PRESEASON GAME DAY: Hurricanes vs. Preds, October 4

The 2025 preseason finale has arrived for the Nashville Predators, and they’ll host the Carolina Hurricanes this afternoon for a 3 p.m. CT puck drop at Bridgestone Arena to conclude the exhibition slate.

The Preds will utilize today’s contest as one final chance to evaluate their lineup with a final roster required to be set on Monday afternoon ahead of the start of the 2025-26 NHL season.

Nashville got closer to that final number of 23 players on Friday afternoon when they assigned forward Zach L’Heureux and defenseman Tanner Molendyk to Milwaukee (AHL).

Now, the Predators will work to make those last determinations, including on forward Brady Martin, Nashville’s first pick (5th overall) in the 2025 NHL Draft.

“Well, I want to see us continue and improve here - keep building,” Preds Head Coach Andrew Brunette said following Friday’s practice. “It's going to be a really big challenge. Obviously, we know how Carolina plays, and it’ll be a really good test for us. I thought we had a really good three days of practice here, and I’m excited to see what we bring [today].”

“It’s a big game for us, just to get into everything,” Preds Captain Roman Josi said. “We’ve had camp for two-and-a-half weeks and worked on a lot of things. So, that last one is always kind of where you want to put it together. It's your last test. We're excited for it, and everything we worked on, it’ll be a good test [today].”

The Preds have shown relatively consistent forward lines and defensive pairs throughout the week, including Martin with Filip Forsberg and Ryan O’Reilly. The trio of Erik Haula, Jonathan Marchessault and Michael Bunting, which has been together since the beginning of camp, remains intact, and Steven Stamkos continues to see time with Fedor Svechkov and Joakim Kemell.

Tyson Jost, who was claimed on waivers from Carolina on Wednesday, practiced in Nashville over the last two days and rotated in and out of line rushes, while Michael McCarron, Cole Smith and Ozzy Wiesblatt saw time together as well. Forward Matthew Wood did not practice this week and is week-to-week with a lower-body injury.

Defenseman Nic Hague remains out with an upper-body injury, so Adam Wilsby has continued to skate with Josi in Hague’s absence. Brady Skjei has been paired with Nick Perbix since the start of camp, while Justin Barron, Spencer Stastney and Nick Blankenburg round out the backend.

Prior to this afternoon’s game, the annual PredsFest presented by Ticketmaster will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. CT at Walk of Fame Park across from Bridgestone Arena. Click here for more details and to claim your free ticket.

Today’s game will be streamed on NashvillePredators.com. Fans may also listen to the exhibition match on ESPN 102.5 The Game and the Preds Radio Network with Pete Weber and Jay More on the call. Tickets for the game are also available - click here to purchase.

Click here for today's Nashville roster.