Ahead of tonight’s game against Buffalo, the Nashville Predators announced that Ozzy Wiesblatt has been activated off injured reserve. The forward had missed the team’s last 21 games due to an upper-body injury. As they reassigned Reid Schaefer to AHL Milwaukee earlier today, no corresponding transaction is required.
A first round selection of San Jose in 2020 (31st overall), Wiesblatt returns to the lineup with the Predators unexpectedly back into the playoff hunt, having found their game in the last month. With it becoming apparent that his offensive upside was not panning out with the San Jose Barracuda, Wiesblatt was loaned to the Predators’ affiliate in Milwaukee, where he caught their attention, and was subsequently traded to Nashville in exchange for Egor Afanaseyev in June 2024.
After his best season as a pro in 2024-25, where he recorded 40 points in 64 AHL contests, Wiesblatt broke through with the Predators. Since then, he’s brought energy to the team’s fourth line, a nice fit alongside tall grinders Cole Smith and Michael McCarron. Wiesblatt was actually injured by his own center in McCarron, as they collided against Florida on December 4, costing him action for the last month and a half.
Before going down, Wiesblatt notched four points in 24 games, output actually surpassed by Schaefer in his absence, but the smaller winger offers more speed and skill, while Schaefer goes back down for now.
Signed through next season, the 23-year-old could be a mainstay on the Preds’ bottom six for years to come. Despite their success without him, the Alberta native is back into the lineup tonight as the Predators continue to push for Wild Card territory.