Predators sign defenseman to two-year extension

The Nashville Predators have inked defenseman Kevin Gravel to a two-year, two-way, $1.5M contract extension. The deal will carry a $775K cap hit at the NHL level. Gravel is currently the captain of Nashville’s AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals. He’s spent all season leading the AHL club, appearing in 36 games and recording six points, 13 penalty minutes, and a +6.

This year marks Gravel’s second in the Nashville organization, with the defender joining the club with a contract identical to this extension in July of 2022. He spent 23 games in the NHL lineup last year, netting one point, four penalty minutes, and a -10. It was Gravel’s first NHL action since the 2019-20 season when he appeared in three games with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Gravel has totaled just 132 career NHL games since making his debut with the Los Angeles Kings in 2015-16. He’s scored 14 points and recorded 16 penalty minutes in those outings, operating as a low-event, shutdown defender with four different NHL clubs over his career. The Kings drafted Gravel in the fifth round of the 2010 NHL Draft, taking him in the same round that yielded Zach Hyman, John Klingberg and Brendan Gallagher. Gravel is one of 10 different players from that round to appear in at least 100 NHL games.

The Predators secure an organizational leader and long-tenured veteran in extending Gravel. The defender has accumulated 358 career AHL games, netting 93 total points. He will likely continue to serve as a focal piece of Milwaukee’s lineup through the end of his career.