Nashville Predators Scratching Gustav Nyquist For Trade Reasons

According to NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, the Nashville Predators are scratching forward Gustav Nyquist for their March 1 contest against the New York Islanders for trade-related reasons.

Hearing Gustav Nyquist will not play this afternoon for Nashville on Long Island.

Health protection for trade.
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) March 1, 2025

Friedman also reported that the Minnesota Wild are among the teams targeting Nyquist the most, but other clubs are in the mix.

Minnesota is one of the most aggressive pursuers, but there were others competing. We will see how things unfold https://t.co/v8z4vt2MyT
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) March 1, 2025

Nyquist, 35, is a pending unrestricted free agent, and the Predators are among the worst teams in the Western Conference. Due to this, it is not particularly surprising to see that the Predators are not playing the veteran winger to protect his health for a trade.

Nyquist has appeared in 57 games this season with the Predators, where he has nine goals, 21 points, and a minus-20 rating. This is after he scored 23 goals and set new career highs with 52 assists and 75 points in 81 games with the Predators this past season.

While Nyquist has struggled this season, he has the potential to be a good addition to a playoff club's roster. This is because he provides solid offense when playing at his best and has plenty of overall NHL experience. Thus, he could be a solid pickup for a team needing help in their middle six before the deadline passes.

In 841 career NHL games split between the Detroit Red Wings, San Jose Sharks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Minnesota Wild, and Predators, Nyquist has 207 goals, 317 assists, and 524 points.