Game Day: Preds at Coyotes

The Nashville Predators are back in Arizona tonight for the second time this season as they get set to face the Coyotes to conclude their two-game trip. The first meeting on Nov. 3 ended with a 3-2 shootout win for the Coyotes in a game that saw Matt Irwin and Craig Smith score for the Preds.
Nashville is coming off a 5-2 loss on Thursday night at Dallas with tallies from Viktor Arvidsson and Calle Jarnkrok. Pekka Rinne was pulled in the game, allowing Marek Mazanec to stop 18 of 19 shots in relief. The Preds practiced on Friday afternoon in Glendale, with Colton Sissons (Injured Reserve) and Ryan Ellis (IR) both taking part.
Former Coyote Mike Ribeiro currently sits atop the team scoring lead with 18 points, including 15 assists. P.K. Subban and Ryan Johansen have 17 points each, followed by Arvidsson, James Neal, Filip Forsberg and Roman Josi who have all recorded 16 points. Neal's 11 goals are first on the team, followed by Arvidsson's nine. Rinne is 11-6-4 on the season in 21 starts; Mazanec is 0-2-0.

The Coyotes (8-13-5) are winless in their last six, including a 2-1 overtime loss to Calgary on Thursday. Radim Vrbata leads the team in goals and points with eight and 17, respectively. Max Domi has 16 points on the season and Tobias Reider has found the back of the net seven times. Mike Smith, who has been back since missing time with an injury, is 4-3-4 in net with a .926 save percentage.

Nashville did not hold a morning skate on Saturday, a look at their projected lineup
is available here
.
As the Preds look for a win before returning to Nashville next week, here are three things to watch for:
Hostile Environments:
Nashville's home record has been stellar this season, but the numbers away from home still leave something to be desired. After Thursday's loss in Dallas, the Preds hold a 3-8-2 mark on the road.
"That's up to us to fix, and we've just got to get better on the road," defenseman Mattias Ekholm said after Thursday's game. "It seems like we don't make those mistakes at home, but somehow they happen on the road, and that's something we have to correct."
The first time the Predators played in Arizona this season was a game they felt they should have won, so on top of desire to correct mistakes regardless of the opponent, the Preds would also like to avenge a game that got away last month.
Career High:
The way he's been playing, it was only a matter of time before Viktor Arvidsson set a career high for goals scored. The winger tallied his ninth of the season on Thursday night, besting his previous high of eight set last season in less than half the time it took him this time around. Arvidsson's ninth also came shorthanded, his second such goal this season, becoming the first Preds player to have multiple shorthanded goals in the same season since 2011-12.
Nothing for Granted:
Entering Thursday's game, the Stars hadn't won in five consecutive games. Similarly in Arizona, the Coyotes are winless in their last six. Second in the League in goals-against per game and second to last in goals-scored per game, the numbers aren't good for the Coyotes. Which will make it even more important for the Preds to lock down early and keep the pressure on.
"They're in a bad spot, but we're in that spot too," Forsberg said. "Every team feels like every team is in that spot right now, feeling like they not only want to, but just have to win games to stay in there. We're in the same spot, and we need to do everything we can to rise above it."
Take It In:
Tonight's 7 p.m. CT start from Gila River Arena can be seen on Fox Sports Tennessee, with Predators Live! beginning at 6:30 with Willy Daunic, Stu Grimson and Lyndsay Rowley. The Preds Radio Network and 102.5 The Game will have Pete Weber and Brent Peterson on the airwaves.