The Nashville Predators have been eliminated from the NHL playoffs after a 3-2 loss to the San Jose Sharks and the Los Angeles Kings' 5-3 victory over the Seattle Kraken. With 86 points, the Predators can finish the season with a maximum of 88 points.
Predators eliminated from NHL playoffs after loss to Sharks, Kings win over Kraken
The Nashville Predators' push for the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs is officially over.
After losing 3-2 to the San Jose Sharks on April 13, then with the Los Angeles Kings beating the Seattle Kraken 5-3 on the same day, the Predators have been eliminated from playoff contention.
Nashville (38-33-10, 86 points) can finish with no more than 88 points this season. The Kings how have 89 points and can finish no lower than the second wild card in the Western Conference.
Nashville Predators left wing Reid Schaefer (49) skates with the puck past San Jose Sharks center Macklin Celebrini (71) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
Nashville Predators center Tyson Jost (17) moves the puck past San Jose Sharks center Zack Ostapchuk (63) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
Nashville Predators left wing Reid Schaefer (49) battles for the puck with San Jose Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro (38) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
Nashville Predators defenseman Nick Perbix (48) sets up to pass the puck against the San Jose Sharks during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
Nashville Predators right wing Matthew Wood (71) reaches for the puck during the first period against the San Jose Sharks at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
Nashville Predators left wing Filip Forsberg (9) battles San Jose Sharks defenseman Dmitry Orlov (9) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
Nashville Predators center Fedor Svechkov (40) collides with San Jose Sharks defenseman Vincent Desharnais (5) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
A catfish is removed from the ice before a game between the Nashville Predators and the San Jose Sharks at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
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Nashville Predators left wing Reid Schaefer (49) skates with the puck past San Jose Sharks center Macklin Celebrini (71) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
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Nashville Predators left wing Reid Schaefer (49) skates with the puck past San Jose Sharks center Macklin Celebrini (71) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
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Nashville Predators center Tyson Jost (17) moves the puck past San Jose Sharks center Zack Ostapchuk (63) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
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Nashville Predators left wing Reid Schaefer (49) battles for the puck with San Jose Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro (38) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
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Nashville Predators defenseman Nick Perbix (48) sets up to pass the puck against the San Jose Sharks during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
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Nashville Predators right wing Matthew Wood (71) reaches for the puck during the first period against the San Jose Sharks at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
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Nashville Predators left wing Filip Forsberg (9) battles San Jose Sharks defenseman Dmitry Orlov (9) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
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Nashville Predators center Fedor Svechkov (40) collides with San Jose Sharks defenseman Vincent Desharnais (5) during the first period at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
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A catfish is removed from the ice before a game between the Nashville Predators and the San Jose Sharks at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., Monday, April 13, 2026.
Elimination comes after a strong late push by the Predators, who battled with multiple teams for the final two wild-card spots the last month of the season. After a 6-3 win over the Sharks on April 4, the Predators held the second wild card briefly, but then lost 3-2 in a shootout to the Kings on April 6. That gave the Kings the upper hand in the playoff race.
Though it's now over, it was quite a push by the Predators to come close to the playoffs. On Nov. 24, they were in last place in the NHL and had no reasonable path to get back in the race. Then they went 32-20-6 their next 58 games, staying alive up until game No. 81.
Now the Predators' offseason begins with some important decisions to make. First, they must hire their next general manager to replace Barry Trotz, who announced his retirement on Feb. 2. From there, they will decide how to proceed with the rest of the front office and the coaching staff, plus decide whether they want to move on from any of their expensive veteran players.
GM SEARCH: Nashville Predators GM search, latest rumors, top candidates, what to know
Majority owner Bill Haslam set late June as a target start date for the new GM hire, but ideally he'd have the position filled by sometime in May. The NHL scouting combine runs May 31 to June 6, with the NHL draft June 26-27.
Alex Daugherty is the Predators beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Alex at jdaugherty@gannett.com. Follow Alex on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @alexdaugherty1. Also check out our Predators exclusive Instagram page @tennessean_preds.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Predators eliminated from NHL playoffs after loss to Sharks
The Predators were eliminated after losing 3-2 to the San Jose Sharks and the Kings winning against the Kraken, which secured the Kings' playoff position.
The Nashville Predators currently have 86 points and can finish the season with a maximum of 88 points.
The San Jose Sharks won the game against the Predators, which contributed to their elimination from playoff contention.
The Los Angeles Kings now have 89 points and are secured in the second wild card position in the Western Conference.
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