Could someone sling a catfish from the upper deck of Nissan Stadium and hit an ice rink in the middle of the field?

It’s a question that may be answered some day. The Predators want to host an outdoor hockey game and have let the NHL know it. The interest is mutual.

“We have been to Nashville,” said Steve Mayer, the NHL’s executive vice president of events and content. “We love the market. We have talked to the team.”

It won’t happen next season. The NHL will announce its major event schedule for the 2019-20 season — including the All-Star Game and its outdoor stadium games — on New Year’s Day, when the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins play in the Winter Classic at Notre Dame’s football stadium in South Bend, Ind.

Based on discussions with team and league sources, it is clear that Nashville will not be among the outdoor venues announced.

The league will, however, announce its outdoor events for the next two seasons sometime in 2019, and the city is under consideration.

“Do I think we’ll get one eventually? Absolutely,” said David Poile, general manager of the Predators. “Nashville puts on good events. I would like to see us and the city of Nashville get together.

“I would think our Winter Classic would be a little different than anybody else’s. I think it would be pretty special to get it.”

Why Nashville?

The Predators are one of eight teams — along with Arizona, Carolina, Columbus, Dallas, Florida, Tampa Bay and Las Vegas — that haven’t participated in an outdoor game. That may be a factor in future venue choices.

“If anything, we’d like to move these signature events around,” Mayer said. “It’s part of our interest to have every team get something.”

Nashville has a track record with the league.

“They did an amazing, amazing job at the (2016) All-Star Game, and it’s an environment we love,” Mayer said. “We know they can pull it off. What was done during the Stanley Cup final (in 2017) was amazing as well.

“Of course we would look at the stadiums in a place that has had such a success doing big events for the league in the past.”

Poile believes that momentum makes Nashville a natural.

“With the experience everybody had with the All-Star Game in ’16, it’s on everybody’s radar,” he said.

Another possible factor in the city’s favor is that Bridgestone, which owns the naming rights to Nashville’s downtown arena where the Predators play, is the sponsor for this season’s Winter Classic.

Why there might be a problem with Nissan Stadium

The key to Nashville hosting an outdoor hockey game is finding the right venue.

“There’s a lot of logistics, like where you play it,” Poile said. “That would be the first one.”

The NHL began holding annual outdoor events in 2008 with the inaugural Winter Classic at the Buffalo Bills' football stadium. The league has since staged that event — traditionally held on or around New Year’s Day — at other pro football stadiums, as well as at Major League Baseball and college football stadiums.

Nissan Stadium would seem to be the most natural choice for an outdoor game in Nashville, but that could be problematic. The facility’s primary tenant, the Tennessee Titans, would have to be willing to adjust their schedule — with cooperation from the NFL — to accommodate a Winter Classic.

“We need three weeks, really, to prepare the stadium for these games,” Mayer said. “You have to own the stadium, whether it’s baseball or football, for those three weeks.

“There’s so many other factors that come into these decisions that sometimes are not in our control ... other events in town that sometimes make it very difficult for us to be able to do a game in a particular town, obviously other teams in town, that sometimes make it difficult for us to do a game. All those pieces have to fall into place.”

A solution to work around the Titans’ schedule might be the NHL’s Stadium Series: the league has staged one or more games with this brand each season since 2014 in a window between late January and early March. Nissan Stadium wouldn't have the same scheduling conflicts after the end of the NFL season.

Depending on how far into the future Nashville might be chosen to host an outdoor game, there’s another possibility: The city has approved a $275 million stadium at the fairgrounds that will be home to an expansion Major League Soccer franchise. The 30,500-seat facility is expected to be ready for play in 2021.

Vanderbilt Stadium is another venue that may be under consideration.

The NHL has scouted stadiums in the city.

“I can’t sit here and tell you that we haven’t looked at two of the prominent stadiums (in Nashville),” Mayer said.

A more intriguing possibility might be setting up a temporary stadium at Centennial Park or another locale.

“It doesn’t have to be, necessarily, a stadium,” Mayer said. “We’re looking at unique environments that could potentially house us, everything from racetracks to horse race tracks to just open spaces to landmarks.”

What Predators players had to say

Predators winger Ryan Hartman experienced his first Winter Classic from the stands before he began his professional career.

“I went to the (2009) one at Wrigley Field,” he said. “It was crazy cold, crazy snow. Just being able to go and see that, it was awesome. It’s something that you cherish because you don’t get to do it very often.”

He got to play in one two seasons ago at Busch Stadium in St. Louis when he was with the Chicago Blackhawks. He learned that the spectacle can come with difficulties.

“It was a great experience, minus that it was raining,” he said. “I remember my first shift it was like driving in the rain in a car without a windshield wiper. You could only take 10-second shifts because your shield is getting covered in rain.

“It stopped raining midway through the first (period). It was a great day. We ended up losing that game, which put a damper on it, but it was an awesome experience.”

Teammate Ryan Ellis hasn’t had the opportunity yet.

“I’ve played outdoor hockey as a kid before growing up in Canada, a lot actually,” he said. “Those were always fond memories.

“It would be great to get us in one of those one day. If you’re going to play one, you might as well play at home, get your home fans and crowd involved and do it up Nashville Predators style.”

And about that catfish?

“I’m sure they could figure out a way,” Ellis said. “Our fans are pretty creative. They’d probably launch one with a potato gun or something.”

Paul Skrbina contributed to this report. Reach Tommy Deas at 615-259-8328 and on Twitter @tommydeas.