NAS Predators

In late 1995, rumors began to circulate that the New Jersey Devils would relocate to the planned Nashville Arena after they won their first-ever Stanley Cup championship. Nashville offered a $20 million relocation bonus to any team that would relocate, and the Devils attempted to terminate their lease with the NJSEA before ultimately restructuring it to remain in New Jersey. After the failed attempt to land the Devils, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman stated Nashville would probably be considered in upcoming expansion.

In January 1997, a group led by Wisconsin businessman Craig Leipold made a formal presentation before the NHL requesting an expansion franchise. When Bettman and league officials visited Nashville to tour the arena, thousands gathered on the arena plaza to greet them. In June, the league granted conditional franchises to Nashville, Columbus, Ohio; Atlanta, and Minneapolis–Saint Paul.

The Nashville team would begin play in 1998 if they met the NHL requirement of selling 12,000 season tickets before March 31, 1998. Of the four cities, Nashville was the only one with a completed arena and therefore began play first. On July 9, 1997, Leipold named former Washington Capitals general manager David Poile as the franchise's first general manager. Portland Pirates' head coach Barry Trotz was named the franchise's first head coach on August 6.

On September 25, 1997, Leipold and team president Jack Diller held a press conference where they unveiled the franchise's new logo, a saber-toothed cat (Smilodon fatalis). The logo was a reference to a partial Smilodon skeleton found beneath downtown Nashville in 1971 during construction of the First American National Bank building, now the UBS Tower. Once the logo was unveiled, the franchise held a vote among fans to choose a name. Three candidates were culled from 75: "Ice Tigers," "Fury" and "Attack." Leipold added his own submission to the vote, "Predators". On November 13, Leipold revealed at a press conference that his submission had won out and the new franchise would be known as the "Nashville Predators." When awarded a franchise, the city of Nashville paid 31.50% of the $80 million fee to join the league. The city made an agreement that protects them against annual arena operating losses over approximately $3.8 million.

At the 1998 NHL expansion draft, the Predators were limited on choices due to the protected players many of the teams held. Of the players they selected, future U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame goaltender Mike Richter was one of them. They also acquired Tomas Vokoun from the Montreal Canadiens. However, Richter would become an unrestricted free agent and re-signed with the Rangers. The Predators began play during the 1998–99 season, taking to the ice for the first time on October 10, 1998, where they lost 1–0 at home to the Florida Panthers. Three nights later, on October 13, they defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 3–2 for their first win. The Predators finished second-to-last in the Western Conference with a 28–47–7 record. In the 1999–2000 season, the Predators finished with a similar record to the previous season, and finished last in the Western Conference.

To begin the 2000–01 season, the Predators played two games at the Saitama Super Arena in Tokyo against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Each team won a game in front of the largest crowds ever to see a hockey game in Japan (13,849 for the first game and 13,426 for the second game). This included around 100 fans who made the trip from Tennessee. During the 2001–02 season, the Predators recorded their 100th victory on December 6, 2001.

In June 2003, the Predators hosted the NHL entry draft. Future Predators captain Shea Weber was selected by the team with the 49th overall pick. They also selected Ryan Suter at seventh overall. In the 2003–04 season, the Predators finished eighth in the Western Conference, qualifying for their first postseason berth. The Predators were eliminated by the Detroit Red Wings in six games in the first round of the 2004 Stanley Cup playoffs. The following 2004–05 season was wiped out by a labor dispute between NHL owners and players.

Prior to the 2005–06 season, the Predators signed free agent Paul Kariya. During the season, the Predators became only the fourth NHL franchise to start the season 8–0; the last time a team did so was the Toronto Maple Leafs, who set the mark with a 10–0 start in the 1993–94 season. By the end of the season, the Predators had accumulated 106 points and clinched home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs for the first time in team history. They finished the season with an NHL-best 32–8–1 record at home. However, the Predators would be eliminated by the San Jose Sharks in five games in the first round of the 2006 playoffs.

During the offseason, the Predators acquired veteran center Jason Arnott from free agency on July 2, 2006. Late in the 2006–07 season, the Predators traded Scottie Upshall and Ryan Parent, plus their first and third-round pick in the 2007 NHL entry draft, to the Philadelphia Flyers for five-time NHL All-Star Peter Forsberg. The Predators finished the third best record in the league with 110 points. They were defeated by the Sharks in the first round of the 2007 playoffs for the second year in a row, losing the series 4–1.

Following the 2006–07 season, owner Craig Leipold announced his intention to sell the team to Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie. On June 23, 2007, information leaked by several sources indicated that Leipold no longer wanted to sell the Predators to Balsillie. Subsequently, a campaign to land the team in Kansas City, Missouri, received a boost in late June 2007. In July 2007, Balsillie accused NHL commissioner Gary Bettman of persuading Leipold not to sell the team to him. Balsillie had intentions of bringing the Predators to Canada. On July 19, 2007, a group of local business owners known as Our Team Nashville held a rally at the Sommet Center to encourage fans to buy season tickets in order to help the Predators meet the attendance figures needed to keep the team in Nashville. They drew approximately 7,500 fans and sold the equivalent of 726 full-season tickets during the rally. The rally was heavily supported by George Plaster, then a sportscaster on WGFX 104.5 "The Zone" sports radio in Nashville. On August 1, 2007, the group released a letter of intent from Craig Leipold. After negotiations with the City of Nashville, the local group headed by David Freeman reached an agreement with Mayor of Nashville Karl Dean, and the NHL Board of Governors approved the sale on November 29, 2007.

In June 2008, Del Biaggio ran into legal trouble over a multitude of unpaid loans, culminating in his filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Furthermore, it was alleged that Del Biaggio acquired the loans he used to buy his stake in the team through fraudulent means, prompting an FBI investigation and criminal charges. The charges culminated in a 97-month prison sentence for Del Biaggio. Under United States bankruptcy law, a trustee was appointed to sell Del Biaggio's assets, including his stake in the Predators, to pay off his creditors. In November 2011, it was announced that Calgary businessman W. Brett Wilson had purchased a 5% interest in the Nashville Predators. In August, the team was sold to a local group of businessmen for $193 million (US) dollars. At the 2007 NHL entry draft, the Predators traded Tomas Vokoun to the Florida Panthers for three draft picks. During the season, they relied their goaltending on Chris Mason and Dan Ellis. Ellis, who was signed from the Dallas Stars before the season began, had a 233:39 long shutout streak (fifth longest in league history) nearing the end of the season that helped Nashville attain the eighth playoff spot with 91 points. In the playoffs, the Predators met the Presidents' Trophy-winning Red Wings in the first round and were defeated in six games.

At the 2008 NHL entry draft, the Predators traded two picks to select Roman Josi at 38th overall. The team also traded goaltender Mason to the St. Louis Blues. Alexander Radulov, after scoring 26 goals in the prior season, made his intention to play in Russia the following season. However, his contract with the Predators was still in effect, despite signing with Salavat Yulaev Ufa of the KHL. The NHL, IIHF, and KHL all agreed to respect global contracts on July 10, 2008. As a result, he was suspended from the team without pay on September 2, 2008. During the season, goaltender Pekka Rinne became the starter for the Predators. The team missed the playoffs.

The 2009–10 season saw the much-anticipated debut of 2008 seventh-overall pick Colin Wilson. However, due to a groin injury suffered in training camp, Wilson spent the first week-and-a-half of the season on the sidelines, and was sent to the Milwaukee Admirals of the American Hockey League (AHL) in November. He returned to the club in February and scored 11 points in his next 15 games and finished the season with 15 points in 35 games. 2010 also saw a breakout year for the last pick in the 2005 draft, Patric Hornqvist, as the 23-year-old Swede scored 30 goals in the 2009–10 season. On March 1, 2010, during the 2009–10 season, the Predators front office saw Freeman step down as chairman of the Nashville Predators in favor of Thomas Cigarran. On September 2, Cigarran announced that the local ownership group had completed the purchase of the Del Biaggio stake.The Predators qualified for the 2010 playoffs, facing the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round, and losing to them in six games.

On July 9, 2010, the Predators announced defenseman Shea Weber would become the club's fifth captain. In the following season's playoffs, the Predators advanced to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. They defeated the Anaheim Ducks in the first round. In the second round, they lost to the Presidents' Trophy-winning Vancouver Canucks in six games.

In the beginning of the 2011–12 season, the Predators signed goaltender Rinne to a seven-year, $49 million deal. On February 27, 2012, the Predators acquired Andrei Kostitsyn and Paul Gaustad from the Montreal Canadiens and the Buffalo Sabres, respectively. The season saw the return of Russian forward Alexander Radulov to the Predators after a four-year hiatus to play in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). In the 2012 playoffs, the team defeated the Red Wings. However, the Predators were ousted in the Western Conference semifinals, this time to the Phoenix Coyotes. During their second round series, Kostitsyn and Radulov were both spotted in a Scottsdale bar following game two and were subsequently suspended from game three.

In the 2012–13 offseason, the team reacquired goaltender Chris Mason. The team also lost Ryan Suter in free agency as he signed with the Minnesota Wild. The Predators signed Weber through a front-loaded $110 million, 14-year offer sheet, $68 million of it as a signing bonus, from the Philadelphia Flyers on July 19. The offer sheet was the richest in NHL history in terms of total money, money per season, and length, surpassing the previous offer sheet record set by Thomas Vanek.

The following season saw the departure of center David Legwand, the first player drafted by the Predators, the club's all-time leading scorer, and co-leading scorer for the season at the time. Agreeing to waive his "no trade clause", he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings, in exchange for prospect forward Calle Järnkrok, forward Patrick Eaves and a third-round pick in the 2014 NHL entry draft. After missing the playoffs for the second consecutive season, the Predators opted not to renew the contract of head coach Barry Trotz, although he was offered an unnamed position within the organization. On May 6, 2014, the Predators announced Peter Laviolette as their new head coach.

The offseason involved trading Patric Hörnqvist and Nick Spaling for James Neal. They also drafted Kevin Fiala and Viktor Arvidsson in the 2014 NHL entry draft. In Peter Laviolette's first season as the Predators' head coach, the Predators finished second in the Central Division. Despite having home advantage in the first round of the 2015 playoffs, they lost in six games to the Chicago Blackhawks. During the 2015–16 season, the Predators named Sean Henry CEO. They also traded defenseman Seth Jones to the Columbus Blue Jackets for forward Ryan Johansen. In the 2016 playoffs, they beat the Anaheim Ducks in seven games, but were eliminated in seven games by the San Jose Sharks in the second round.

On June 23, 2016, Freeman filed a $250 million lawsuit against the Nashville Predators and Cigarran. His claim was that his ownership stake has been improperly diluted by Cigarran failing to notify him of capital calls, and that he had not received loan guaranty fees that the ownership group had agreed to pay him. The lawsuit stated that Freeman initially owned a 48% share, while the holding company for the Nashville Predators stated that Freeman controlled less than 1% of ownership in the team at the time of the suit. This dilution was exacerbated by the existence of two classes of investments in the Predators: the common units owned by Freeman were subject to capital calls; the Series A units originally owned by Del Biaggio and his minority partner were not subject to capital calls.

The dispute was sent to court-ordered arbitration on July 29, 2016, under the supervision of NHL commissioner Gary Bettman. As of January 25, 2018, arbitration was continuing in the unresolved dispute. The outcome remained undisclosed as the arbitration was private.

In the 2016–17 offseason, the Predators traded captain Shea Weber to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for defenseman P. K. Subban. The trade surprised many hockey fans because the details to this trade were kept strictly confidential until the deal was already made. After his retirement, GM David Poile regretted the trade. On September 7, 2016, the Predators announced Mike Fisher would replace Weber as the sixth captain of the club.

In the 2016–17 season, the Predators finished fourth in the Central Division with 94 points, which earned them the second wild card spot in the Western Conference. In the playoffs, the Predators swept the Blackhawks in four games. This was the first time an eighth seed swept a playoff series against the top seed in the conference in NHL history as well as the first time that there had been a sweep by an eighth seed against a top seed in a best-of-seven playoff series in the history of North American major league professional sports. In the second round, the Predators defeated the St. Louis Blues in six games. On May 16, the Predators became the first team in 20 years (since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997) to achieve 10 straight wins at home in the postseason. After defeating the Anaheim Ducks in six games, they advanced to the club's first Stanley Cup Final. In the 2017 Stanley Cup Final, the Predators went down 2–0 against the Pittsburgh Penguins before tying the series, winning games three and four at home. Returning to Pittsburgh, the Predators lost 6–0 before being eliminated at home 2–0 in game six.

Fisher announced his retirement on August 3, 2017; defenseman Roman Josi replaced him as captain. He then opted out of retirement to finish the 2017–18 season. The Predators were also involved in a three-way trade with the Colorado Avalanche and Ottawa Senators, in which Nashville acquired Kyle Turris for Samuel Girard, Vladislav Kamenev, and a draft pick. On April 5, 2018, the Predators clinched their first division title in team history while also claiming their first Presidents' Trophy. They defeated the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the playoffs in six games, and then lost to the Winnipeg Jets in seven games in the second round. Pekka Rinne won the Vezina Trophy as the league's best goaltender.

During the 2018–19 season, the Predators traded out Kevin Fiala for Mikael Granlund and also acquired Wayne Simmonds from the Philadelphia Flyers for Ryan Hartman. The Predators clinched their second consecutive division title, but lost to the Dallas Stars in the first round of the 2019 playoffs. The team had the worst power play percentage in the league that season.

In the 2019–20 offseason, the Predators traded out P. K. Subban to the New Jersey Devils for Steven Santini a prospect and two draft picks. They also picked up Matt Duchene in free agency. The Predators played in their first outdoor game at the 2020 Winter Classic, facing the Dallas Stars at the Cotton Bowl. The Predators fired head coach Laviolette on January 6, 2020, with the team sitting at sixth place in the division at the time and a record of 19–15–7.

On January 7, 2020, John Hynes was hired as the third head coach in the Predators' franchise history. In Hynes' first game as coach, Pekka Rinne became the second Predators goaltender to score a goal in a 5–2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks. The Predators advanced to the 2020 expanded playoffs, but were defeated by the Arizona Coyotes in the qualifying round. The Predators returned to the playoffs in 2021, but were defeated by the Carolina Hurricanes in the first round. Following the playoffs, Rinne announced his retirement. He finished his career playing only with the Predators and the team's leader in wins and games played.

The Predators hosted the Tampa Bay Lightning at Nissan Stadium in their second outdoor game, the 2022 Stadium Series, on February 26, 2022, losing 3–2. They clinched the 2022 playoffs, but were swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche in the first round.

On June 17, 2022, former Governor of Tennessee Bill Haslam began purchasing shares in the club to become the majority owner.

In February 2023, David Poile announced that he would retire as general manager of the team at the end of the 2022–23 season, and that former head coach Barry Trotz would succeed him, effective June 30, 2023. The team became sellers at the trade deadline shipping out Tanner Jeannot, Mikael Granlund, and Mattias Ekholm for multiple draft picks. The team missed the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons.

On May 31, 2023, the team hired former player Andrew Brunette as the fourth head coach in franchise history. In the 2023–24 season, the Predators finished as the first wildcard, but lost to the Vancouver Canucks in six games in the first round of the 2024 playoffs. In the 2024 offseason, the team made a splash in free agency signing Jonathan Marchessault, Steven Stamkos, and Brady Skjei. However, the team finished 30th in the NHL with the second fewest goals for. On February 2, 2026, Trotz announced he would retire at the end of the season.