The Nashville Predators reassigned forward Philip Tomasino to the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League on Monday. The team also recalled forwards Egor Afanasyev and Mark Jankowski from Milwaukee, putting Nashville’s NHL roster at the league maximum of 23 players.
The moves were likely made to jumpstart the Predators’ floundering offense as the team seeks to remain competitive in the battle for a playoff position down the stretch. Afanasyev and Jankowski are leading Milwaukee’s scoring charge, while Tomasino has struggled with consistency at the NHL level this season.
Tomasino’s Recent Struggles
Tomasino, 22, appeared to be moving in the right direction at the end of the 2022-23 season. He finished that season with 18 points (five goals, 13 assists) in 31 games, averaging 15:31 of ice time. He has seven goals and 13 assists in 41 games this season and looked to be getting his game together just before the All-Star Break, scoring a goal in two of the Predators’ last three games.
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However, head coach Andrew Brunette said before the team’s Jan. 31 loss to the Los Angeles Kings that he did not yet feel comfortable trusting Tomasino defensively late in games; Tomasino went on to score a goal for the Predators in the third period that night. He had a costly turnover in the second period of Nashville’s first game after the All-Star Break that led directly to a goal for the Arizona Coyotes. He skated only one shift in the third period before the Predators went on to win in overtime.
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“There’s certain nights where you lose them a little bit and that’s part of being a young player,” Brunette said following the team’s practice on Monday. “But the issue is, you just can’t wait. I just can’t wait anymore. We’re in a crunch time right now.”
Afanasyev, The Up-and-Comer
After scoring just one goal in 17 appearances with Nashville last season, Afanasyev has spent the first half of this season in Milwaukee, working to develop into the true power forward that the Predators projected him to be when they selected him in the second round of the 2019 NHL Draft. The 23-year-old is having the best season of his AHL career, establishing career highs in goals (21) and points (42) and matching his career high in assists (21). He ranks among the AHL’s leaders in goals (tied for fifth) and points (tied for sixth) and ranks first and second, respectively, in both categories for the Admirals.
Afanasyev also leads the AHL in shorthanded goals (five), is tied for sixth in game-winning goals (five), and is second on the Admirals in power-play goals (four). During the Admirals’ active franchise-record 14-game winning streak, Afanasyev has recorded 20 points (eight goals, 12 assists), including seven multi-point efforts.
Jankowski, The Journeyman
Jankowski, 29, leads Milwaukee and is third in the AHL in both assists (32) and points (47) through 40 games this season. He was named the AHL’s Player of the Month for January after recording 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists) and a plus-15 rating in 11 games, helping the Admirals go undefeated during the month.
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Since Milwaukee’s 14-game winning streak began on Jan. 5, Jankowski has posted seven multi-point performances, including two four-point efforts and a four-game multi-point streak from Jan. 13-24; he has also added two shorthanded goals during that span.
Up Next
The Predators will host the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday at Bridgestone Arena. Nashville (27-23-2) is just outside the final Western Conference wild-card spot, two points behind the eighth-place St. Louis Blues.
