After a two-week hiatus to accommodate the 4 Nations Face-Off, the Nashville Predators are back in action this evening to host the Colorado Avalanche at Bridgestone Arena for a 5 p.m. CT puck drop. Today’s contest is the fourth and final meeting between the division rivals this season; the Preds defeated the Avs at home last November before dropping two in Denver.
The final 28 games of the season have now arrived, and the Predators will begin a four-game homestand this evening with Colorado, New Jersey, Florida and Winnipeg all set to come to town over the coming week. Those opponents will provide plenty of challenges, but the Preds are looking forward to beginning the final eight weeks of the regular season with a chance to find their identity once more.
“What’s in the past is the past, and you can only control the future,” Preds Head Coach Andrew Brunette said. “We talked a little before the break; it was a lot of heaviness. There's a lot of expectation…and we didn't meet what our internal or external expectations were the first 54 [games]. We have an opportunity here for the last 28 to get back on track, to play as close to us as we can every night, kind of get that identity here through the last 28. It’s going to be hard, we’re going to have to stay present here, but it starts [tonight]. I think the guys should be a little bit refreshed and ready to go.”
Prior to Friday’s practice, the Predators recalled forward Kieffer Bellows and defenseman Jake Livingstone from Milwaukee. Since they last played, the Preds had also claimed defenseman Andreas Englund on waivers from Los Angeles and announced blueliner Jeremy Lauzon will miss the remainder of the season due to a lower-body injury.
On Friday afternoon, the Predators announced defenseman Adam Wilsby will miss the remainder of the season with an upper-body injury. Forward Zach L’Heureux was placed on Injured Reserve with an upper-body injury and is week-to-week, while forward Mark Jankowski was activated from IR.
Last Time Out:
The Predators went into the break with a 6-4 win over Buffalo to snap a six-game skid. Filip Forsberg and Brady Skjei each tallied twice in the win, while Ryan O’Reilly had four assists - all primary - and Jonathan Marchessault recorded a goal and three helpers.
Per NHL Stats, O’Reilly (133 GP) became the seventh-fastest player in Predators history to 100 points with the club. The only others to reach the mark in fewer games are Steve Sullivan (94 GP), Paul Kariya (98 GP), Jason Arnott (119 GP), Cliff Ronning (125 GP), J-P Dumont (126 GP) and Ryan Johansen (132 GP).
The Good Guys:
Forsberg continues to lead the Preds with 21 goals and 53 points, followed by Marchessault with 17 goals and 44 points. Roman Josi (9g-28a) has 37 points on the season, O’Reilly has 20 helpers and 34 points, and Steven Stamkos has 17 goals to go with 33 points. Juuse Saros is 11-23-6 in net this season; Justus Annunen is 13-7-0.
The Opposition:
The Avalanche won two in a row headed into the break before Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Devon Toews won the 4 Nations Face-Off title with Canada. MacKinnon leads Colorado - and the entire NHL - with 87 points (21g-66a), followed by Martin Necas (20g-44a), who was recently acquired from Carolina for Mikko Rantanen, with 64 points. Makar has 22 goals and 63 points from the blue line; Artturi Lehkonen has 23 goals and 33 points. Mackenzie Blackwood is 20-15-5 on the season; former Preds goaltender Scott Wedgewood is 6-5-1.
All-Time Meetings:
Nashville is 50-38-(5)-5 in 98 games all-time against the Avalanche. The Predators are 2-2-1 in their last five outings against Colorado and 3-5-2 in their past 10 games. At Bridgestone Arena, the Preds are 3-1-1 in their last five meetings with the Avs.
Notables Versus Colorado:
Ryan O’Reilly has recorded 25 points (9g-16a) against Colorado since the 2018-19 season, the most among all NHL skaters. O’Reilly was selected by Colorado in the second round (33rd overall) of the 2009 NHL Draft. He played 427 games for Colorado from 2009-15, recording 246 points (90g-156a).
Filip Forsberg has produced at more than a point-per-game pace in his career vs. the Avalanche, tallying 39 points (19g-20a) in 38 contests; Forsberg notched his fourth career hat trick on Feb. 13, 2017 vs. Colorado.
Steven Stamkos has 20 points (10g-10a) in 25 career meetings with Colorado and faced the Avalanche in the 2022 Stanley Cup Final as a member of the Lightning.
Justin Barron was selected by Colorado in the first round (25th overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft. He played two games for Colorado in 2021-22.
Justus Annunen was selected by Colorado in the third round (64th overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft. He played 29 games for Colorado from 2021-24, going 16-9-2 with two shutouts.
Andreas Englund played 36 games for Colorado in 2022-23, recording three assists.
Head Coach Andrew Brunette played three seasons for Colorado from 2005-08, recording 205 points (70g-135a).
Milestone Watch:
Steven Stamkos is two assists from 600 in his NHL career. Stamkos (572) is two goals from passing Mike Bossy (573) for the 23rd-most in NHL history.
Ryan O’Reilly is four goals from 300 in his NHL career.
Watch & Listen:
Coverage for Saturday night in Smashville begins at 4:30 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.)
