What could only be described as the Predators’ “other trade” this month didn’t draw anywhere near as much attention as the deal that sent defenseman P.K. Subban to the New Jersey Devils.
Understandably so.
But the Predators’ acquisition of goalie Connor Ingram a couple of weeks ago merits a hard second look now that the Subban smoke is starting to clear.
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It’s not every day, after all, that an organization in search of a high-quality goaltending prospect finds one on the trade market in exchange for virtually nothing — a seventh-round draft pick in 2021.
That was the meager price the Preds paid the Tampa Bay Lightning for Ingram, a former third-round draft pick, a netminder chosen for the American Hockey League All-Star game last season and The Athletic’s 13th-ranked NHL goalie prospect as of last January.
The reason for the reduced cost was that Ingram and the Lightning were both intent on severing their relationship, the result of a head-butting situation last year between the two sides that couldn’t be reconciled.
But the bottom line for the Preds is that all of a sudden, they have a talented — and already professionally seasoned — 22-year-old goalie prospect on their hands. It’s reasonable to believe Ingram will be the third goalie on the organizational depth chart this season, trailing Pekka Rinne and Juuse Saros.
Should Ingram get re-signed beyond this season (he’ll be a restricted free agent next summer), he could factor more heavily into the Preds’ future plans, considering the 36-year-old Rinne presumably will — at some point in the not-too-distant future — start to think about hanging up the skates.
“I’m excited for (Ingram),” said Scott Nichol, the Predators’ director of player development. “That was a really good, probably off-the-radar trade for us. But he’s a young goalie who’s got outstanding skill.
“He’s an American League All-Star goalie, he’s played in the World Juniors, and has a great pedigree. He’s played in big situations and he’s a young goalie to help in our stable of goalies we have.”
Everything appeared to be moving in the right direction early last season for Ingram, who earned a selection to the AHL All-Star game in January. The Athletic’s Corey Pronman listed the up-and-coming Ingram as the NHL’s 13th-best goaltending prospect later that month in his midseason rankings.
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By late February, Ingram had posted a 14-7 record, .922 save percentage and 2.26 goals against average. He’d recorded six shutouts in just 22 games at that point, including two shutouts in back-to-back starts.
But that’s when things took a turn for the strange.
Ingram played his last game for Tampa’s AHL affiliate on Feb. 26, and on March 6, the Lightning demoted him to the East Coast Hockey League.
Ingram was recalled to the AHL briefly in late March. But after a face-to-face meeting with Tampa Bay general manager Julien BriseBois — one that apparently did not go well — Ingram was immediately dispatched back to the ECHL. BriseBois has been close-mouthed about the situation since, telling media the conflict was “an internal matter.”
Ingram’s agent, Blake Evans, explained Thursday that Ingram wanted to play as often as possible, telling the Lightning he’d prefer to play in the ECHL as opposed to splitting time in the AHL. But Evans added that Ingram had some growing up to do as well.
“Tampa was one of those situations where anytime a rookie comes into an organization, they’ve got a lot to learn,” Evans told The Athletic. “They’re coming from junior and now it’s professional hockey. Connor had a lot to learn, how to become a pro.
“But Connor wants to play every night. That’s what makes him a great goalie. If he doesn’t play 80 games, he’s not happy, which is awesome.”
Ingram, who’s attending the Predators’ development camp in Nashville this week, indicated that the root causes of his rocky relationship traced back to earlier in the 2018-19 season. The Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, native injured his leg in late December and missed more than a month before returning to the lineup.
“Yeah, pretty much,” Ingram said when asked if injury rehabilitation played a part in the rift. “I think there’s just some things they focused on away from the game of hockey that I worked really hard at there for two or three months coming back from injury, and then just being a healthy scratch. They were things I spent three or four hours a day just working at. At the end of the day, it just came down to be too much.
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“They moved on and this summer, they thankfully decided to give me a fresh chance. I don’t hold anything against Tampa Bay at all. … At the end of the day, sometimes it just doesn’t work out. I don’t think there’s bitter feelings either way.”
Nichol said the Predators researched Ingram’s situation in Tampa thoroughly, coming away convinced that — despite the fact things didn’t work out well with the Lightning — Ingram was well worth giving a chance.
“We do a lot of homework on these kids and especially on something like that,” Nichol said. “At the end of the day, it was the same report. Tons of skill. He just needs to get a little more mature. Maybe he’s a little stubborn because he wants to be No. 1. That’s not a bad fault to have. He wants the net.”
A 13-year NHL veteran who played for six NHL teams, Nichol noted Ingram would hardly be the first prospect who’s had an early bump in the road of his career.
“I think you have that sometimes as a young kid, you maybe get stuck in a rut or the maturity part of it,” Nichol said. “Maybe you say something you can’t get back. … So everybody sometimes needs a second chance.”
Nichol and the Predators organization have appreciated the fact that Ingram volunteered to attend development camp here.
“Usually it’s only one-year pros we bring back (to camp),” Nichol said. “But he wanted to come in front of our guys and show what he has. He’s been great. His attitude has been great.”
Ingram said he’s looking forward to a new beginning in the Nashville organization, where the current goaltending situation looks pretty favorable for him this season.
Rinne and Saros, of course, are the undisputed Nos. 1 and 2. The top returning netminder for Milwaukee is Troy Grosenick, who is 29. Grosenick had a strong 2018-19, earning a trip to the AHL All-Star game, but the veteran has never played in the NHL — and doesn’t have the upside of Ingram.
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“It’s good to see new faces, have a fresh start and just kind of start over,” Ingram said. “I’ve got two professional years under my belt now where I learned a lot, saw a lot.
“I went through a lot of things that the majority of pro hockey players will never go through. So it’s good to step forward now and move on, and just kind of take what I’ve learned and transfer all my energy somewhere else.”
Who knows what the future will hold for Ingram and the Predators?
In time, that “other June trade” may be beneficial for both.
(Top photo of Connor Ingram: Stephane Dube /Getty Images )