Game Day: Canadiens vs. Preds Preview

Another three-game homestand concludes tonight in Nashville as the Predators host the Montreal Canadiens with a special 6 p.m. CT start time at Bridgestone Arena. This evening's contest is the second and final meeting between the two clubs this season; Matt Duchene had a natural hat trick in the third period as the Preds fell in Montreal last month.
The Predators have split their homestand thus far with a 6-0 victory over Columbus on Tuesday followed by 2-0 loss to Boston Thursday night. Nashville registered a season-high 42 shots against the Bruins, but they were unable to find the back of the net, unlike when Filip Forsberg did so four times on his own against the Blue Jackets.

Despite alternating wins and losses in their last six games, the Predators have played well this week, and they'll look to find the win column once more against the Habs tonight.
"Yeah, especially when you play pretty well like we did tonight, you feel like you deserve more, deserve to get at least a point or some points," Preds center Ryan Johansen said following Thursday's game. "But there's good hockey teams in this League, there's good players, so just keep moving forward."
"I think that our guys felt like they played a pretty solid game, [but] we didn't find a way to win it," Preds Head Coach John Hynes said Thursday night. "We haven't strung wins together. I know they'll be able to come back and understand how we need to play, and we'll make some adjustments and see if we can be a little bit better against Montreal, but it's a good group. They have a lot of pride, they're highly competitive; I think you see the way that we play, the way that we respond to adversity and sometimes the way that we respond after a loss. I don't expect anything different come Saturday."
The Predators did not practice on Friday, but they did hold a morning skate ahead of this evening's game in Nashville.

The Good Guys:

Juuse Saros made 31 saves, and Roman Josi registered nine shots on goal in Nashville's 2-0 loss to Boston on Thursday night, just the second time the Preds have been shut out this season.
After a four-assist effort on Tuesday, Mikael Granlund leads the Preds in scoring with 25 points (5g-20a) in 23 games, followed by Matt Duchene (13g-11a) with 24 points and Josi (7g-13a) with 20 points. Johansen has six goals and 18 assists on the season, and Forsberg has now potted 10 goals and tallied 15 points in just 14 games. Saros is now 10-8-1 in net for Nashville with a .923 save percentage.

The Opposition:

Montreal has dropped their last two games, including a 4-1 loss to Colorado on Thursday, and the club has won six games overall this season. Tyler Toffoli (5g-10a) and Nick Suzuki (4g-11a) co-lead the team with 15 points apiece, followed by Josh Anderson (7g-6a) with 13 points and Jonathan Drouin (3g-9a) with 12 points. Christian Dvorak and Mike Hoffman each have four goals apiece. Jake Allen is 5-11-1 in net on the season, and Sam Montembeault, who got the win against Nashville last month, is 1-4-1.

All-Time Meetings:

The Predators are 14-7-(1)-6 all-time against the Canadiens, including a 7-1-(1)-4 record at Bridgestone Arena. Nashville has picked up at least a point in 15 of its last 17 meetings with Montreal (11-2-4) and has only lost twice in regulation since Jan. 15, 2009.
In 17 contests since the 2009-10 season, Nashville has limited Montreal to an average of 1.8 goals per game, including 15 games in which the Preds have given up two or fewer goals. Nashville has only lost once in regulation at home to Montreal, a 3-1 defeat on March 10, 2003.
On Nov. 14, 2009, the Predators put a franchise-record 55 shots on goal and outshot the Canadiens by a club-record 35 shots, and Pekka Rinne made 20 saves in a 2-0 victory at Bridgestone Arena.

Notables Versus Montreal:

Mikael Granlund posted an eight-game point streak vs. Montreal from Dec. 22, 2015-Jan. 7, 2019, tallying three goals and 13 points. He has 17 points (3g-14a) in 14 career games against the Canadiens, including six multi-point outings, one of which came on Nov. 20 (2a).
Matt Duchene has 17 points (6g-11a) in 20 career meetings with Montreal. He notched his second career hat trick - and first with the Predators - on Nov. 20 at the Bell Centre. Roman Josi has eight points (1g-7a) in 13 career games against the Canadiens.
Nick Cousins played 58 games for the Canadiens in 2019-20 and had 22 points (9g-13a).

When You Go:

The Bridgestone Arena Plaza opens at 4 p.m. CT, and Arena doors open at 4:30 p.m. ahead of tonight's special 6 p.m. puck drop. The first 5,000 fans will receive a Preds t-shirt, presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee. Additionally, the Nashville Predators Foundation, empowered by SmileDirectClub, and in partnership with the Nashville Fire Department, will host its annual toy drive tonight. All fans are invited to bring a new, unwrapped toy as they enter the game on Saturday evening - or fans may purchase items from the Foundation's Amazon Wish List.

Watch & Listen:

Coverage for this evening's 6 p.m. CT puck drop from Nashville begins at 5:30 p.m. CT with the Predators Live! pregame show on Bally Sports South hosted by Lyndsay Rowley and Terry Crisp. Willy Daunic, Chris Mason and Kara Hammer have the call on the television side, while Pete Weber and Hal Gill will broadcast on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network. Pregame coverage on the radio begins at 5 p.m. with Darren McFarland.
Additionally, tonight's game may be seen outside of the Preds viewing region on NHL Network and on City, Sportsnet and TVA in Canada. For broadcast information and channel locations throughout the country,
click here
.