The Nashville Predators are back home to host the St. Louis Blues tonight for a 7 p.m. CT puck drop at Bridgestone Arena. This evening’s contest is the fourth and final meeting of the season between the divisional rivals - and the third time the two have gotten together in the past 10 days.
Both most recent meetings between the Preds and Blues have featured plenty of physicality with St. Louis earning a pair of wins. Now, Nashville will look to follow up their victory on Tuesday in Carolina and conclude the season series with St. Louis on the right side of the ledger.
“There hasn't been a lot of feeling good throughout the course of the year,” Preds forward Luke Evangelista said following Tuesday’s win. “It's been a grind, personally and as a team. So, just to string a few solid games together here and get some wins, it's just a good feeling in the room. It's a lot more fun when things are clicking for us, and we're just going to keep looking to build.”
The Predators did not practice on Wednesday but are set to hold a morning skate prior to this evening’s game. Defenseman Jordan Oesterle returned to the Nashville lineup on Tuesday in Carolina. Forward Jakub Vrana and blueliner Andreas Englund were healthy scratches for the Preds.
Last Time Out:
Evangelista tallied twice, and Michael Bunting recorded a power-play goal in Nashville’s 3-1 win over the Hurricanes. Juuse Saros made 34 saves in net to earn his 200th NHL win.
Saros became the sixth Finnish-born goaltender in NHL history to reach the milestone. The list is topped by former teammate Pekka Rinne (369). Per NHL Stats, Filip Forsberg (1a) recorded his 22nd career five-game point streak and passed Roman Josi (21) for the most in Predators history.
The Good Guys:
Forsberg continues to lead the Preds with 28 goals and 66 points, followed by Jonathan Marchessault (19g-30a) with 49 points and Steven Stamkos with 23 goals and 45 points. Saros is now 18-27-6 in net; Justus Annunen is 14-11-1 overall.
The Opposition:
The Blues are riding a seven-game win streak that includes a pair of triumphs over the Predators. St. Louis defeated Montreal by a 6-1 final on Tuesday night. Robert Thomas (19g-45a) leads the club with 64 points, followed by Jordan Kyrou with 31 goals and 62 points. Dylan Holloway has 24 goals and 60 points on the season. Jordan Binnington is 24-21-4 in net; Joel Hofer is 14-7-3.
All-Time Meetings:
The Predators are 61-54-(4)-13 all-time against the Blues, including a 35-20-(3)-7 mark at home. Nashville is 5-4-1 in their last 10 outings versus St. Louis and 3-2-0 in their last five at Bridgestone Arena.
Nashville has won 17 of its last 30 games against St. Louis – including 15 of its last 27 – and has scored at least four goals in 13 of those wins. The Predators advanced to the Western Conference Final for the first time in franchise history in 2017 after defeating the Blues in the second round, 4-2.
Milestone Watch:
Jordan Oesterle is one game from 400 in his NHL career.
Filip Forsberg (356) is one assist from passing David Legwand (356) for the second-most in franchise history.
Ryan O’Reilly is two goals from 300 in his NHL career.
Watch & Listen:
Coverage for tonight’s contest begins at 6:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show on FanDuel Sports Network South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley and Hal Gill. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic, analyst Chris Mason and rinkside reporter Kara Hammer will have the call on the television side.
Voice of the Predators Pete Weber and Jay More will call the game on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network, with pregame, postgame and intermission coverage by Max Herz beginning one hour before puck drop. The game will also be broadcast in Spanish on El Jefe which airs on 96.7 FM, 105.3 FM and 810 AM. (El partido también se transmite en español por El Jefe en 96.7 FM, 105.3 FM y 810 AM.)
