GAME DAY: Preds at Stars, April 3

The Nashville Predators will conclude a three-game road trip tonight in Dallas when they face the Stars at American Airlines Center for a 7 p.m. CT puck drop. This evening’s contest is the third of four meetings between the division rivals; the Preds and Stars have split the season series thus far, and they’ll conclude the regular season later this month in Nashville.

A back-to-back set Monday and Tuesday saw the Predators fall to the Flyers by a 2-1 final before dropping an 8-4 decision to Columbus. Now, the Preds will look to snap their four-game skid and put forth an improved defensive effort tonight in Dallas.

“I think for us, it was a tough game, but the effort was there, the compete was there,” Preds Head Coach Andrew Brunette said following Tuesday’s loss to the Blue Jackets. “We just didn't…we self-inflicted a little bit. There's some things we can learn and we can be better at…understand game management, shift management got us in trouble on three goals, things that as a young team right now that we have to learn and get better at. We've had a great week, we played hard every night, and we played hard again tonight, and I expect us to continue.”

The Predators dressed 11 forwards and seven defensemen on both Monday and Tuesday. Forwards Colton Sissons (week-to-week) and Jonathan Marchessault (day-to-day) have each missed the last two games with lower-body injuries.

The Good Guys:

Filip Forsberg, Michael Bunting, Justin Barron and Jordan Oesterle all found the back of the net on Tuesday in Columbus. Oesterle’s goal was his first as a member of the Preds.

Forsberg continues to lead the club with 29 goals and 68 points, followed by Marchessault (19g-30a) with 49 points, and then Steven Stamkos (23g-22a) and Ryan O’Reilly (17g-28a) with 45 points apiece. Juuse Saros is 18-29-6 in net; Justus Annunen is 14-13-1.

The Opposition:

The Stars have won each of their last six outings, including a pair of victories over Seattle to close out the month of March. Mikko Rantanen, who was acquired by Dallas from Carolina at the Trade Deadline, has 31 goals and 81 points on the season. Jason Robertson (33g-42a) and former Preds forward Matt Duchene (29g-46a) have 75 points apiece; Wyatt Johnston has 30 goals and 67 points. Jake Oettinger is 35-15-3 in net; Casey DeSmith is 14-6-1.

All-Time Meetings:

The Predators are 51-53-(1)-5 all-time against the Stars, including a 20-31-3 mark in Dallas. Nashville is 3-7-0 in the last 10 versus Dallas and 3-2-0 in the last five in Texas.

The teams will play their regular-season finales against each other on April 16 at Bridgestone Arena. This will only be the second time that the Predators have begun and concluded the season facing the same opponent (Columbus in 2012-13).

Notables Versus Dallas:

Steven Stamkos has tallied 29 points (17g-12a) in his last 24 contests against the Stars. He has picked up 28 points (17g-11a) over his last 22 contests vs. Dallas, including 11 points (6g-5a) in his last 12 meetings.

Ryan O’Reilly’s 23 career assists against Dallas are tied for the 10th-most by an active skater in the NHL.

The Predators have scored first in seven of their last eight wins against the Stars.

Milestone Watch:

Ryan O’Reilly is one goal from 300 in his NHL career.

Brady Skjei is three assists from 200 in his NHL career.

Watch & Listen:

Coverage for this evening’s contest begins at 6:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show on FanDuel Sports Network South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic and analyst Chris Mason will have the call on the television side.

Max Herz and Hal Gill will call the game on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network. 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.)