The Predators are hoping another first-round pick making his NHL debut will provide a spark of skill and energy to a team trying to snap a five-game losing streak.
Nashville on Thursday recalled forward Joakim Kemell from Milwaukee of the American Hockey League, where the No. 17 overall pick of the 2022 draft has totaled 25 points (nine goals, 16 assists) in 38 games this season.
The 20-year-old Kemell is scheduled to play his first NHL game Friday, when the Predators travel to Chicago. Predators coach Andrew Brunette said Kemell may be used on a line with Tommy Novak and Fedor Svechkov.
It will mark the third NHL debut for a Predators first-round pick this season, as forward Zach L’Heureux (No. 27 overall in 2021) played his first game for Nashville on Oct. 22 and Svechkov (No. 19 overall in 2021) did the same Nov. 23.
Since then, L’Heureux has contributed 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 44 games and Svechkov has totaled nine points (six goals, three assists) in 23 contests.
“When you have a young guy come in like that and there’s the excitement of his first game, it’s infectious,” says Predators forward Ryan O’Reilly. “You feel it, that jump and that energy. That’s just the pure excitement of being in the NHL, playing your first game. That’s fun to see. It’s fun to kind of feed off, too.”
Kemell played his first full season in Milwaukee in 2023-24, recording 41 points (16 goals, 25 assists) during the regular season and adding 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in 15 playoff contests.
His play this season earned Kemell a spot in the AHL All-Star Class earlier in the week, which preceded the big recall from Nashville.
“[I’ve] worked for it so hard every day, so it’s great,” Kemell said Thursday after practice. “It’s my first time to come up [to the NHL], so I was just laughing and so excited. I called my parents [and told them I was] going there, and it was just unbelievable.”
The 5-foot-11, 182-pound Kemmel, a native of Finland, brings plenty of speed and skill to the table, but he’s probably best known for a wickedly good shot.
“I think when he skates and gets on the puck, he’s a competitive kid,” Brunette says. “He can really shoot it. [But] when he relies on his shot before his skating, that’s where I feel he gets in a little bit of trouble. So we just need him skating.”
Kemell said he hopes to bring strengths like skating, creating scoring chances and scoring goals to the Predators.
His confidence, Kemell added, has been better in his second year in the AHL than it was in 2023-24.
The challenge now is to keep the right balance of excitement and chill in his NHL debut.
“Just focus on myself and get prepared well,” Kemell said. “You only play once for your debut. So I’m so excited. But you can’t be too nervous. So I’m trying to calm down before the game and just try to play my own game and help the team.”
This article was first published by our sister publication, the Nashville Post.
