Is Nicolas Hague's Nashville debut imminent? The latest on the Predators' new defenseman
Good news is on the horizon for the Nashville Predators, who are stuck in a three-game losing streak: Reinforcements are on the way.
Defenseman Nicolas Hague, the team's biggest offseason acquisition, returned to practice on Oct. 20, a full participant on the ice at Bridgestone Arena. Hague, who was acquired in a trade with the Vegas Golden Knights, then signed a four-year, $22 million deal on July 1, is still on injured reserve due to an upper body injury, but that could be coming to an end soon.
Hague's injury was suffered in the Predators' first preseason game against the Florida Panthers on Sept. 21, and he was given an injury timeline of four to six weeks. Now that he's practicing after four weeks, his debut with Nashville (2-2-2, 6 points) seems imminent.
"I'm just kind of listening to (the Predators) and what their plan is for me, what they think is best," Hague said after practice. "As soon as I get the green light, I'll be back out there, the timeline is still fluid."
What Nicolas Hague can do to help Nashville Predators
Adding Hague and Nick Perbix over the summer was part of general manager Barry Trotz's plan to get bigger and younger on defense. Both were expected to play in the top four — Hague with Roman Josi, Perbix with Brady Skjei — while Adam Wilsby, Nick Blankenburg, Spencer Stastney and Justin Barron were expected to split duties on the bottom pair.
Bringing in Hague was an especially smart move by Trotz. In 364 games in six seasons with Vegas, Hague had 572 hits and 489 blocked shots, playing 17:33 minutes per night as a shutdown defenseman. Last year's Predators allowed 3.34 goals per game, fourth-worst in the league, so they needed a 6-foot-6, 245-pound defenseman like Hague to plug up the back end.
But then an injury delayed his arrival. That forced an immediate reshuffling on the back end, with Wilsby stepping into Hague's role. For Hague, it was a frustrating start to what was supposed to be an exciting new adventure.
"There's no good time to be hurt or anything, but this one's been a little bit different because of being the new guy," he said. "Being away from the team for a little bit to start the year . . . it's nice that I'm back (on the ice) with the team."
When ready, he is likely to play with Josi, moving Wilsby down the lineup. Here's what the Predators' ideal defensive lineup would look like:
Nicolas Hague, Roman Josi
Brady Skjei, Nick Perbix
Adam Wilsby, Justin Barron
On Oct. 20, Hague skated at practice as a "fourth pair" with Blankenburg, indicating he isn't quite ready to return to the lineup. But with a five-game home stretch coming up, beginning with the Anaheim Ducks on Oct. 21 (7 p.m. CT, FanDuel Sports Network), Hague could make his Predators debut at home.
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Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at[email protected]. Follow Alex on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @alexdaugherty1. Also check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Why Nicolas Hague's Nashville Predators debut seems imminent