Jonathan Marchessault Was Hoping for a Trade at Deadline

Nashville Predators forward Jonathan Marchessault

It sounds like Jonathan Marchessault is having a little 'buyer's remorse' when it comes to his buying in on the Nashville Predators in free agency two summers ago.

While his name was buzzing around the rumor mill as the trade deadline approached earlier this month, word is that Marchessault wanted out. And has for some time, according to insider Frank Seravalli, speaking on the Halford & Baugh podcast.

Jonathan Marchessault has been trying to get out of Nashville for more than a calendar year now.

It was a shocker when one of the ‘Original Misfits’ selected by the team in the 2017 expansion draft left the Vegas Golden Knights in the summer of 2024 in free agency. It came just a year after he won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Most Valuable Player in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, leading Vegas to the title.

Marchessault signed a five-year, $27.5 million free agent deal in Nashville ($5.5M AAV), but the bloom quickly came off the rose in Music City. His scoring has taken a steep dive in his two seasons there, from 42 goals in his final year with the Golden Knights, to just 21 last year and only 11 so far this season in 46 games.

The team has struggled; they finished last season with the third-worst record in the entire NHL, and after another brutal start this campaign, they are at least within three points of a Wild Card berth. But they also sold off a bunch of pieces before the trade deadline. Marchessault was hoping he'd be one of them.

"They started the process, and they took the low-hanging fruit—the easy stuff with regards to some of the players that they moved... depth players further down their lineup," said Seravalli. "But when it came time to moving the pieces that would actually generate significant returns... (they didn't)... and now all those decisions are left for the next guy (GM)."

Marchessault was extremely evasive a couple of days before the deadline when asked about his status with the team and the possibility of a trade.

Jonathan Marchessault with a 'no comment' type of answer when asked if he has talked to Trotz about a potential trade.

H/T @AlexDaugherty1

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— PuckEmpire (@puckempire) March 6, 2026

The 35-year-old has a no-move clause, as he alluded to, and has three more years to run on his contract. It sounds like he won't make it to the end of that deal, still in Nashville.