What the Predators Do Next After Trading Luke Evangelista to New Jersey
The Nashville Predators rocked the hockey world by trading up-and-coming forward Luke Evangelista to the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night. Evangelista had become a fan favorite in his four seasons on Broadway and, at just 24 years old, appeared poised to be a key piece in the Predators' resurgence under new general manager Chris MacFarland. Evangelista was coming off a 12-goal and career-high 56-point season, and MacFarland opted to flip him for two early draft picks instead of signing him long-term in Nashville.
The New Jersey Devils gave the Predators a 2028 first-round draft pick and a 2028 second-round draft pick. The first-round pick was originally from the Colorado Avalanche, but was flipped to Calgary in their trade for Nazem Kadri. The Flames used it to acquire Simon Nemec and Maxim Tsyplakov from the Devils, and now it's changed hands again as the key part of the Evangelista trade.
MacFarland spent time with the media after the trade, giving insight into why the organization parted ways with one of its best young players a few weeks before the Predators open training camp and who Nashville expects to fill Evangelista's skates.
"We felt, with the depth of the winger market and the depth of our winger prospects, we feel we're very forward heavy, and we've got a lot of good, young wingers that are going to wear our colors over the next few years," MacFarland said. "And one of, I think, the challenges that we ran into this summer, and in trying to improve other positional silos, was we just didn't have the right mix of darts to throw, and I think that that was certainly a part of the rationale. We think Luke is a good player, he's a proven player, but we're very happy with the return."
The Predators Promising Prospects
MacFarland surprised the hockey world by flipping Evangelista for draft capital after spending the summer retooling the Predators' roster with younger players. The general manager pointed at needing assets to continue the rebuild, as well as young players in the Predators system as the motivating reasons to make the move.
"It's not so much the story of Luke Evangelista. We have a lot of right-handed shots, we've got [Filip] Forsberg and [Steven] Stamkos, [Jonathan Marchessault] Marche, Matthew Wood and [Mavrik] Bourque," MacFarland said. "I think the pieces for us as a management group, it's that next layer that we expect at some point to filter into that top nine — whether that's talking about Brady Martin or Egor Surin, or guys [like] Cole O'Hara, guys who've been in the Preds' reserve list for a few years and who've been developed. That next layer of guys like Surin, who's going to hopefully get over here at the end of the year and be able to add to the group. We felt pretty strong that our winger position could absorb this, and we're excited about what the potential capital might be able to do for the lineup at some point."
Brady Martin
Martin was selected fifth overall in the 2025 NHL draft, the highest Predators' pick since the organization chose Seth Jones fourth overall in 2013. He made his NHL debut in October of 2025, but only played in three games before returning to the OHL to play for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. He's most likely to slotted to play for Nashville's AHL affiliate the Milwaukee Admirals, but a big training camp could see him earn a place on the NHL roster after the vacancy.
Egor Surin
Egor Surin is entering his final season under contract with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in the Russian KHL, but he's expected to come stateside after the season. Surin is one of Nashville's most promising prospects and has led Lokomotiv Yaroslavl to two KHL championships and earning KHL All-Star honors in 2025-26.
Cole O'Hara
O'Hara is a Canadian who spent most of his early years in the NCAA playing for UMass. Nashville drafted him in 2022, and he's spent two seasons in Milwaukee in the AHL before making his NHL debut in the final game of the regular season last year. He assisted Steven Stamkos in a loss to the Anaheim Ducks and is now in prime position to take advantage of Evangelista's absence.
The Picks as Trade Currency
MacFarland noted the franchise's lack of assets made some moves more difficult in his first summer on Broadway. The trade now gives Nashville eight picks in the first two rounds across the 2027 and 2028 NHL Draft, offering MacFarland more flexibility. That flexibility leads to natural questions about future trades, but while the general manager said nothing was imminent, he also didn't rule out the picks being used in another trade down the line.
"What I do think [this trade has] given us is [additional pieces to offer] that we didn't have yesterday, that we can potentially now be involved in, whether it's next week, two months from now, or three months from now," MacFarland said. "Our goal is to try and build something that can have sustained success, and right now, we think while the roster is improved, it's still got a long way to go in certain silos for us to get it going to where we want it to get to. So, I think this arms us with the draft-pick darts high in the draft that are going to be potentially attractive in a lot of different ways. But when that will be, we don't know."
Nashville's Draft Trade Capital
- 2027 -1st Round
- 2027 - 2nd Round
- 2027 - 2nd Round (Via Las Vegas)
- 2028 - 1st Round
- 2028 - 1st Round (Via New Jersey, Calgary and Colorado)
- 2028 - 2nd Round
- 2028 - 2nd Round (Via New Jersey)
The Picks in the 2028 Draft
If MacFarland doesn't flip the newly acquired picks in a future trade, but instead utilizes them in the 2028 NHL Draft, he can still find quality pieces. The former Colorado executive built the Avalanche into a perennial contender through disciplined asset management and quality drafting. He put his NHL Draft savvy on display in Nashville by choosing flashy prospect Wyatt Cullen with the 10th overall pick, then trading back into the first round to take defender Tommy Bleyl.
The picks may fall later in the first and second rounds, but the assest give MacFarland flexibility to improve the Predators roster in a variety of ways.
Bottom Line
Trading Evagelista away sends a clear signal that MacFarland believes in the prospects the Predators have stockpiled, but understands that the organization needs more assets to properly rebuild a roster. Evangelista is now a New Jersey Devil and the Predators have a vacancy to fill. MacFarland has a number of exciting prospects in the Predators system, but the general manager finished his press confernce with an unmistakable message. Production on the ice is all the matters in the Predators future.
“For us, the real information is going to come when we start playing real games for two points in late September and October, and the players will have to get it done on the ice,” MacFarland said. “That’s going to be the telltale for us, but we’re excited about some of the players we added. I know the group is excited, and obviously anytime you take a player off the roster…it’s going to excite some guys, too, that are now looking at it like there's a spot to be won, and that sort of thing. So, as a management group, we feel good. But, I think if you asked every other team in the league moving into camp, you kind of always feel good, and your expectations are just that - expectations. You have to get it done on the ice.”
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Joe Gaither covers the Nashville Predators for Nashville Predators On SI. He also oversees videos and podcasts for Alabama Crimson Tide On SI/BamaCentral. He began his sports media career in radio in 2019, working for three years in Tuscaloosa covering the University of Alabama and other local high school sports. In 2023 he joined BamaCentral to cover a variety of Crimson Tide sports and recruiting, in addition to hosting the “Joe Gaither Show” podcast. His work has also appeared on the Boston College, Miami, Missouri and Vanderbilt college On SI sites.