Following Trade From Dallas, Bourque Ready to Fill New Role with Preds

For Mavrik Bourque, playing hockey is like growing up on a dairy farm.

“You’ve got to show up every day, you’ve got to do your work, no matter what,” Bourque said Tuesday, comparing the sport to his childhood farm life in Quebec. “Sometimes you're tired, sometimes you don't feel the right way, but at the end of the day, you’ve got to get a job done… If you work hard and show up and compete, you're already ahead of most people.” 

Bourque, a 24-year old forward, is bringing that mindset to his new job with the Nashville Predators. 

The Preds acquired Bourque — along with defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin — from the Dallas Stars in exchange for Nashville’s second-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft and Vegas’ third-round pick in the 2028 NHL Draft in a trade that was completed on July 1. 

Nashville then signed the restricted free agent to a six-year, $33 million contract three days later. 

“We believe he can play and be a good player in the middle of the ice, and I think that was probably the biggest draw for us,” Predators President of Hockey Operations/General Manager Chris MacFarland said regarding Bourque on July 1. 

“He's a smart, petty hockey player - that's what he is. He's a good two-way guy, we think the arrow is still pointing up, and we intend to give him every shot at playing in the middle.”

The forward has played center his entire life, until last year. He recorded career-highs in goals (20), assists (21) and points (41) with Dallas in the 2025-26 season, his second NHL campaign.

“I'm looking forward to [having] a shot down the middle and [showing] what I can do down the middle,” Bourque said. “I believe I'm a better player down the middle, so I know what I’ve got to work on to be a good center in the NHL. I’ve always been a center, and I want to show that I can be a center again.”

Two weeks ago, MacFarland noted the importance of center depth in the lineup. Bourque is now yet another option for the Preds in the middle of the ice, and he’s eager to prove what he can do with the role. 

“They put trust in me,” Bourque said. “I'm just looking to show them what I’ve got and deliver. As a young guy, [I’m] always grateful to receive a contract like that from a new team, and it means a lot… I'm just excited and looking forward to [showing] them why they [gave] me that contract and [showing] them that I can help the team and bring different facets of my game, different areas of my game that can help the team win games.”

Bourque’s role with Dallas changed with each year spent in the organization. He went from winning the AHL’s MVP award and leading the league in points (26g-51a-77pts) in 2023-24 to a fourth-line forward in the NHL, playing mainly bottom-six minutes with some time on the penalty kill. Still, he progressed, earning a bigger job as other players left. 

Bourque has competed in 10 Stanley Cup playoff games over the past three seasons, experiences he says will benefit him this year with the Preds.

“I feel like I've been touching a lot of situations in the NHL, even in two years, and it's going to definitely help me for my third [full] season,” Bourque said. “I have a lot to show, and a lot to improve to become a better player on both ways of the ice.”

Bourque is well aware of the player he wants to be, as well as the team the Preds are building. 

“They have a good mix of younger players and older players,” Bourque said. “Just learning from guys that are superstars and younger players that are already really good [excites me], and having a chance to join a team that is building towards the top, that gets me excited.”

He also knows the player he’s always been – one who thinks the game on a different level. 

“High hockey IQ, for me, it's when the game slows down,” Bourque said. “I'm a guy that I've been better at playing with speed and playing a faster game, but at the end [of the day], I think I'm [somebody] that plays with poise and likes to slow down the play…finding small little areas where we can make a play.” 

Composure and playmaking are just some traits that make up Bourque’s style of play, which fits right in with the Preds, according to MacFarland.

MacFarland also sees Bourque as a winner — one of several that have been added to the Preds roster as of late. 

“Some of the players that we've added, Jack Drury and Mavrik Bourque, and Ross Colton, they've seen what winning looks like, and they can certainly impart some things to our young guys,” MacFarland said July 1. “That's what we want them to do.”

Bourque knows what his role will be once the puck drops this fall in Nashville, and he can’t wait to begin the next chapter of his career, with that work ethic on full display.

“When they traded for me, they told me what kind of role I was going to get,” Bourque said. “I’ve got to show up and be ready for that role, and I’ve got to deliver. I’ve just got to show up ready, and I think if I show what I got and do what I believe I can do I will have a chance to be in a good spot.”