The Nashville Predators will look to improve their record on home ice with another winning performance as they face the Anaheim Ducks at Bridgestone Arena on Tuesday.
Puck drop is at 7 p.m. CT with the game set to broadcast on Bally Sports South, 102.5 The Game and El Jefe Radio. Here’s everything you need to know:
LAST TIME OUT
After a disappointing effort and 6-3 loss to the Calgary Flames on Thursday, the Predators were much happier with their game on Saturday, and came away with a big two points in a 4-3 win over the Central Division rival Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center.
“We were way more competitive,” Predators Head Coach Andrew Brunette said following a team practice on Monday. “It was really good to get the win because that wasn’t an easy place to win. We’re still having a little bit of a hard time with keeping momentum, but I thought when we lost it we were able to get it back and get the win out of it.”
Filip Forsberg scored twice for his sixth multi-goal game of the season, the fourth-most in the NHL. With his 20th and 21st tallies on the season, Forsberg became the 11th Swedish-born player in NHL history to record at least eight 20-goal campaigns.
“It was a good game,” Forsberg said on Monday. “It was a good test and we answered the bell against a great team and got the win. And that’s something to keep going against Anaheim, for sure.”
Gustav Nyquist recorded a goal and an assist in the effort and extended his point streak to eight games (6g-6a). He is one game away from matching his season-high nine-game point streak from Nov. 9-28 (2g-9a) and two away from matching his career-high 10-game point streak from 2013-14. Nyquist additionally became the second player in franchise history to record two separate point streaks of at least eight games in the same season, the first being Sergei Kostitsyn in 2010-11.
Luke Evangelista netted his seventh goal of the season and the third in his last four games. The 21-year-old is tied for sixth among NHL rookies in points with 19 (7g-12a).
Kevin Lankinen turned away 26 shots to earn his fifth win of the season in his 100th career NHL game.
Denis Gurianov skated in his Predators debut, and his first career meeting against his former club, and registered a hit and two shots on goal in the effort.
The result moved Nashville to 22-17-1 on the season and 10-7-1 on the road.
THE GOOD GUYS
Forsberg leads the Predators in points (45), goals (21) and assists (24). O’Reilly is second in points with 35 (15g-20a) and Nyquist is third with 32 (10g-22a).
Jeremy Lauzon leads the Predators and the NHL in hits with 149. He has recorded 17 more hits than the player in second place, former Predator Tanner Jeannot, and 49 more than the next defenseman, Winnipeg’s Brenden Dillon.
Juuse Saros is 16-14-1 after 31 games, with a 3.01 goals-against average and a .901 save percentage. Lankinen is 5-3-0 after 12 games, with a 3.14 goals-against average and a .901 save percentage.
Nashville is fourth in the Central Division with 45 points and a 12-10-0 record at Bridgestone Arena.
THE OTHER GUYS
The Ducks arrive in Music City on Tuesday looking to start a five-game road trip on the right foot and press pause on a five-game skid.
Frank Vatrano leads the Ducks in goals (18) and points (28), while Ryan Strome leads the team in assists (17).
Goaltender John Gibson missed Anaheim’s last game on Sunday and is day-to-day with an illness. Gibson is 7-16-0 after 25 games, with a 2.97 goals-against average and a .903 save percentage. Backup netminder Lukas Dostal is 6-9-0 after 17 games, with a 3.50 goals-against average and a .901 save percentage. Anaheim additionally recalled netminder Alex Stalock from the AHL’s San Diego Gulls to back up Dostal on Sunday.
Anaheim is seventh in the Pacific Division with a 13-25-1 record and a 7-9-0 record on the road; they are additionally 3-6-1 in their last 10 outings.
ALL-TIME MEETINGS
The Predators are 38-32-(2)-11 all-time against the Ducks, including a 25-12-(2)-3 record at Bridgestone Arena. This is the second of three matchups between Nashville and Anaheim this season and the second and final at home. In their last meeting on Nov. 14, the Predators fell to the Ducks by a 3-2 decision at Bridgestone Arena.
The Predators are 4-1-0 in their last five games against the Ducks; they are 7-2-1 in their last 10; and 3-2-0 in their last five at home. Nashville went 3-0-0 against Anaheim last season, with two of its three victories coming in overtime.
The Predators posted a six-game winning streak against the Ducks from Nov. 22, 2021-March 12, 2023. It was tied for Nashville’s longest winning streak vs. Anaheim in franchise history (also: Jan. 5, 2011-March 18, 2012). Nashville has earned at least one point in 15 of its last 18 games against Anaheim (12-3-3).
Nashville reached the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in franchise history after defeating Anaheim, 4-2, in the 2017 Western Conference Final.
NOTABLES VS. ANAHEIM
- Forsberg has 24 points (9g-15a) in 22 career games against Anaheim, including six multi-point outings. He became the first player in Predators history to record multiple five-point games when he notched two goals and three assists on March 21, 2022 at Anaheim.
- Josi scored his first career NHL goal on Dec. 10, 2011 vs. Anaheim. He has 25 points (8g-17a) in 31 career regular-season games and is currently on a six-game point streak against the Ducks (4g-4a).
- Colton Sissons has 13 points (5g-8a) in 19 career meetings with Anaheim. He notched a hat trick in Game 6 of the 2017 Western Conference Final against the Ducks to help send the Predators to the Stanley Cup Final.
- Saros is 6-2-1 with a 2.53 goals-against average and .918 save percentage in nine career games vs. Anaheim.
- Lauzon made his Predators debut on March 21, 2022 at Anaheim.
LINE ‘EM UP
Below are Nashville’s line combinations from Saturday’s game against Dallas:
Forsberg - O'Reilly - Nyquist
Pärssinen - Sissons - Gurianov
Smith - Novak - Evangelista
Trenin - McCarron - Tomasino
Josi - Fabbro
McDonagh - Schenn
Lauzon - Carrier
Lankinen
Saros
Scratches: Barrie (upper body, day-to-day), Glass, Sherwood
MILESTONE WATCH
- Josi (166) is one goal from passing Shea Weber (166) for the most by a defenseman and the third-most among all skaters in Predators history.
- Tyson Barrie is two games from 800 in his NHL career.
- Forsberg is four assists from 300 in his NHL career.
- Luke Schenn is five points from 200 in his NHL career.
WATCH & LISTEN
Coverage for Tuesday’s game begins at 6:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show on Bally Sports South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley and Hal Gill. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic, analysts Chris Mason and rinkside reporter Kara Hammer will have the call on the television side. The game can also be streamed live on Fubo; click here for a 14-day free trial.
Pete Weber and Jay More will call the game on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network, with pregame, postgame and intermission coverage by Max Herz beginning one hour before puck drop. 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.)
