Game Day: Preds at Blues Preview

The Nashville Predators (21-17-6) will aim to continue climbing in the Central Division standings as they visit the St. Louis Blues (22-20-3) for a key matchup Thursday at Enterprise Center.
The puck drops at 7 p.m. CT, and the game will be broadcast on Bally Sports South, 102.5 The Game and El Jefe Radio. Here's everything you need to know:

Line 'Em Up

Below are Nashville's lines from Tuesday's game vs. Columbus:
Forsberg - Glass - Duchene
Niederreiter - Johansen - Granlund
Smith - Parssinen - Sissons
Trenin - Novak - Jeannot
McDonagh - Josi
Ekholm - Carrier
Lauzon - Fabbro
Lankinen

The Good Guys

• Goaltender Juuse Saros was named to the Central Division's squad for the 2023 NHL All-Star Game in Sunrise, Fla., on Feb. 4. Saros is 13-6-4 with a 2.36 goals-against average and .932 save percentage in his last 23 games dating back to Nov. 12. He's made at least 30 saves in 14 of his last 22 games, and he's faced at least 30 shots in 17 of those outings.
• Filip Forsberg has 35 points (16g-19a) in his last 37 games dating back to Oct. 22 vs. Philadelphia. He became the quickest player in Predators history to reach the 500-point mark, doing so in his 601st career game Dec. 31 at Vegas. He has nine goals and 12 points in his last 10 games, including goals in three straight games from Jan. 9-12 (3g). He's up to 34 career three-point games, the most in Predators history.
• Roman Josi has 32 points (11g-21a) in his last 35 games after tallying an assist on Tuesday vs. Columbus. Josi has recorded at least one point in nine of his last 11 contests, and he is currently on a four-game point streak (2g-2a).
• Juuso Parssinen posted a seven-game point streak from Jan. 5-16 (2g-7a), tied for the longest by a rookie in franchise history with Filip Forsberg, who did so from Oct. 31-Nov. 13, 2014 (7g-6a). Parssinen's six-game assist streak (7a) from Jan. 5-14 is the longest by a rookie in Predators history. His 18 points since Nov. 12 - his NHL debut - are tied for the third-most among NHL rookies in that time span.
• Colton Sissons leads the NHL in shorthanded faceoffs won (93).
• Matt Duchene has 13 points (5g-8a) in his last 16 games. He scored in four straight contests from Dec. 17-23 (4g) and had a five-game point streak from Dec. 15-23 (4g-1a).

The Other Guys

St. Louis currently sits at sixth place in the Central Division with 47 points, two spots behind the fourth-place Predators with 48 points. The Blues became the eighth NHL franchise to record 2,000 wins on Monday with a 2-1 defeat of the Ottawa Senators at home.
Jordan Kyrou leads the Blues with 42 points (20g-22a), and his 20 goals are also a team high. Jake Neighbours has two goals in the Blues' current seven-game homestand. Four of Neighbours' six points this season have come in the last five games. Goaltender Jordan Binnington enters Thursday's game with an .894 save percentage and a Goals Against Average of 3.21.

All-Time Meetings

The Predators are 60-47-(4)-13 all-time against the Blues, including a 27-28-(1)-6 record on the road. This is the third of four matchups between Nashville and St. Louis in 2022-23 and the second and final at Enterprise Center.
Nashville is 1-0-1 against St. Louis this season, earning a 6-2 home win on Oct. 27 and picking up a point in a 1-0 OT loss on Dec. 12 on the road. Nashville has won 13 of its last 22 games against St. Louis - including 11 of its last 19 - and has scored at least four goals in nine of those wins.

Notables vs. St. Louis

• Josi has 28 points (6g-22a) in 46 career meetings with the Blues.
• Ryan Johansen has points in eight of his last 14 games vs. St. Louis, recording five goals and six assists. He has 27 points (12g-15a) in 39 career games against the Blues.
• Mikael Granlund recorded his first career four-assist game on Nov. 11, 2021 at St. Louis.
• Saros recorded his first career NHL shutout on Dec. 30, 2016 at St. Louis.
• Predators Assistant Coach Dan Hinote played three seasons with the Blues from 2006-09, posting 25 points (11g-14a) in 150 games.
• Predators Assistant General Manager, Director of Player Development and Milwaukee Admirals General Manager Scott Nichol concluded his NHL career by playing two seasons in St. Louis from 2011-13, skating in 110 games.

Last Time Out

Nashville improved to 11-7-3 at home in 2022-23 with Tuesday's win over Columbus. The Predators closed out their two-game regular-season series against the Blue Jackets with a 1-1-0 record and won their second game in a row by a 2-1 score.
Cody Glass scored his fifth goal of the season; he has 11 points (4g-7a) in his last 18 games. Josi assisted on Yakov Trenin's goal to push his point streak to four games (2g-2a).

Watch & Listen

Coverage for Thursday's game begins at 6:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show on Bally Sports South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic and analyst Chris Mason will have the call on the television side.
Max Herz and Hal Gill will call the game on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network. The game will also be broadcast in Spanish on El Jefe which airs on 96.7 FM, 105.3 FM and 810 AM.