Predators’ Tomasino Finally Being Rewarded for ‘Exceptional’ Play

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Philip Tomasino recorded the first multi-goal game of his NHL career to lift the Nashville Predators to a 4-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday (Dec. 21). It took him 23 games to score his first goal of the season; he now has three in his last three games. It’s a small sample size, but it appears that the Predators’ 2019 first-round pick is finally beginning to hit his stride.

Philip Tomasino Nashville Predators
Philip Tomasino, Nashville Predators (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)

“It was a little bit of work to get him to play at a certain pace and understand my expectations of him,” Predators head coach Andrew Brunette said. “And he put the work in and he’s been playing exceptional here the last month or so. And it’s nice to see him get rewarded tonight because he’s had so many good looks and he was driving a lot of offense for us.”

Tomasino’s Slow Start

Tomasino scored the game-winning goal against the Washington Capitals on Saturday (Dec. 16) and scored twice against the Flyers on Thursday. Granted, his two goals against Philadelphia were as many as he had scored through 24 games prior; but could this be the start of something big for Tomasino?

Related: 3 Takeaways from the Predators’ 3-1 Win Over Capitals

Time will tell, but the early results are encouraging in a season that got off to a rocky start for the young forward. Brunette has healthy scratched Tomasino in nine of Nashville’s 33 games this season but made it clear that the measure wasn’t meant as a punishment; rather, it was a chance for a young player with a high ceiling to take a mental reset instead of continuing to flounder and lose his confidence.

“We scratched him and played him less and tried to help him understand what my expectations are for him, and the style I’d like him to play, and how much pace he needs to play at to play, at least to my expectations,” Brunette said. “It’s not easy. It’s hard. It’s different. I’m sure he wasn’t sure early.”

Tomasino, of course, is like every other player in every other NHL locker room; he just wants to be in the lineup for every game.

“I feel like I’ve been having some pretty good chances recently,” Tomasino said following Saturday’s win over Washington. “I just want to be a guy that is in [the lineup] consistently and helps out our team.”

A Turnaround for Tomasino?

Instead of pushing back against Brunette and his staff while he was in and out of the lineup, Tomasino handled it like a true professional. He put his head down and got to work, consistently staying on the ice long after practices to get some extra reps and put in some extra work with skills coach Sebastien Bordeleau. The work didn’t go unnoticed. 

“I’m actually really proud of him because he put a lot of work in and he hung in there,” Brunette said earlier this week. “He’s played up to those expectations, and it’s nice to see him get rewarded for the work that he’s put in.”

The emphasis here should be on the word “rewarded.” Prior to the win over Washington, Tomasino hadn’t scored a goal since Nov. 9 in the Predators’ 6-3 loss to the Winnipeg Jets. There has been a clear difference in Tomasino’s play over the last month, though; even when the pucks weren’t finding the back of the net, he was generating more chances.

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“Your resounding message is if you get those chances, sooner or later they’re going to go in,” Brunette said after Saturday’s win. “What he needs to do is play at the same pace he is now and those [goals] will come naturally because his offensive instincts will open up.”

What Lies Ahead 

Now, of course, the hope is that those chances will keep going in for Tomasino. He has been slow to develop and behind his pace from last season, but little runs like this one can work wonders for a young player’s confidence.

“I think there’s still a lot of room for improvement for me, but I think when I’m given the chance, I think I’m doing a pretty good job,” Tomasino said on Saturday. “Going forward, I want to continue to be a guy that [Brunette] can trust in every situation and who can obviously chip in offensively as well.”

Tomasino is a player who certainly bears watching in the coming weeks. If he continues at his current pace, he could be an impact player in Nashville’s next two games, which include a tough Central Division matchup against the Dallas Stars on Dec. 23 and a rematch on Dec. 27 against a Carolina Hurricanes team that took the Predators to OT last week.

Related: 3 Takeaways From the Predators’ 6-5 OT Win over Carolina

“My goal is to be here in the lineup every night,” Tomasino said. “I don’t want to say I’ve been snakebitten, but I think I have to start burying my chances a little bit more. I think especially with the last 10 or 15 games, I’ve had a lot of really good looks that haven’t gone in, so if I can continue to do that, I think there’ll be a lot more.”