Daily Primer Oct. 22: Wild aim to slow Predators

The Nashville Predators have their work cut out for them if they plan to keep pace with the likes of the Colorado Avalanche and Chicago Blackhawks in the Central Division. Tuesday night, they'll try to extend their points streak to six games.

Nashville (5-3-1) is one of 16 teams in action Tuesday, when they'll face the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center (8 p.m. ET, NBCSN, TSN). The Predators are 4-0-1 in their past five games and sit one point behind the Chicago Blackhawks for second place in the Central.

Here's a look at the action Tuesday night:

Anaheim Ducks at Toronto Maple Leafs – After losing on opening night to the Colorado Avalanche, the Ducks have reeled off seven wins in a row. Things are about to get a bit more difficult, though; Tuesday marks the beginning of an eight-game road trip for Anaheim. The Ducks won't play at Honda Center again until Nov. 6. Toronto, meanwhile, has lost back-to-back games after winning six of its first seven. The Maple Leafs dropped a 3-1 decision at Chicago on Saturday night.

Vancouver Canucks at New York Islanders – Vancouver plays the fifth of a seven-game road trip against the Islanders, who are concluding a four-game homestand. The Canucks (5-4-1) lost 3-1 to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Sunday. The Blue Jackets got 37 saves from backup goalie Curtis McElhinney. The Islanders (3-3-2) will look to bounce back from a 4-3 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday. New York will be forced to play without forward Michael Grabner, who on Monday received a two-game suspension for his hit on Hurricanes forward Nathan Gerbe.

New Jersey Devils at Columbus Blue Jackets – New Jersey earned its first win of the season Saturday, when they shut out the New York Rangers, 4-0, at Prudential Center. Now the Devils (1-4-3) hit the road to face the Blue Jackets, who beat Vancouver on home ice Sunday to improve to 3-5-0. Devils forward Patrik Elias is expected to miss his second straight game due to an illness.

Edmonton Oilers at Montreal Canadiens – Edmonton makes one last stop on its six-game road trip Tuesday, hoping to build off a 3-1 win against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday. It's been the lone victory on the trip so far for the Oilers, who sit in last place in the Pacific Division at 2-6-1. They'll be without forwards Taylor Hall (knee) and Ryan Smyth (undisclosed), who were back in Edmonton on Monday being examined. Montreal (5-3-0) has also been hit hard by the injury bug. The Canadiens will be forced to go without the likes of Daniel Briere (concussion), Brandon Prust (shoulder) and Max Pacioretty (hamstring).

Chicago Blackhawks at Florida Panthers – The defending Stanley Cup champs are 4-0-1 in their past five games heading into this week's trip to the Sunshine State that also includes a stop in Tampa Bay on Thursday. Much of the Blackhawks' solid start can be attributed to the play of No. 1 goalie Corey Crawford, who is 3-0-1 with a .963 save percentage in his past four appearances. Florida has already gone through a couple of three-game losing streaks, but a 30-save performance from Tim Thomas on Saturday allowed the Panthers to earn a 2-1 victory against the Wild. Tuesday marks the third of a six-game homestand for Florida.

Nashville Predators at Minnesota Wild – In a game that can be seen on NBCSN in the United States and TSN in Canada, the Predators finish up their three-game road trip by visiting the Wild at Xcel Energy Center. Nashville has earned at least a point in five straight games (4-0-1) and recorded a 3-1 victory at Winnipeg on Sunday. Seth Jones, the No. 4 pick at the 2013 NHL Draft, played a total of 53:52 over the weekend; the Predators also beat Montreal by a 2-1 score Saturday. Minnesota (3-3-3) has lost three in a row, but it did pick up a point in a 2-1 shootout loss at Florida on Saturday.

Washington Capitals at Winnipeg Jets – The Jets (4-5-0) finish up their six-game homestand by hosting the Capitals, who have lost their first two road games of the season. Washington, though, did win its last time out; the Caps wrapped up a five-game homestand with a 4-1 victory against Columbus at Verizon Center on Saturday. Alex Ovechkin is leading the way for Washington with seven goals in eight games.

Calgary Flames at Phoenix Coyotes – TJ Brodie's late heroics allowed Calgary to improve to 4-2-2 on Monday, when he broke a 2-2 tie at 19:30 of the third period to lift the Flames to a 3-2 win against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center. All three of Calgary's goals came on the power play, including rookie Sean Monahan's sixth goal of the season. The Flames now head to Phoenix, where the Coyotes (5-2-2) will be aiming to extend their points streak to seven games.