Nashville Predators honor former D Mattias Ekholm with tribute video on his return during Oilers game

The moment arrived during a stoppage of play in the first period on Tuesday at Bridgestone Arena.

The Nashville Predators played a tribute video for longtime defenseman Mattias Ekholm, who now plays for the visiting Edmonton Oilers. The emotional video was displayed on the arena scoreboard, and as it concluded, Ekholm raised his hands to the crowd. The crowd gave him a standing ovation, and in response, he pointed to his heart and back to the crowd.

It was a highly anticipated and emotional moment during the Predators’ game against the Oilers. Check out the tribute video and the crowd’s emotional reaction on Bally Sports South.

The Swedish defenseman, Mattias Ekholm, was traded on February 28 to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for defenseman Tyson Barrie, a 2023 first-round pick, a 2025 fourth-round pick, and prospect Reid Schaefer. Ekholm had spent all 12 of his NHL seasons with the Predators before the trade.

Ekholm holds several franchise records with the Predators. He has played the fifth-most games in team history (719) and ranks tenth in points (268). He was a crucial part of the Predators’ defense for 12 seasons, contributing to eight consecutive playoff appearances from 2015 to 2022. From 2017 to 2019, Ekholm formed one of the NHL’s best top-four defensive groups alongside Roman Josi, Ryan Ellis, and P.K. Subban. Only Josi remains with the Predators.

One of Ekholm’s most memorable contributions to the Predators came during the 2017 postseason when he assisted on Mike Fisher’s game-winning goal in triple overtime against the San Jose Sharks in Game 4 of the second round. This helped lead the Predators to their first-ever appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals.

During his tenure with the team, Ekholm wore the alternate captain’s ‘A’ on his sweater from 2017 to 2023.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Predators honor former D Mattias Ekholm with tribute video during Oilers game