One by one during the past 12 months, the Predators took care of any concerns that prevented them being considered Stanley Cup contenders.

GM David Poile added a No. 1 center in Ryan Johansen to compete with the West’s elite down the middle.

If there was any concern that Shea Weber was slowing down, which was suggested by some following the Predators' series loss to the San Jose Sharks in the playoffs, those went out the window after the P.K. Subban trade.

Really, in what is shaping up to be one of the most intriguing seasons in their franchise history, the biggest question surrounding the Predators was in goal, which is crazy. That used to be the only thing that wasn’t a concern.

Not all that long ago, goalie Pekka Rinne was the biggest reason you felt good about the Predators, not the concern.