Nashville Predators PK Subban Stars in Preseason Debut

The Nashville Predators put on a show in front of their home crowd Saturday night- as did their new superstar.

The Nashville Predators earned a 4-3 preseason victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning last night, as we move ever closer to the start of regular season hockey.

The results seemed specifically determined to foreshadow answers to some of the questions that have been swirling around Preds hockey during the offseason.

None of which could be considered a bigger question than how the new superstar defenseman, P.K. Subban, would fit into the Nashville Predators roster. And the answer? Superbly.

Subban notched two points, one goal and one assist, in 22:18 ice time skating on the top defensive pairing with Mattias Ekholm. The goal was one of three Nashville scores that came on the powerplay- indicating that yes, the puck-moving star may be just what the doctor ordered to fix up that man-advantage.

P.K. Subban’s first goal as a Nashville Predator #Preds: pic.twitter.com/YBEJJ2CM61

— Mark Harris (@MCHisTweeting) October 2, 2016

Oh, and Mike Fisher got in on the question-answering party. He wore the Captain’s “C” like a badge of honor as he opened up the scoring for the Nashville Predators, earning a slick goal in the closing moments of the first period to lock the game at 1-1. That looks like leadership to me.

Mike Fisher has his first as NSH team captain. Worked the give-and-go with Plymouth Whalers alum James Neal. #Preds #TBLightning pic.twitter.com/n0Cfl7tq3r

— Stefan Kubus (@StefanKubus) October 2, 2016

James Neal took a break from sniping top-shelfers to make some sick feeds with two primary assists- with one serving to set up a surprising game-winner by grinder Cody Bass.

Marek Mazanec got the start in goal across from the Lightning’s full-time starter Ben Bishop and looked, accurately so, like a backup goaltender playing in some of his first NHL action. He stopped 23 of 26 shots for a .885 save percentage, but it was enough to best Bishop’s 22 saves on an equal number of attempts.

It’s a great thing to see the Nashville Predators as a fitting home for an elite skill like P.K. Subban- and even a better sign when the scorers are scoring. With Roman Josi, Ryan Ellis, and Pekka Rinne still not participating in preseason action, the arrow only points up.