Josh Cooper

jcooper2@tennessean.com

Predators defenseman Michael Del Zotto didn't provide too much clarity when asked about his summer.

He's a pending restricted free agent.

"I have no idea what's going to happen," he said this week. "Obviously I'm not too happy with how this year has gone for me. I have high expectations for myself, and being traded here I wanted to prove I could play to the best of my ability and how I had in the past. We'll see what happens this summer and just take it one day at a time."

Del Zotto's situation is worth watching. Will the Predators re-sign him? If so, at what price? His previous contract was for two years at $5.1 million.

"I've enjoyed my time here. I've only been here 2½ months," Del Zotto said. "The guys have been great to me, the organization has been unbelievable."

Nashville acquired the 23-year-old blueliner from the Rangers in January in exchange for veteran defenseman Kevin Klein.

The hope was Del Zotto would generate some more offense from the blueline, but he often found himself as a healthy scratch and finished with five points in 25 games for Nashville. Former coach Barry Trotz had said Del Zotto, a veteran of 317 NHL games, wasn't experienced enough to have a full-time role.

"Throwing Michael into the mix … he was good. I loved playing with him," defenseman Ryan Ellis said. "Obviously he's offensively minded like myself. We feed off that. We feed off each other's similarities and it was a pleasure to play with him."

Del Zotto's contract negotiations could be tricky. As a 21-year-old with the Rangers, he had 41 points — which would have been second in blueliner scoring for the Predators this season. He has excellent skating ability, good passing vision and a blast of a shot.

The past couple of years he failed to put it all together, yet it seems unlikely Nashville will let a talent like Del Zotto walk.

He's also a left-handed shot, and the belief when the Predators traded for Del Zotto was that he would work on the second defense pair with rookie Seth Jones — a right handed shot — for a number of years.

There are some important questions with Del Zotto: Will he be paid like the player who had 41 points two years ago, or the player who had trouble staying in Nashville's lineup? How much will the new coach affect Del Zotto, his style, and how he feels about the Predators?

"This will be my fourth coach in six years, so nothing new for me," Del Zotto joked.

Clearly his teammates want him back.

"I think he fits really well," defenseman Roman Josi said. "He's a great guy in the dressing room, and a great player. He makes a lot of good plays. He's really skilled and good offensively, so we can definitely use him."

Transaction: The Predators acquired Capitals defensive prospect Jaynen Rissling for a 2014 seventh-round draft pick on Saturday.

Last season with the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League, the 6-foot-4 Rissling had 37 points in 54 games.

Reach Josh Cooper at 615-726-8917 and on Twitter @joshuacooper.