The 36-year-old from Markham, Ontario, is putting up numbers he has not posted in years. Stamkos has already potted four goals with six assists for 10 points in just eight games. The last time he scored more points in that span was five years ago, when he managed to get 12 points in October 2021. He finished that year with 106 points, the only season in his career in which Stamkos exceeded the 100-point mark.
Stamkos is in year three of four of his $32 million deal, making him the second highest paid forward behind longtime franchise star Filip Forsberg. Out of the gate, it did not look like the signing of an aging star was going to work out, as he struggled by his standards, managing just 53 points across all 82 games across the 2024-25 year, the lowest total of his career outside of injury-plagued seasons.
The second year of his contract looked to be the same, as he only had two points in October, but everything changed after that. The goals started pouring in for the veteran, who ended the year with an astonishing 42, the most since the previously mentioned 2021-22 season.
This year is different, however, as Stamkos is scoring on a much more consistent basis to start the season and contributing evenly between the power play and five-on-five. Five of his 10 points have come on the man advantage, proving himself to be an essential part of the group. Of Nashville’s eight total power-play goals, Stamkos has not been listed on the scoresheet just three times.
The whole first line for Nashville is thriving right now, with Stamkos leading the way in the points column with 10, while Forsberg is right behind him with nine and their center, Ryan O’Reilly, is right there with seven as well. Their line accounts for three of the top four scorers for the Predators, with the defensive captain Roman Josi being the outlier, sitting second with nine points. This group is also carrying the minutes load for the team, with O’Reilly and Forsberg both averaging above 21 minutes per game, while Stamkos is at 19:25.
With 75 games still left to play, the numbers will obviously fluctuate, but as it stands right now, the 19:25 would be the most Stamkos has averaged in a season since 2015-16.
Stamkos and the Predators will try to keep their scoring up as they head to Boston to battle the Bruins on Thursday night.
-lead photo c/o Nashville Predators-