Nashville Predators Trivia
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50 free Nashville Predators trivia questions with answers — sports quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
The Nashville Predators exist because New Jersey said no, their logo is a saber-toothed cat dug up beneath a downtown bank, and their fans throw catfish and make fang fingers to the Psycho theme. This Predators trivia quiz covers all of it: Craig Leipold's expansion bid, the naming vote he quietly won himself, David Poile and Barry Trotz, the 2000 opener in Tokyo, Paul Kariya's 8-0 start, the Forsberg rental, the Balsillie saga and 'Our Team Nashville', Shea Weber's record offer sheet, Pekka Rinne's rise from the eighth round and the 2017 sweep of the Blackhawks on the way to the Stanley Cup Final. It then follows the Presidents' Trophy season, the Subban trade, Roman Josi's captaincy, the Winter Classic and Stadium Series, Trotz's return as general manager and the arena on Broadway built to salute the Ryman. Questions range from easy to expert, with the hard ones aimed at fans who remember the Mustard Cats. Every answer was checked against encyclopaedic and reference sources before publishing, and each question carries a citation. For more, try our NHL trivia and hockey trivia pages.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01In which season did the Predators begin play?
1998-99
The Predators began play in 1998-99, the first of the four franchises from the 1997 expansion to take the ice, because Nashville's arena was already finished.
Q 02Which NHL team did Nashville nearly lure to its new arena in 1995?
New Jersey Devils
In 1995 Nashville offered the New Jersey Devils a $20 million relocation bonus to move into its new arena, but the Devils instead struck a new lease to stay in New Jersey.
Q 03Which Wisconsin businessman led the group awarded the Nashville franchise?
Craig Leipold
Craig Leipold, a businessman from Racine, Wisconsin, led the ownership group awarded the Nashville franchise in June 1997; he later sold the club and bought the Minnesota Wild.
Q 04Which former Capitals general manager became the Predators' first GM in July 1997?
David Poile
David Poile, general manager of the Washington Capitals from 1982 to 1997, was hired as Nashville's first GM in July 1997 and ran the club until retiring in 2023.
Q 05Which minor-league club was the Predators' first head coach running when Nashville hired him in 1997?
Portland Pirates
Nashville's first head coach was running the Portland Pirates, the Capitals' AHL affiliate he had led to the 1994 Calder Cup, when the Predators hired him in August 1997.
Q 06The saber-toothed cat logo references a Smilodon skeleton found where in 1971?
Beneath a downtown Nashville bank site
Beneath a downtown Nashville bank site is where workers building the First American National Bank tower in 1971 broke into a cave holding Smilodon bones; that building later became the UBS Tower.
Q 07Which fan-submitted finalist lost the 1997 team-naming vote to the owner's own entry?
Ice Tigers
Ice Tigers was one of three fan finalists, alongside Fury and Attack, before the owner added his own entry, Predators, which won the 1997 vote.
Q 08Which goalie did Nashville claim in the 1998 expansion draft, then lose back to the Rangers?
Mike Richter
Mike Richter, a pending free agent, was claimed from the Rangers by Nashville in the June 1998 expansion draft, then re-signed with New York, so the Predators never got him under contract.
Q 09Nashville lost its first-ever game 1-0 to which team on October 10, 1998?
Florida Panthers
The Florida Panthers beat Nashville 1-0 in the franchise's first game on October 10, 1998; the Predators' first win came three nights later, 3-2 over Carolina.
Q 10In which country did the Predators open the 2000-01 season with two games against Pittsburgh?
Japan
The Predators and Penguins opened the 2000-01 season in Japan, playing two games at the Saitama Super Arena outside Tokyo in October 2000.
Q 11With which pick of the 2003 draft, hosted in Nashville, did the Predators take Shea Weber?
49th
Nashville took Shea Weber 49th overall in the 2003 draft, held in the Predators' own arena, on the same day it selected Ryan Suter seventh overall.
Q 12Which team ended Nashville's first playoff appearance in 2004?
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings beat Nashville in six games in the 2004 first round, the Predators' first playoff series, and eliminated them again in the 2008 first round.
Q 13Which free agent did Nashville sign in summer 2005, ahead of its 106-point 2005-06 season?
Paul Kariya
Paul Kariya signed with Nashville as a free agent in 2005 and led the team with 85 points as the Predators posted 106 points in 2005-06.
Q 21Which team's 14-year, $110 million offer sheet to Shea Weber did Nashville match in 2012?
Philadelphia Flyers
Nashville matched the Philadelphia Flyers' 14-year, $110 million offer sheet to Shea Weber in July 2012; the deal was front-loaded with $68 million in signing bonuses.
Q 22Which franchise original, then its all-time leading scorer, was traded to Detroit in 2014?
David Legwand
David Legwand, the first player Nashville ever drafted (second overall in 1998), was the club's career points leader when he was traded away in March 2014.
Q 23Which forward came from Columbus in 2016 in exchange for defenseman Seth Jones?
Ryan Johansen
Q 14Which five-time All-Star did the Predators rent from Philadelphia at the 2007 deadline for Upshall, Parent and picks?
Peter Forsberg
Peter Forsberg came from Philadelphia at the February 2007 deadline for Scottie Upshall, Ryan Parent and two draft picks, but Nashville lost to San Jose in the first round for a second straight year.
Q 15Which Canadian billionaire tried to buy the Predators in 2007, allegedly to move them north?
Jim Balsillie
Jim Balsillie, the Research In Motion co-CEO, agreed to buy the Predators in 2007 and took season-ticket deposits in Hamilton, Ontario, before the deal collapsed and a local group kept the team in Nashville.
Q 16Which minority owner's fraudulent loans led to a 97-month prison sentence?
William 'Boots' Del Biaggio
William 'Boots' Del Biaggio, who bought a minority stake in 2007 with loans obtained through forged documents, was sentenced in 2009 to 97 months in federal prison for fraud.
Q 17Which goalie's 233-minute shutout streak in 2008 helped Nashville grab the final playoff spot?
Dan Ellis
Dan Ellis went more than 233 minutes without allowing a goal in March 2008, at the time the fifth-longest shutout streak in NHL history, as Nashville clinched the West's final playoff spot.
Q 18Which Russian forward was suspended in 2008 for signing with Salavat Yulaev Ufa while under Predators contract?
Alexander Radulov
Alexander Radulov left for Salavat Yulaev Ufa in 2008 with a year left on his Nashville deal, returned in 2012, and was suspended again after a late-night Scottsdale bar sighting during the 2012 playoffs.
Q 19Which defenseman did Nashville select 38th overall in the 2008 draft?
Roman Josi
Roman Josi, a Swiss defenseman, went 38th overall to Nashville in the 2008 draft and was named the team's captain in September 2017.
Q 20Which team beat Nashville in the franchise's first second-round series in 2011?
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks, that season's Presidents' Trophy winners, beat Nashville in six games in the 2011 second round after the Predators had eliminated Anaheim for their first series win.
Ryan Johansen came from Columbus on January 6, 2016, in a one-for-one trade for defenseman Seth Jones, giving Nashville the first-line center it had lacked.
Q 24Whom did the Predators receive from Montreal in the 2016 trade of captain Shea Weber?
P. K. Subban
Nashville received P. K. Subban from Montreal on June 29, 2016, in a one-for-one trade for captain Shea Weber; Subban was a Norris Trophy finalist with the Predators in 2018.
Q 25Which top seed did Nashville sweep in the 2017 first round?
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks, the West's top seed, were swept in four games by Nashville in the 2017 first round, the first playoff sweep in Predators history, on a run that ended in the Stanley Cup Final.
Q 26Which team beat Nashville in the 2017 Stanley Cup Final?
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins beat Nashville in six games in the 2017 Stanley Cup Final; the Predators won Games 3 and 4 at home before losing Game 6 by 2-0.
Q 27Which country star hoisted a giant fish on the Jumbotron during Game 3 of the 2017 conference finals?
Keith Urban
Keith Urban held the giant fish aloft on the video board during Game 3 of the 2017 Western Conference Final against Anaheim, alongside Titans players Taylor Lewan and Marcus Mariota.
Q 28Which captain retired in August 2017, then un-retired to finish the following season?
Mike Fisher
Mike Fisher announced his retirement on August 3, 2017, after captaining the Predators to the Stanley Cup Final, then returned in January 2018 and played through that spring's playoffs before retiring again.
Q 29In which season did the Predators win their first division title and Presidents' Trophy?
2017-18
In 2017-18 Nashville posted 117 points to win its first Central Division title and the Presidents' Trophy, then lost to Winnipeg in seven games in the second round.
Q 30Which center joined Nashville from Ottawa in a 2017 trade for Girard and Kamenev?
Kyle Turris
Kyle Turris came to Nashville from Ottawa in the November 2017 three-team trade in which Samuel Girard and Vladislav Kamenev went to Colorado and Matt Duchene went from Colorado to Ottawa.