about his breakthrough season, the motivation that comes from being undrafted and the experience of the NHL Stadium Series.
When you were growing up in Oxbow, Saskatchewan, was playing outdoor hockey a big part of that?
"Oh yeah, there were outdoor rinks everywhere and skating on frozen ponds and stuff, so I'm definitely used to the outdoor part of hockey. But not in front of this many fans."
Who traveled to Nashville to be with you for this as far as family and friends?
"I had my whole family here. My mom and dad and brother and my wife were here. So, it was really cool and special to be able to share it with them."
What were your expectations before this season and have you exceeded them?
"I just try to take every day, day by day and try to do something to make myself better as a person and a player every day. My expectations were to just do that and get better every day and keep on improving. I don't like to set a ceiling on myself because I just want to continue improve every day and always be getting better. So, it's been going really well and I'm really happy with what the team and myself have accomplished so far, but, like I said, I just want to continue to grow on that and not stop there."
Did the 15 NHL games you played at the end of last season give you confidence and help you take the next step this season?
"Definitely I got some confidence finally getting that callup after a few years of work and seeing what the level was like and knowing that I was able to play at that level and succeed at that level. So that definitely gave me some confidence to come in this year and have a good year and just continue to build on what I started."
After being undrafted in the WHL and NHL do you feel like you need to prove yourself and did you ever wonder if you'd get an opportunity like this in the NHL?
"Oh yeah, wondering if it was ever going to come was definitely there and I think my whole career I've had a little bit of a chip on my shoulder not getting selected in those drafts and getting passed over. So, I just kind of used it as motivation and used it to continue to do what I'm trying to do now and get better every single day and, I guess, prove people wrong in a sense that I do belong at the next level. So I just used it as some motivation as best as I could and I continue to work on my game every single day. I'm living the dream right now and don't want to ever let it go."
You're tied for the NHL lead in goals among rookies with Michael Bunting of the Toronto Maple Leafs and your name has been mentioned in the Calder Trophy conversation. Do you pay attention to things like that?
"I try not to. My main focus is just helping the team do everything we can to get some wins and get the ultimate goal and win in the playoffs. I don't focus on the individual stats or anything like that. I just want to help the team and do whatever I can to help them win."
Is being physical an important part of your game?
"I want to be as all-around as I can and do everything I can to help the team win, if that's getting in on the forecheck and cause turnovers with my physical play and just help out that way or if it's sticking up for a teammate fighting or something like that or getting in and getting to the net and crash and bang and trying to score a goal. I just want to do everything I can to help the team win. Whatever that is, whatever the coach asks me to do, I'm going to do it to the best of my ability."
Were there any players who you looked up to when you were growing up?
"Well, my favorite player was always Pavel Datsyuk, just his hands and everything like that. Obviously, I know that's not the type of player I am, but I just tried watching and kind of picking guys out each game that I watch and see if I can do that, how can I add that to my game, kind of things like that."
Theo Fleury was another NHL player who came from Oxbow. Did you ever meet him?
"Yeah. He actually played junior where I did too, in Moose Jaw, so I got to meet him when they inducted him into the Hall of Fame there. That was pretty cool."
Fleury also took pride in proving people wrong as one of the smaller players (5-6, 182) during his 15 seasons in the NHL (1988-2003). Do you feel a connection with him that way?
"Exactly. He kind of had a little bit of the same story and made a pretty good career for himself."
Your line with Yakov Trenin and Colton Sissons has been a good fit and coach John Hynes trusts you with a lot of starts in the defensive zone. Why do you think that line has clicked?
"I think we're all kind of the same type of player. We all support each other and we know where each other are going to be and what we're trying to do out there. So, it definitely helps to have similar players that you're playing with. [Sissons] is unbelievable on the draw and it's way easier when you're not chasing the puck after losing the draw. He wins a lot of those and we're playing with the puck and we just try to support it and grind them down the best we can."