Nashville Designates Defenseman to Milwaukee After Season Opener

Ryan Ufko made the Predators' opening night roster, but will head to the AHL after one game.

Oct 1, 2026; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Nashville Predators defenseman Ryan Ufko (12) skates with the puck against the Minnesota Wild during the first period at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

NASHVILLE — The Nashville Predators have designated defenseman Ryan Ufko to the Milwaukee Admirals in the AHL. Ufko played the season opener for the Nashville Predators after making the initial roster on Monday, but now heads to the AHL to continue developing.

Ufko played 52 games for the Admirals last season, scoring 11 goals and 44 points. He's played 133 games with the Admirals over the last three years, scoring 20 goals and 80 points since the Predators drafted him 115th in the 2021 NHL Draft.

"Yeah, really exciting," Ufko said after making the roster. "It's what everyone wants. I feel really excited for that. I was really happy yesterday. I thought I had a good camp and I'm really looking forward to getting the season going."

back in our Uffy Era 🫡

the @PredsNHL have assigned defenseman Ryan Ufko to us! pic.twitter.com/psn4wpVBH5

— Milwaukee Admirals (@mkeadmirals) October 2, 2026

The Predators are now down to eight defensemen on the roster after the assignment as Nashville looks to sort out the blue line pairings. Head coach Andrew Brunette called it a work in progress ahead of the season opener and the Predators healthy scratched Ilya Lyubushkin, Jack Ahcan and William Trudeau.

"Probably not great," Andrew Brunette said of his feel for the defensive pairs before the season opener. "I think there was an open competition for some spots. I don't think anybody really grabbed it all the way through the whole d-pair. So we've got to push and replace a little bit here through that. We're hoping it sticks and there's a reason we have nine defensemen. So I think there's some urgency on that back end to get their game up to par right now."

Nashville plays the Dallas Stars at home on Saturday night, offering management an opportunity to see Lyubushkin, Ahcan or Trudeau after Ufko's designation to the AHL.

Brunette said the Predators defense is still en flux after designating Ufko to Milwaukee and that the 23-year-old defenseman doesn't have a timeline for a return to the Predators roster, but instead his performance in the AHL will dictate his future.

Nashville Predators Current Roster

Forwards

9, Filip Forsberg
14, Alexander Kerfoot
18, Jack Drury
21, Nils Hoglander
22, Mavrik Bourque
49, Reid Schaefer
71, Matthew Wood
79, Ross Colton
81, Jonathan Marchessault
84, Adam Edstrom
90, Ryan O'Reilly
91, Steven Stamkos

Defensemen

2, Adam Wilsby
41, Nicolas Hague
46, Ilya Lyubushkin
47, Jack Ahcan
48, Nick Perbix
59, Roman Josi
76, Brady Skjei
85, William Trudeau

Goaltenders

29, Justus Annunen
74, Juuse Saros

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