Smashville Scope: August 2

Simon Knak's selection by the Predators in the sixth round of the 2021 NHL Draft last week didn't come with the same hype as those taken in Round 1, but the 19-year-old forward still has a story worth telling.
Eligible to be picked during the 2020 installment of the Draft, Knak was instead passed over by each of the then 31 NHL clubs, further igniting his desire to improve and show he was good enough to be added to an organization's prospect pool.
This time around, Nashville turned out to be that franchise, and Knak's excitement was palpable as he discussed joining the Preds.

"It was a big disappointment last year that I wasn't getting drafted," Knak said shortly after the Predators called his name at pick No. 179. "The season wasn't that great, but I knew that I needed to make a step forward and needed to push myself even harder off the ice and on the ice, doing an extra shift to achieve my goal. Now, [I've been drafted], and now my next goal is to make the NHL as soon as possible, to play in Nashville and win the Stanley Cup with them."

A native of Zurich, Switzerland, Knak split the 2020-21 season between the WHL's Portland Winterhawks and the Swiss National League's HC Davos, appearing in a combined 49 games. He made his National League debut skating for Davos, where he posted eight points (3g-5a) in 25 appearances - and just happened to learn from one of the best to ever play the game.
"Playing with the men's team in Davos was insane," Knak said. "There, I had a great teammate, [Toronto forward] Joe Thornton, who was playing there, too. All the stuff I learned from there was pretty special, just all the routines they had and how you need to prepare for games and what you do after the games. I think that's a big lesson learned there."
Once leagues in North America were up and running again, Knak spent the remainder of the season with Portland and tallied 29 points (16g-13a), five shy of matching his career high of 34 (9g-25a) set in 2019-20 in 25 fewer games played. Plus, he had some skills to show off.
"Going to the WHL, [I just wanted to] prove the scouts wrong, that they made a big mistake last year that they were not drafting me," Knak said. "Now, I think I made it."
Predators North American Amateur Scout Glen Sanders was the one with eyes on Knak, and when the winger was still available in Round 6, Nashville pounced.
"We were pretty happy to get him, especially as late as we did," Sanders said. "He's a very strong power forward who drives the net. With all the culture-type things we've trying to do with this draft, we wanted someone who has character and will, and he has all that."

Knak has twice competed at the World Junior Championship for Switzerland, most recently in the 2021 version of the tournament, and he was named one of his country's top three players in the competition after captaining his squad and recording a goal in four contests.
Of course, the captain of the Predators also happens to be a Swiss native, and just like every young hockey player these days to come from the country, Knak considers Roman Josi an inspiration.
"He's a superstar in Nashville, and he's an even bigger superstar in Switzerland," Knak said of Josi. "Everybody knows him here in Switzerland… and when you talk about Roman Josi, everybody is saying what a nice guy he is and how he improved his game, first starting by playing in Switzerland, then moving over to North America. He was one of the first guys who really made the big step and really showed all the NHL teams that Swiss guys can really compete in the NHL. He's the guy who every young player is looking up to, and for myself, it's a big honor to be in the same [organization] with him."
The odds are against a player drafted in the sixth round when it comes to cracking an NHL roster one day, but it's far from an impossibility. Besides, Knak has already proven others wrong once before the age of 20. Perhaps another breakthrough is on the horizon.
"I need to stick to my game plan, and I'm a big body guy, I'm pretty fast and that's exactly [how] I can help Nashville," Knak said. "I want to play as soon as possible in the NHL. That was my goal always when I was a small child, and I think I just need to work on the smaller details even closer, like on my shot, being more dangerous in front of the net, and for sure [my] compete level. That needs to make a new step up to compete in the NHL, because it's the best league in the world."

Preds Prospect Luke Prokop Receives Phone Call from Elton John:

Luke Prokop didn't recognize a European number that recently appeared on his phone, but he sure knew the voice on the other end.
Just one day after the Predators prospect made history by becoming the first active player signed by an NHL team to announce he is gay, Prokop fielded a call from legendary artist Elton John who wanted to speak to the 19-year-old.
"We just had a really good conversation,"
Prokop recently told NHL.com
. "He congratulated me, just asked me how the day was, how the support was, and then he thanked me for being brave and coming out. It was a really cool conversation."

Prokop, who was drafted by the Preds in the third round of the 2020 NHL Draft, made his announcement via his Twitter and Instagram pages on July 19, and the news spread all over the sporting world and beyond. Since then, the blueliner has received messages from near and far with people from all walks of life offering their support.
But of all those Prokop has heard from, fielding a call from a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer will likely be tough to top.
"It was really cool for someone to do that kind of really outside of the hockey world," Prokop said. "To see someone that big, that famous, who has a humongous impact on the LGBTQ+ community to reach out and phone me and thank me for being brave and coming out and being able to help kids going through what I went through and allowing them to have someone to look up to, in a sense. He thanked me for that.
"I don't think I'll ever truly understand how cool that was and how important that was that he called me."

Jeannot's Stats Make Him One of Top Preds Performers in First 15 NHL Games:

Just seven months ago, Tanner Jeannot was skating for Nashville's ECHL affiliate, the Florida Everblades, to begin the 2020-21 season. On Friday, the 24-year-old inked a two-year, $1.6 million contract with the Predators.
Not a bad ascent for an undrafted winger.
The Preds were quite pleased with Jeannot's body of work down the stretch as he helped Nashville to clinch a postseason berth, enough so that the organization protected the Oxbow, Saskatchewan, native in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft to ensure he would remain with the club.
Now, Jeannot will need to continue to prove he belongs in the lineup on a nightly basis, but some stats from his first 15 NHL games are worth mentioning when it comes to Predators franchise history.
With seven points (5g-2a) in those first 15 outings, Jeannot is tied for the seventh-best mark in the Nashville record book over that span. Former Preds Patric Hornqvist, Ryan Ellis, Seth Jones, Taylor Beck and Blake Geoffrion also tallied seven points in their first 15 NHL games as they began their careers in Nashville.

Jeannot's five goals in 15 games are good enough for fourth in the category, behind only Alexander Radulov (8), Craig Smith (7) and Geoffrion (6).
Thanks to the uniqueness of last season's shortened schedules across all leagues during the pandemic, Jeannot also owns the distinction of being just one of three players last season to skate in the ECHL, AHL and NHL in the same campaign. Teammate Cole Smith, who dressed for the Preds on Opening Night last January also attained the feat, as did Boston's Jack Ahcan.
Sure, 15 games are a small sample size, but Jeannot is in some decent company in Preds franchise history, and signs point to his effectiveness all over the ice only improving in the years to come.

Preds Prospect L'Heureux Scores Nifty Goal During Team Canada Summer Camp:

Just over one week after the Predators selected him at No. 27 overall in the 2021 NHL Draft, Zachary L'Heureux showed another flash of exactly why Nashville traded up to get him in Round 1.
The 18-year-old scored the game-winner for Team White midway through the third period of the intrasquad games at Canada's National Junior Team summer camp with a 2-1 win over Red on Sunday.
Check out the highlights below for a preview of what's to come in the future for the Predators.

Sign Up for Preds Blood Drive with the American Red Cross:

Preds fans helped to save more than 10,000 lives in 2020, and you can continue to raise that number in 2021.
The Nashville Predators have once again teamed up with the American Red Cross to host blood drives all over the region from Aug. 9-13. All donors who make an appointment online and donate blood will receive two tickets to the Predators home preseason game of their choice, either Oct. 2 against Tampa Bay or Oct. 9 versus Carolina.

To make an appointment visit www.redcrossblood.org
and enter sponsor code Preds19.

Predators Official Podcast:

The busiest week of the offseason is now complete, and guest co-host Willy Daunic joins Brooks Bratten to break it all down. Mikael Granlund and David Rittich are among those who sign with the Preds in free agency, Nashville selects Fedor Svechkov and Zachary L'Heureux in the first round of the 2021 NHL Draft and Predators newcomer Cody Glass joins the show as he arrives in the Music City.

Upcoming Bridgestone Arena Events:

Hockey will return to Bridgestone Arena this fall, but summer events are back at the home of the Preds.
Coming Soon:
Aug. 16: James Taylor and His All-Star Band with Very Special Guest Jackson Browne.
Click here for tickets
.
Aug. 18: 2021 Volunteer Jam: A Musical Salute to Charlie Daniels.
Click here for tickets
.
Aug. 21-22: PBR Ariat Music City Knockout.
Click here for tickets
.

Week in Review:

Predators Sign Tanner Jeannot to Two-Year, $1.6 Million Contract
SS&E, F&M Bank Announce Clarksville Event Center Named F&M Bank Arena
Poile, Preds Take Care of Priorities as Free Agency Opens
Predators Sign Mathieu Olivier to Two-Year, $1.5 Million Contract
SS&E, F&M Bank Announce Event Center Will be Named F&M Bank Arena
Predators Sign Matt Luff to One-Year, Two-Way Contract
Predators Sign David Rittich to One-Year, $1.25 Million Contract
Predators Sign Matt Tennyson to Two-Year, Two-Way Contract
Predators Sign Mikael Granlund to Four-Year, $20 Million Contract
Predators Sign Zachary L'Heureux to Three-Year, Entry-Level Contract
Predators Sign Michael McCarron to Two-Year, Two-Way Contract
Predators Sign Anthony Richard to One-Year, Two-Way Contract
NFT Releases Provide Preds Fans with Unique Collectables in Digital Space
Predators Extend Qualifying Offers to Eight Players
Preds Foundation to Host Peterson Golf Classic, Petey's Preds Party
Predators Sign Frederic Allard to One-Year, Two-Way Contract
Preds Complete Successful Draft by Adding Six Players to Prospect Pool
Predators Select Six Players in 2021 NHL Draft
Preds Thrilled to Select Two Top Players in First Round of 2021 NHL Draft
Preds Select Svechkov, L'Heureux in First Round of 2021 NHL Draft