The Nashville Predators are hoping that Paul Gaustad will help the team’s defensively and on the penalty kill after missing three games with an upper-body injury, the Tennessean reports.
“He’s a big body,” Predators coach Barry Trotz said. “He’s a very detailed guy and at 6-foot-5, he’s a guy who has some reach and a guy who has some strength.”
If any team appreciates what the large 30-year-old brings to the ice, it’s the Predators. They sent a first-round pick to Buffalo in exchange for Gaustad and a fourth-rounder during the 2012 trade deadline.
The center’s faceoff efficiency counts as one of his strong suits - he’s not a guy who piles up points - but that size definitely stands out to Trotz. He explained how having big players like Gaustad, Hal Gill and Pekka Rinne can improve a PK.
“All of a sudden you don’t see a lot of lanes,” Trotz said.
They’ll need all the help they can get shutting down a powerful Anaheim Ducks lineup on Saturday night, too.