After an emotional return to Tampa, Stamkos battled through it in the midst of his slow start in his Preds tenure.

How Patient Should Nashville Predators Fans Be with Steven Stamkos?

After an emotional return to Tampa Bay, Steven Stamkos faced challenges amid a slow start to his career with the Nashville Predators.

Stamkos’s much-anticipated return to Tampa as a member of the Predators resulted in an exciting game that ended with the Lightning clinching an overtime victory. For Stamkos, wearing the opposing team’s jersey must have felt surreal, especially given that he was experiencing one of the slowest offensive starts of his NHL career. As a spectator, I noticed that the vast majority of Tampa fans continued to support their former star, cheering for him even while he assisted on both of Nashville’s goals. The crowd erupted when Stamkos was announced as a contributor to those goals.

Going into the game, Stamkos had managed just one goal, and I couldn’t help but notice the unsettling parallels with Matt Duchene, as the fanbase seems ready to criticize Stamkos just a few months after celebrating his signing like a Stanley Cup victory. While Stamkos has been underwhelming, let’s all take a breath.

Duchene began his Predators career with strong performances but later cooled off, finishing his first season with just 42 points in 66 games, leading fans to express frustration. In contrast, Stamkos has had a rough start, and while it’s reasonable for fans to be questioning his performance, the expectations are incredibly high for a future Hall of Famer.

Stamkos received a tribute early in the game, which likely made it tough for him to concentrate initially. He’s only human, and fans should consider this when evaluating his performance.

As the game progressed, Nashville found themselves at risk of being overwhelmed at Amalie Arena but managed to rally back to tie the game at 2-2, thanks to goals from Ryan O’Reilly and Gus Nyquist. Stamkos’s primary assist to Nyquist was a well-timed play that illustrated his potential; he just needs to allow the game to come to him naturally.

Another encouraging sign for Stamkos is his surprisingly low shooting percentage at this stage, currently sitting at just 3.3% on 30 shots. He ranks third on the team in shots, trailing only Roman Josi and Filip Forsberg, which indicates he is still actively contributing. If he were completely absent from the offense, I would be more concerned about his fit on the team, but that’s not the case—he’s also attempted 64 shots.

Historically, Stamkos has a career shooting percentage of 16.7%, so I believe we can expect his current percentage to improve as the season progresses, especially as he acclimates to his new team and capitalizes on his scoring opportunities.

Regarding how patient Predators fans should be with Stamkos’s underwhelming start, they are justified in expressing their dissatisfaction. He has appeared somewhat out of sync, reflecting the struggles of an aging player adjusting to a new environment. However, this observation is not an excuse; it’s simply an acknowledgment of the current situation.

In summary, with only nine games into Stamkos’s tenure, I encourage fans to remain calm and allow time for things to unfold. It’s premature to label the signing a failure or to write off Stamkos based solely on these initial performances.

Reacting hastily would be a classic knee-jerk response. If the conversation remains the same halfway through the season, then we can critically assess what might be hindering Stamkos, a player of his caliber, from being effective on offense.

I believe that with this game behind him, Stamkos can shake off some pressure and look forward to contributing positively with the Predators. After all, he’s only human, and the emotional weight of the moment could have affected him. Now, with that behind him, it’s time for Nashville to go on a winning streak.