Predators acquire veteran defenseman in trade with Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks have traded defenseman Mark Friedman to the Nashville Predators in exchange for future considerations. Friedman has appeared in five NHL games this season and recorded no scoring, 10 penalty minutes and a minus-four.

Friedman has spent the majority of this season with the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks. He’s recorded one goal, six points, 15 penalty minutes and a plus-four through 20 games with the minor Canucks, continuing his service as a low-scoring, physical depth defenseman. That’s exactly what the Canucks were searching for when they acquired him via trade from the Pittsburgh Penguins early into the 2023-24 season. Vancouver sent defenseman Jack Rathbone and winger Karel Plasek back the other way. Friedman has appeared in 28 games with the Canucks since then. He’s only managed one point and an average of 12:34 in ice time in that span, but his 39 hits equates to the fourth-highest hits-per-60 (6.65) of any Canucks defenseman since the start of last season. He ranks behind Noah Juulsen (11.52), rookie defender Elias Pettersson (9.13) and Nikita Zadorov (8.07).

The Philadelphia Flyers originally selected Friedman in the third round of the 2014 NHL Draft. He made his AHL debut two years later and has since spent the last nine seasons bouncing between NHL and AHL lineups. His career as a depth forward has taken him through stops in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Vancouver and now Nashville. In that time, Friedman has totaled 93 NHL games, 13 points, 80 penalty minutes and 141 hits.

Friedman now seems destined to join a burly group of defenders with the Milwaukee Admirals, Nashville’s minor league affiliate. The squad carries plenty of heft thanks to captain Kevin Gravel, Jack Matier and Spencer Stastney. The trio have served as the physical compliment behind more nimble blueliners like Ryan Ufko and Nick Blankenburg. But an injury to Jeremy Lauzon and the departure of Alexandre Carrier have forced Gravel and Blankenburg into the NHL lineup, and dried out Nashville’s previously abundant defense depth. The Predators have erred on the side of physicality rather than finesse in addressing that issue and now add the burly Friedman to their list of fringe NHL defenders.