The Nashville Predators have placed Mark Jankowski on waivers, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Jankowski cleared at the beginning of the season but would need to again before being assigned to the minor leagues.
The 28-year-old forward was scratched for yesterday’s game against the Minnesota Wild and hasn’t been in the lineup for a week now, as the team leans on younger options in the bottom six. If the club wanted to add another player to the roster, they need to send someone down, as they are currently carrying the limit of 23. Jankowski seems a reasonable bet to clear, again, given his lack of production the last several years, so he is likely headed back to the Milwaukee Admirals.
With just seven points this season, the 2012 first-round pick seems ages away from the 32-point campaign he recorded in 2018-19 with the Calgary Flames.The big-bodied forward hasn’t been able to establish himself as much of a contributor ever since, racking up just 30 total points in the four years since.
Nashville is an interesting team to watch at deadline time, given their struggles this season, aging veterans on big contracts, and limited cap space moving forward. At some point they will likely have to dismantle some of the core they have built. Whether that comes in the next two weeks, or in the summer, remains to be seen. Jankowski getting waived over some of the other waiver-exempt options might be the first sign that they are ready to transition to a younger group on a regular basis.