The Nashville Predators begin a five-game road trip tonight when they face the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena for an 8 p.m. CT puck drop. This evening’s contest marks the second of four meetings between the division rivals this season; the Preds defeated the Avs in Nashville just over one week ago.
The Predators snapped a three-game skid on Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena when they shut out Utah by a 4-0 final - a game that gave the Preds a boost of confidence heading into their longest road trip of the season.
I thought today was a good step,” Preds Head Coach Andrew Brunette said following the win. “It’s been tough sledding for us. I think we've lost some games we should have won, and lost some games would should have definitely lost. That is always tough, but I kind of saw the belief, the camaraderie, the pull-the-rope together, and the selflessness in all kinds of different areas; everybody brought it. Now, it's a step; we've got a ways to go, but it's got to start with the first step.”
Preds forward Colton Sissons returned to the lineup on Saturday after missing one game with an upper-body injury. Tommy Novak (upper-body, day-to-day) did not play against Utah. Forward Mark Jankowski was scratched.
Last Time Out:
Filip Forsberg scored twice to propel the Predators past the Utah Hockey Club on Saturday night. Jonathan Marchessault and Gustav Nyqust also found the back of the net, and goaltender Juuse Saros made 26 saves for his second shutout of the season. Forsberg’s first goal, as well as Marchessault’s tally, came on the power play, and then Preds were perfect on the penalty kill once more.
The Good Guys:
Forsberg leads the team with eight goals and 13 points, followed by Ryan O’Reilly (3g-7a) and Roman Josi (1g-9a) with 10 points each. Marchessault (3g-6a) has nine points on the season, while Nyquist (5g-3a) and Steven Stamkos (4g-4a) have eight points apiece. Saros is 4-7-1 in net with a .911 save percentage.
The Opposition:
Colorado has alternated wins and losses through four games in November, including a 6-4 triumph over Carolina on Saturday night. Nathan MacKinnon paces the Avalanche - and the entire NHL - with 29 points through just 15 games. Cale Makar has six goals and 24 points on the season, while Mikko Rantanen has eight goals and 20 points. Justus Annunen is 5-2-0 in net; Alexandar Georgiev is 2-5-0.
All-Time Meetings:
Nashville is 50-37-(5)-4 all-time against Colorado, including a 23-21-(2)-2 record in Denver.
The Predators are 17-9-1 in their last 27 games against the Avalanche; they are 6-5-1 in their last 11; and 1-4-0 in their last five games at Ball Arena.
Nashville has won 18 of its last 28 regular-season games against Colorado, including an 11-game win streak from April 5, 2016-Nov. 7, 2018. During the win streak, Nashville posted 4.2 goals per game and held Colorado to two-or-fewer goals seven times.
Notables Versus Colorado:
Roman Josi recorded a 12-game point streak vs. Colorado (5g-11a) from March 28, 2016-Jan. 21, 2019. He has recorded a point in 31 of his 45 career games against the Avalanche, totaling 15 goals and 43 points.
Colton Sissons has 18 points (9g-9a) in 27 career regular-season games vs. Colorado, including his first goal of the season in the first matchup.
Filip Forsberg notched his fourth career hat trick on Feb. 23, 2017, vs. the Avalanche. He’s averaged more than a point per game in his career against Colorado, recording 38 points (19g-19a) in 36 games, including five game-winning goals, which is tied for the most he has against any single team (Stars).
Milestone Watch:
Gustav Nyquist is one game from 800 in his NHL career.
Luke Schenn is one point from 200 in his NHL career.
Tommy Novak is one point from 100 in his NHL career.
Steven Stamkos is three games from 1,110 in his NHL career; Stamkos (217) is one power-play goal from passing Mike Gartner and Jaromir Jagr (217) for sole possession of the 11th-most in NHL history.
Filip Forsberg (78) is three power-play goals from passing Shea Weber (80) for the most in Predators history; Forsberg is five goals from 300 in his NHL career.
Ryan O’Reilly is four assists from 500 in his NHL career.
Roman Josi is four points from 700 in his NHL career.
Watch & Listen:
Coverage for tonight’s game begins at 7:30 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.)
