Before their final preseason game against the Carolina Hurricanes, the Nashville Predators made a surprising transaction that could affect next week's opening night roster.
On Sept. 26, the Predators claimed defenseman Willliam Trudeau off waivers from the New York Rangers and waived defenseman Justin Barron.
Trudeau, 23, is a left-handed player who signed a one-year contract with the Rangers during the summer. Selected in the fourth round of the 2021 NHL Draft by Montreal, Trudeau has played in 260 AHL games for Laval Rocket in four seasons (2022-26) before signing with the Rangers.
Trudeau is a 6-foot-1, 2025 pounder who skates well, but has yet to make his NHL debut. He might get that chance with the Predators, though he's not expected to have
a starting role immediately. By claiming him, the Predators take on his $850,000 salary for the 2026-27 season.
The more significant move is waiving Barron, who just signed a $1.575 million, one-year contract with Nashville in July. The 24-year-old played 52 games last season, recording nine assists, and was expected to be the team's seventh defenseman heading into the season.
Now Barron will go to another NHL team if he's claimed off waivers by Sept. 27. If he goes unclaimed, he will report to the AHL Milwaukee Admirals.
The Predators acquired Barron from the Montreal Canadiens in December 2024 in exchange for defenseman Alex Carrier. Since then, Barron has played in 97 games for the Predators, scoring five goals and 16 assists, and Carrier has played in 124 games for the Canadiens, with nine goals and 31 assists.
This move suggests the Predators aim to start the season with eight defensemen. Also, by swapping the right-handed Barron for the left-handed Trudeau, coach Andrew Brunette has more options when setting the lineup.
Here's the expected defensive unit for opening night against the Minnesota Wild on Oct. 1 at Bridgestone Arena:
Brady Skjei - Roman Josi
Nicolas Hague - Ryan Ufko
Adam Wilsby - Ilya Lyubushkin
Extra: Nick Perbix, William Trudeau
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: Nashville Predators waive defenseman Justin Barron, add William Trudeau
