At an August press conference to announce his eight-year, $50 million extension, Predators defenseman Ryan Ellis said something not often heard from professional athletes.



“I’m getting paid more than enough to play hockey,” he said. “We have other guys that need to be re-upped and need to be signed in the future. I had to do my part to keep this thing going in the right direction.”



On its face, it was a refreshing sentiment. (The Predators could argue they didn’t get as much of a hometown discount as it seems at $6.25 million annual average value over eight years when Ellis might’ve fetched $7 million AAV over seven years on the free-agent market, but that’s another discussion.)



Roman Josi took notice. He’ll be in the same position next July 1, when he becomes eligible to sign an extension of his own.



“Yeah, I think so,” the Predators captain said when asked if he and others will have...