Preds Defeat Hurricanes to Begin Prospect Showcase

Cole O’Hara scored what proved to be the game-winner, and the Nashville Predators began their time at the 2026 Prospect Showcase with a 4-1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes at Invisalign Arena on Sunday afternoon. 

Michel Myloserdnyy, Aiden Fink and Vitali Pinchuk also tallied on the day, while T.J. Semptimphelter and Ben Hrebik combined to earn the win in net. 

“It was good,” O’Hara said. “I think it took us a little bit to get going, but these games are fast-paced, and it's a lot of fun. It’s nice to start off with a win.”

“I thought the guys got better, and I think our second period was our best period,” Milwaukee Admirals Head Coach Karl Taylor said of the Preds prospects. “The first period, both teams, the puck is bouncing, everyone’s excited, all normal things that happen in these games. But I thought as a group we saw some good signs in the second. We hit the middle on breakouts a little bit, some of the things we're looking for, things we're trying to implement, it got better. So, happy about that. Glad that [Fink and O’Hara] ripped a couple in the net, nice to see them… So, I thought overall the guys tried hard, they stuck together, they were trying to do the right things, and that's all you can ask.”

Neither team found the back of the net in the opening 20 minutes, but in the second stanza, it was Myloserdnyy - the 6-foot-7 invitee defenseman - who put home a rebound off a David Edstrom post shot for a 1-0 lead.

Then, on a Preds power play, O’Hara sniped a shot from the right circle to give Nashville a 2-0 advantage through two periods. 

“They gave me some room to walk in, and that was nice,” O’Hara said. "Just shot it and nice to see it go in.”

After Carolina cut the Predators lead in half midway through the third period, Fink snapped a shot top shelf on a partial breakaway to restore the two-goal advantage late. 

“I knew we were on the power play, and then the power play was ending, so I kind of came back in the D zone, and I saw Oasiz [Wiesblatt] see me,” Fink said. “So, I kind of did a little jump, he chipped the puck to me, and then I saw a lot of ice right in front of me. I saw a guy come to my left, and just took the shot and it was a good shot.”

Finally, Pinchuk - who had at least a few opportunities in his first game action with the Preds after signing an entry-level deal in April - finished things off with an empty-netter to help his club to a satisfying victory on the first day of the Showcase. 

“He's a big, strong player, and I really like him,” Taylor said of Pinchuk. “He’s got a great personality, very engaging when I communicate with him, wants to learn, very coachable; there’s always an adjustment, but the good news is he was over here prior [in junior hockey], and so he has an idea. But coming into pro, it'll be an adjustment always, but he’s big and strong over pucks, he's got some game to him, and he'll settle in. And I think the whole group will be better tomorrow. But I think he's a guy he'll see a little more on tomorrow.”

In addition to the goal scorers, the Preds had a number of players who impressed, including the goaltenders, as well as defensemen Tanner Molendyk and Andrew Gibson, plus Wiesblatt up front. 

“We really watched the guys that were second-year players a lot, because…we had a lot of those guys last year,” Taylor said. “You’re looking to see, did they listen? Did they put the work in? … I thought [Gibson] had a good game, I thought [Molendyk] looked more dynamic, [O’Hara], I thought he was one of our better players, [Oasiz] was buzzing - those guys you want to see take a step in their second year, and they looked really good. And then some of our first-year guys did a good job… You’re just excited to watch and see what happens.”

The second and final outing for the Preds comes in less than 24 hours against Tampa Bay’s top rookies, and Nashville will not only look for another win, but some additional fine tuning before heading back home. 

“We'll watch the tape, and we’re not going to chew it up too bad, but we're going to look for certain things that we're trying to support the Nashville staff and their implementation,” Taylor said. “We’re trying to see some different things that we're adjusting to, and so we'll focus on those for the players. We just want to see the same effort out of the guys, a little more detail, and maybe an opportunity to be a little more dynamic at times.”

Notes:

O’Hara, Gibson and Wiesblatt served as alternate captains for the Preds on Sunday. 

The Predators will finish their time at the 2026 Prospect Showcase when they face the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday afternoon for a 1 p.m. CT puck drop.