What will the Nashville Predators do with Yaroslav Askarov?

Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

The Nashville Predators are a team to watch this offseason. General manager Barry Trotz has been busy working on a contract extension for goaltender Juuse Saros, which has many wondering what the team will do with top goaltending prospect Yaroslav Askarov.

Reports surfaced on Thursday that the Predators and Saros were closing in on an eight-year contract extension, meanwhile Askarov, 22, was a first-round pick in 2020 and is developing into one of the best goaltending prospects in the league. Askarov has put up very impressive numbers throughout his two seasons at the American Hockey League level, and last season in two appearances with the Predators, recorded one win and a .943 save percentage.

On today’s Draft Day episode of Daily Faceoff Live, Tyler Yaremchuk and Frank Seravalli dove into what to expect out of the Predators:

Tyler Yaremchuk: I think this contract and the AAV behind it shows, one – tax free state, but also, Saros wanted to be a Pred.

Frank Seravalli: That part was clear, I think the tougher part, if you’re Nashville, determining does this make sense, given that we’ve invested significant first-round capital in Yaroslav Askarov. That’s where things really start to get interesting now for the Nashville Predators. There’s a new trade targets board coming today, Askarov will be on that board.

I think a lot of teams have now gotten the sense that the Preds are looking for a back up goalie to play under Saros. Askarov, the plan is to send him to AHL Milwaukee. If you’ve just signed Saros to an eight-year deal, there is zero point having a goalie of that pedigree sitting in the AHL. So, he becomes an immediate trade target and I’m really curious to see who tries to step up and land a player like that.

Askarov’s numbers have been pretty good in Milwaukee, so what do you do next?

Tyler Yaremchuk: Exactly, it does really become a prime trade chip for Barry Trotz to use.

For full coverage ahead of the 2024 NHL Draft and free agency, you can watch the full episode here: