Is it October yet? 

Unfortunately, no, but we're here to help pass the time. From Aug. 8 to Sept. 1, The Hockey News Nashville Predators will be counting down 24 players in 24 days, profiling every current or potentially rostered player. 

Today's player profile is forward Michael Bunting. 

24 Nashville Predators in 24 days series 

Adam Wilsby

Jordan Oesterle

Andreas Engulund

Cole Smith

Michael McCarron

Justin Barron

Zachary L’Heureux

Matthew Wood

Nick Blankenburg

Brady Martin

As an NHL prospect 

Bunting spent just one season in the OHL before he was drafted as he had been passed over in prior OHL Drafts. He was eventually selected 160th overall in the OHL's Priority Draft. 

He joined the Sault St. Marie Greyhounds for the 2013-14 season, scoring 42 points in 48 games and recording six points in nine playoff games. In the 2014 NHL Draft, he was selected 117th overall by the Arizona Coyotes. 

Bunting returned to Soo for the 2014-15 season, scoring 74 points in 57 games and was third in scoring on the team that year.

In the playoffs, Bunting scored 14 points in 14 games in the Greyhounds' run to the OHL Western Conference Finals, falling to Connor McDavid and the Erie Otters. 

In July 2015, Bunting signed a three-year entry-level contract to officially join the Coyotes organization. 

Professional career 

Bunting started his professional career with the Springfield Falcons, scoring 25 points in 63 games and logging 41 penalty minutes. He made a brief trip to the Rapid City Rush, playing in seven games and scoring two points before returning to Springfield. 

He'd spend the next two seasons full-time with the Tucson Roadrunners, playing in 134 games and scoring 71 points. During the 2017-18 season, the Roadrunners did make the Calder Cup Playoffs, where Bunting scored four points in nine games. 

Bunting made his NHL debut during the 2018-19 season, playing five games with the Coyotes and scoring one point, which was his first career goal against the Boston Bruins. In Tucson, he played 58 games, scoring 49 points. 

The following season, Bunting spent the entire year in Tucson, scoring 49 points in 58 games, but then split time between the Coyotes and Roadrunners for the 2020-21 season. He had 13 points in 21 games with the Coyotes

That offseason, he signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs as a free agent, earning a full-time roster spot. 

As his game count in the NHL began to rise, so did his penalty minutes. In his first season as a Maple Leaf, Bunting had a career-high 63 points in 79 games and logged 80 penalty minutes.

During the 2022-23 season, he played all 82 games, scoring 49 points and recording 103 penalty minutes, the first time he had surpassed 100+ penalty minutes in his career.

Bunting entered the 2023 offseason as a free agent and signed a three-year deal with the Carolina Hurricanes, but only spent a season with the team. He scored a sound 36 points in 60 games before he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins at the deadline. 

Bunting was in Pittsburgh for a season and a half, scoring 48 points in 79 games before he was traded to Nashville at the deadline for Tommy Novak and Luke Schenn. He played the ladder end of the season, scoring nine points in 18 games. 

He is entering the final year of the 3-year, $13.5 million contract he signed with the Hurricanes. 

What role will he play this season?

Bunting has the potential to be a decent player in this lineup. 

He found success being a physical player in Toronto, but realized that the penalty minutes were becoming an issue, especially after the scoring had slowed down.  

This is a player who has a good balance of offensive production and defensive effectiveness. He can score and he can shove other players around if need be. The question is, can he harness that and be a force for the Predators?

With a lack of depth at center, having a veteran presence at wing and someone who can average 30, 40, or 50 points in the bottom six would be huge. Depending on how well the youth works on the second line, Bunting could work his way up to there. 

Again, this is a player who has scored over 50 points in an NHL season before. He knows how to be productive, but just needs the right people around him.

If Erik Haula and Bunting can establish some sort of chemistry on the third line, that'd be a gigantic gain for the Predators. 

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