As much as Jonathan Marchessault is looking forward with excitement to joining the retooled Nashville Predators, the one-time original member of the Vegas Golden Knights’ so-called “misfits” couldn’t help but feel let down by how his time ended in Las Vegas.
Marchessault, who once believed his NHL career would end with the Golden Knights, will have to be satisfied with his seven seasons in Vegas, where he blossomed into one of the league’s most consistent scoring threats and won the Stanley Cup in 2023.
“I talked to George and Kelly, and I was telling them I liked the whole situation, how it’s going and how I see the organization,” Marchessault said Wednesday, referring to Golden Knights president George McPhee and general manager Kelly McCrimmon.
“And they just didn’t believe in me for the remainder of my career, I guess, so it was a little disappointment,” he said, before adding he doesn’t bear any grudges. “Hopefully, it pays off for them in the long run, because I know they want to win right now. So it’s going to be intriguing to see, and only the future’s going to tell us who was right.”
After rejecting what he described “an intriguing concept” of a contract offer from the Golden Knights, Marchessault turned his attention elsewhere in free agency on Monday by signing a five-year, $27.5 million contract with Nashville.
The 33-year-old wing will start anew in Music City, where the free-spending Predators went all in by committing more than $100 million to sign him, forward Steven Stamkos, defenseman Brady Skjei and backup goalie Scott Wedgewood.
Marchessault said Nasvhille was among the top destinations he was considering, and his interest grew when he was informed the Tennessee team was targeting both him and the 34-year-old Stamkos, who has played only for the Lightning in his NHL career. From 2014 to 2016, his teammates included Marchessault.
“I called him and said, `Hey, are you signing in Nashville?′ He’s like, `Yeah,'” Marchessault said of a recent conversation with Stamkos. “I was like, `Oh, me too.’ So after that it was perfect.”
The pair bring Stanley Cup championship experience — Stamkos won with Tampa Bay in 2020 and 2021 and also reached the title series in 2015 and 2022 — and a veteran scoring presence to a team already featuring forwards Filip Forsberg, Gustav Nyquist and Ryan O’Reilly in front of standout defenseman Roman Josi and two-time NHL All-Star goalie Juuse Saros.
The roster also includes defenseman Luke Schenn, who signed with Nashville last summer but played for the Lightning during their back-to-back Stanley Cup seasons. Meanwhile, O’Reilly won the storied trophy with the St. Louis Blues in 2019.
Signed by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2012 as an undrafted free agent, Marchessault was left exposed by the Florida Panthers in the 2017 expansion draft despite a 30-goal season. Picked up by Vegas, he topped 20 goals in a season six times, including a career-best 42 in 2023-24, and was MVP of the playoffs during the Golden Knights’ run to the Stanley Cup last year.
“I’m a guy that came from pretty far, to be honest. So anything that I do now, it’s gravy,” Marchessault said before referring to his new Nashville teammates who have also won titles. “Steven, Ryan and Luke, they probably can tell you: When you taste winning a championship, it’s addictive. So I definitely want to do it again. And I think everybody has the same goal here.”