Daemon Hunt wasn't expecting his next NHL chapter to begin in Nashville.
After starting the season with the Minnesota Wild, the 24-year-old defenceman found himself on waivers Friday. Less than 24 hours later, he was a member of the Nashville Predators.
The move caught even Hunt by surprise.
"Yeah I was shocked," Hunt told Past The Play in a message Saturday evening. "New chapter in Nashville! Excited for the opportunity."
For Hunt, the move represents an unexpected departure from the organization that drafted him in 2020. For Nashville, it could represent an opportunity to acquire a young, inexpensive defenceman whose contributions this season have been more encouraging than his point totals suggest.
And for both sides, the timing might be right.
A Roster Crunch, Not Necessarily a Performance Problem
Hunt's departure comes amid a changing defensive picture in Minnesota.
Veterans Jared Spurgeon and Olli Maatta returned to the Wild's lineup Thursday against Calgary, leaving the organization with difficult decisions about its defensive depth.
Hunt became the casualty.
The Brandon, Manitoba, native had appeared in 11 games this season, averaging 14:08 of ice time without recording a point. On the surface, those numbers hardly suggest Minnesota was surrendering a significant offensive contributor.
But a closer examination of what Hunt had provided Minnesota so far this season makes that idea more complicated.
At the time the Wild placed him on waivers, Hunt ranked second among Minnesota defencemen in individual expected goals behind Quinn Hughes, according to MoneyPuck's expected-goals model. As The Hockey News reported, Natural Stat Trick also placed Hunt second among Wild defencemen in individual expected goals and first in high-danger chances.
That doesn't mean everything was going well for Hunt.
At five-on-five, Minnesota controlled just 42.1 percent of expected goals and 43.7 percent of shot attempts with Hunt on the ice, according to Natural Stat Trick.
But a closer look at who he was sharing the ice with reveals something interesting.
Hunt spent 78:36 playing alongside veteran Zach Bogosian, with the Wild controlling just 36.11 percent of expected goals during those minutes. Without Bogosian, however, Hunt's expected-goals share jumped to 52.04 percent, while his share of shot attempts improved from 40.94 percent to 49.48 percent.
His scoring-chance share also improved considerably, from 31.58 percent alongside Bogosian to 45.24 percent without him.
Bogosian, meanwhile, continued to struggle away from Hunt, recording a 39.47 percent expected-goals share without the young defenceman.
It's a significant difference, even with the limitations of a relatively small sample. The numbers don't prove Bogosian was responsible for the pairing's struggles, but they do suggest Hunt was considerably more effective when playing with other partners.
For Nashville, that's an encouraging possibility. Hunt's overall numbers may not tell the full story of what he could contribute in a different defensive pairing.
He had also recorded seven hits and 11 blocked shots through his 11 appearances this season, contributing physically and defensively while continuing to establish himself at the NHL level. Those seven hits led Wild defencemen at the time he was placed on waivers.
His placement on waivers wasn't necessarily an indictment of his play. With Minnesota getting healthier and facing a crowded blueline, Hunt became a player the organization was prepared to risk losing.
Nashville made sure that risk became reality.
Why Nashville Could Be the Right Opportunity
The Predators aren't exactly short on defencemen. However, they are short on certainty about which ones can help them win consistently.
Under general manager Chris MacFarland, Nashville has already made several changes to its defensive group this season.
The organization acquired Ilya Lyubushkin during the offseason, claimed William Trudeau on waivers in September and traded for Jayden Struble in October. Hunt becomes another addition to a blueline that has undergone considerable turnover.
Nashville also placed Jack Ahcan on waivers Saturday, the same day it acquired Hunt.
It's a revealing sequence of transactions for an organization still evaluating its options.
The Predators entered Saturday with a 3-3-3 record, having lost four of their previous five games. Their most recent outing, a 6-0 defeat to the Boston Bruins, only added to the pressure to find answers.
Hunt won't solve Nashville's problems by himself. But he doesn't need to.
At 6-foot-1 and 193 pounds, the left-shot defenceman offers another relatively young option with NHL experience. His mobility and puck-moving ability could help him compete for a place in Nashville's defensive rotation.
For a team searching for stability, Hunt offers another player worth evaluating.
And at a $900,000 cap hit on a one-year contract, Nashville can afford to find out whether Hunt fits into its plans.
Another Chance to Prove He Belongs
This isn't Hunt's first unexpected change of scenery.
Originally selected 65th overall by Minnesota in the 2020 NHL Draft, Hunt was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets organization in November 2024 as part of the package that brought David Jiricek to the Wild.
After training camp the following season, he returned to Minnesota when the Wild claimed him off waivers in October 2025.
Now, another waiver claim has sent him to his third NHL organization, although all 56 of his regular-season NHL appearances have come with Minnesota.
Through those games, Hunt has recorded seven assists. He also contributed an assist in five playoff appearances during Minnesota's second-round series against Colorado last spring.
His professional career has also included 173 AHL games with Iowa and Cleveland, producing eight goals and 59 points.
Those experiences have given Hunt a foundation for the player he's become. What he hasn't yet received is an extended opportunity to establish himself as an everyday NHL player.
Nashville may be able to provide him one this season.
There are no guarantees. The Predators have several defencemen competing for limited lineup spots, and Hunt will need to demonstrate that he can contribute consistently to earn a regular role.
But there's a significant difference between joining an organization with an established defensive hierarchy and arriving somewhere still searching for its best six defencemen.
Hunt has experienced the former in Minnesota. Now, he gets a chance at the latter.
His reaction to Saturday's news reflected both the surprise of leaving Minnesota and the optimism of arriving somewhere new.
For a player still working to turn NHL appearances into a permanent NHL career, that opportunity might be the most important part of the move.