Predators hoping to sign Jimmy Vesey, believe he can help now
The NHL trade deadline has come and gone and yet the Nashville Predators still hope to add a scorer with the potential of playing on a line with Ryan Johansen and James Neal.
The Predators want to sign Harvard standout Jimmy Vesey (pronounced VEE-ZEE) as soon as his college season ends.
Nashville general manager David Poile recently flew to Massachusetts to meet with Vesey, 22, and explained that he can be an important player to Nashville’s future. The Predators were quiet at the deadline, in part, because they wanted to have a spot available for the winger.
Under the terms of a collective bargaining agreement, Vesey can become an unrestricted later this summer if he doesn’t sign with the Predators, who drafted him 66th overall in 2012.
This is the same CBA clause that allowed Columbus Blue Jackets 2011 draft pick Mike Reilly, a University of Minnesota player, to reject their contract offer to sign with the Minnesota Wild last summer.
The stakes are high because many believe Vesey can contribute immediately in the NHL. Vesey has 21 goals and 41 points in 28 games. He played against NHL competition last spring (registering three assists) when he helped USA win a bronze medal at the world championships.
“Jimmy is strong on the puck and has a good net presence,” said Jim Johannson, who manages all of USA’s national teams. “He skates better with the puck and can hold his edge when driving the net. If he gets position on you, he is strong and has hands to make plays in traffic and when he is being checked.”
Johannson views him as an instinctual goal scorer. “He gets chances with how he plays,” Johannson said. “If he goes to the NHL this year, he will get better each game.”
One advantage the Predators have is that they are the only team that can offer Vesey the chance to play this season, which would burn one season off his entry level contract. The Predators hold his rights until after the season.
Plus, the Predators hold a comfortable lead for the first wild card spot, meaning Vesey would have a taste of the postseason.
Although it’s impossible to know how lines will shake out, there's at least opportunity for Vesey to play on a scoring line in Nashville.
Even though Vesey has given no indication that he will test free agency, Nashville fans will still feel uneasy until he is signed. Vesey’s father Jim is a scout for the Toronto Maple Leafs and his brother Nolan was drafted by Toronto.
The Predators tried to sign him last year, but Vesey said he wanted to finish school.
Harvard is expected to make the NCAA tournament, which would mean the earliest Vesey could sign would be after the March 25 weekend.