The Nashville Predators continued to introduce a few new faces on Wednesday as defenseman Brady Skjei & Scott Wedgewood made their first appearances facing the media.
Skjei agreed to a seven-year deal worth $49 million on July 1 after five seasons with the Carolina Hurricanes. Wedgewood took a two-year deal worth $3 million after spending the last two years with the now-division rival Dallas Stars.
Skjei holds the longest contract among defensemen with the Predators & is coming clean off a six-year deal he signed while he was with the New York Rangers. The only other defensemen Nashville has signed longer than three years are Roman Josi & Alexandre Carrier.
On the other hand, It’s yet to be seen what the final position will be for Wedgewood as well since goaltender Yaroslav Askarov will be competing for the backup job at training camp.
Brady Skjei
Nashville signed one of the NHLs most productive defensemen in Skjei as they look to come out the gates swinging in October. Skjei has scored the fifth-most (31) goals among D-men in the last two regular seasons & has 85 points in the same window of time.
So, when looking for a new home Skjei knew this would be the place for him & his wife to settle when dreaming of their future.
“I always knew Nashville was at the top of the list,” Skjei said. “This is a team that has a chance to win in the near future & with the signings made on July 1 that just made it even more of a place to be.”
Now as one of the pillars, Skjei takes that as a huge responsibility & expects the best from himself as he establishes himself in the corps of Nashville’s defensemen. He looks down the depth chart & sees success for years to come.
“It was important to get the long-term deal, we wanted to feel a part of the city, team, & fanbase for years to come,” Skjei said. “I think I’m grateful to be here for that long & to try & be one of those pillars an organization can lean on. The seven years, we’ve been very honored & grateful the organization sees that in myself as a player & person.”
The 6-foot-3 defenseman has had a few conversations with head coach Andrew Brunette but mentioned how training camp will help decipher where his defined role with be once the puck drops in October.
“I’ve thought about [playing with Josi] & it would be a special guy to play with to try & get him the puck,” Skjei said.
Scott Wedgewood
After being at the bottom of the league throughout most of his NHL career goaltender Scott Wedgewood carved out an opportunity in Dallas & now he finds himself part of another contender on a new contract.
“To put the two years together that I did was to put me in a spot to earn a little bit of a raise & unfortunately we couldn’t make that work in Dallas,” Wedgewood said. “When the phones opened & Nashville was looking to add it was intriguing.”
Wedgewood understands his position with the team does need to be earned, just like his other stops along the way since he was with the New Jersey Devils.
“Nothing is set in stone, nothing has been guaranteed by any means,” Wedgewood said. “You gotta earn everything in this league & I’m the first person to know that. If you look at what has worked for the starter & the backup role you look for 25-30 games & take what you get. If you get a couple extra or less, it’s team first & I understand that.”
The 31-year-old goalie acknowledged that he’s part of the pillar for the Predators in the net & wants to continue to provide them with the chance to win every night.
There are 79 days until the 2024-25 season starts & the Nashville fans have already been clamoring to see the team with all of the new additions.
Follow Nick Kieser on Twitter/X: @KieserNick
Photos courtesy of Nashville Predators
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