Nashville Predators Lock Up Center Jack Drury on Five-Year, $22.5 Million Deal

Four days after acquiring Jack Drury and prospect Chase Bradley from Colorado on June 24, Nashville signed Drury to a five-year, $22.5 million contract with a $4.5 million cap hit. The trade sent forwards Zachary L’Heureux and Fedor Svechkov, plus a 2029 third-round pick, to the Avalanche. The deal includes a $4 million first-year salary, $4.625 million for years 2-5, a full no-trade clause for years 2-3 and an eight-team list for years 4-5.

Predators Sign Jack Drury to Five-Year Extension

Drury, 26, posted career highs with Colorado in 2025-26: 10 goals, 27 points in 82 games and a 58.1 % faceoff win rate, ranking fifth among players with >=900 draws. In the playoffs he added three goals and two assists in 13 games. Drafted 42nd overall by Carolina in 2018, he spent four seasons with the Hurricanes before being dealt to Colorado at the 2025 deadline as part of the Mikko Rantanen trade. This is his second move in under two years. He also logged 82 blocked shots, 74 hits and 31 takeaways during the regular season.

Predators sign Jack Drury to five-year contract

General manager and president of hockey operations Chris MacFarland described Drury as a hard-working, reliable, full-sheet center who excels in faceoffs and adds depth to the middle six. He said Drury’s competitive, culture-changing attitude will benefit the locker room and help develop young players such as Brady Martin, Egor Surin, David Edstrom and Felix Nilsson.

Sports Illustrated

Faceoff percentages differ: ESPN lists 58.1 %, Sports Illustrated reports 57 %, while GinoHard cites 59.2 %. No source offers criticism of the signing.

ESPN

• “Jack Drury is a hard-working, reliable, full-sheet of the ice center who can handle the tough assignments while being elite in the faceoff circle,” — Chris MacFarland, Predators GM & President of Hockey Operations

ESPN

• “His addition to our forward group bolsters our depth in the middle of the ice, and we're thrilled to have him.” — Chris MacFarland

ESPN

• “Jack Drury, he’s still young, he's 26 years old, he's got a lot of hockey in front of him,” — Chris MacFarland

Sports Illustrated

• “He’s an elite, two-way defensive center who, if he's not one of the best defensive guys in the League, I don't know who is, but I think the really important part for me with Jack is he's a culture changer.” — Chris MacFarland

Sports Illustrated

Drury is under contract through the 2030-31 season, with full no-trade protection for the first two years. Nashville indicated that he will anchor a two-way center role, contribute on special teams and mentor emerging talent while providing reliable faceoff performance.

Predators sign Jack Drury to five-year contract