Welcome to the NHL On Tap, a daily look at the games on the NHL schedule. There is one game on the schedule for Monday, which will be televised nationally in Canada.
Game of the day
Ottawa Senators at Nashville Predators (7:30 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, Prime, TVAS)
The Senators (28-20-4) will go for their fifth straight victory Monday. They have been led during their current run by forward Tim Stutzle, who has seven points (two goals, five assists) during a four-game point streak. Linus Ullmark will serve as the backup goalie for Anton Forsberg; Ullmark has not played since Dec. 22. Heading into that game against the Edmonton Oilers, he was 8-0-1 with a 1.43 goals-against average and .954 save percentage in his previous nine starts. Ullmark, who will play for Team Sweden at the 4 Nations Face-Off from Feb. 12-20, is 12-7-2 with a 2.38 GAA, .915 save percentage and three shutouts in 23 games (22 starts) in his first season with the Senators, who returned rookie goalie Leevi Merilainen to Belleville of the American Hockey League on Sunday.
The Predators (18-26-7) will try to end a four-game skid after winning the previous five. Despite the offseason additions of forwards Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault, a lack of offense continues to be an issue for Nashville, which lost 3-0 at the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday and has scored the second-fewest goals in the NHL (133), two more than the Anaheim Ducks. Stamkos (17) and Marchessault (15) rank second and third on the Predators in goals behind leader Filip Forsberg (18), and they need more production from forward Gustav Nyquist, who has scored just nine times in 50 games. Nyquist and Forsberg will join Ullmark with Team Sweden at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
