The Nashville Predators' preseason game against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sept. 22 turned into the Matthew Wood show.
Wood scored two goals late in the third period, erasing a two-goal deficit and setting up an eventual 3-2 overtime win at Bridgestone Arena. Felix Nilsson, who signed a three-year, entry-level contract with Nashville in May, scored the overtime winner, his first of the preseason.
With Nashville down two goals early in the second period, it was Wood's line with Filip Forsberg and Nils Hoglander that dragged the Predators back into the game.
"It was pretty evident, especially that second and third period, (Wood and Forsberg) controlled and dictated the game here for us tonight," Predators coach Andrew Brunette said.
With the Predators
skating only about half of their expected lineup for the season opener, Wood and Forsberg carried the offense. According to Natural Stat Trick, they combined for 23 shot attempts and 11 shots on goal, scoring twice.
LET HIM COOK pic.twitter.com/5fR0i3vKtR
— Nashville Predators (@PredsNHL) September 23, 2026
“It might have taking me a little bit to get into it, but I felt a little more comfortable as the game went on," Wood said. "(Forsberg) and (Hoglander) are really great players to play with.”
Matthew Wood, Filip Forsberg's chemistry gives Predators promise
Wood will enter this season paired with Forsberg thanks to chemistry that emerged late last season.
“I thought they built off of last year," Brunette said. "Down the stretch when they played together, I thought they were really good together. They feed off each other, they're really good with their size and puck protection abilities, playing in those small area games."
Wood and Forsberg played 279 minutes at 5-on-5 together last season, but most of that came late in the season when Wood was forced to play center out of necessity. Though new general manager Chris MacFarland added four centers to the roster, Wood should start as the second line center.
Here’s Wood’s second goal. Watch his path through the NZ (and the lead pass by Ahcan 👀) to set up that angle.
— Alex Daugherty (@AlexDaugherty1) September 23, 2026
Turns that shoulder at the perfect moment to create that forehand chance. Love it. pic.twitter.com/aPLSxiCBZ4
That's a great sign for Nashville's future up the middle.
Wood, who scored 17 goals and 13 assists in 71 games last season, is a crucial component to the Predators' next era. Nashville's prospect pool is heavy with wingers like Egor Surin, Teddy Stiga, Ryker Lee, and Wyatt Cullen, but the center situation is dire. Outside of Wood and first-round pick Brady Martin, there's not much.
But against the Lightning, Wood looked like a bonafide top-six center. His work up the middle to receive passes in traffic, bulldoze paths through the defense, and get shots off quickly, he looked like a player ready to take that next step.
"Those guys, if they get those chances, that’s a positive sign, usually they’ll score," Brunette said of Wood.
Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at jdaugherty@gannett.com, follow him on X at @alexdaugherty1 or check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Matthew Wood dazzles in third period, Nashville Predators beat Tampa in preseason
