Less than 24 hours after an entertaining victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Nashville Predators will look to replicate that result - this time against the New York Rangers - with another 6 p.m. CT puck drop at Bridgestone Arena. This evening’s contest is the second and final meeting between the Preds and Rangers this season, and it’s also the final home game for Nashville of the 2025 calendar year.
Luke Evangelista’s highlight reel goal was the story of Saturday night’s 5-3 win over the Leafs, but more importantly, the Preds have now won eight of their last 12 outings. Now, they’ll look for another two points tonight with just two games to go until the holiday break.
“They're not all going to be pretty…but we're just trying to find ways to get points, keep climbing,” Evangelista said following Saturday’s win. “Obviously, they get the first one there, but we were able to battle back and [have] a huge third period. I mean, they’re desperate, we’re desperate - we had to match that desperation. Fortunately, we did, and we were able to get a big win there in the third.”
“There's still a lot [of games] to go here, but I think we're responding well,” Preds forward Michael Bunting said Saturday. “We’ve definitely [had] more wins than losses [lately], so that's good, but we’ve just got to keep building. Next game's a new game, and that's our motto, and that's our mindset. Put this one behind us - enjoy it tonight - but tomorrow's a whole new day.”
Jonathan Marchessault did not play on Saturday and is day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Tyson Jost rejoined the Nashville lineup as a result, and the Preds had no healthy scratches against the Leafs.
The Good Guys:
In addition to Evangelista, Bunting, Erik Haula, Steven Stamkos and Cole Smith also tallied for Nashville, and Juuse Saros got the win in net. Stamkos (1g-1a) recorded his 1,209th career point and tied Bernie Nicholls for 50th place in NHL history.
Ryan O’Reilly continues to lead the Preds in scoring with 28 points (10g-18a), followed by Filip Forsberg (15g-12a) with 27 points and Evangelista (5g-19a) with 24 points. Stamkos has 13 goals on the season; Bunting has nine and Matthew Wood has eight tallies. Saros is now 13-11-3 in net; Justus Annunen is 1-5-1.
The Opposition:
The Rangers came back to beat the Philadelphia Flyers, 5-4, in a shootout yesterday afternoon. New York has won three of their last five games overall with each of those victories requiring at least overtime.
Artemi Panarin leads the Rangers with 13 goals and 36 points, followed by Mika Zibanejad with 12 goals and 27 points. Adam Fox has 23 assists and 26 points from the backend. Igor Shesterkin, who got the win yesterday, is 15-11-3 in net; Jonathan Quick is 3-4-1.
All-Time Meetings:
The Preds are 17-19-(1)-2 all-time against the Rangers, including a 7-9-(0)-2 mark at Bridgestone Arena. Nashville is 5-5-0 in the last 10 versus New York and 2-3-0 in the last five outings at home.
Notables Versus NYR:
Steven Stamkos has recorded 43 points (19g-24a) in 45 games against the Rangers in his career. He has points (8g-10a) in 11 of his last 17 matchups with the Rangers. Stamkos additionally has 14 points (9g-5a) in 15 career postseason games against the Rangers.
Brady Skjei was selected by the Rangers in the first round (28th overall) of the 2012 NHL Draft. He played 307 games for the Rangers from 2015-20, recording 112 points (25g-87a).
Hockey Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky played one game at Bridgestone Arena in his storied NHL career – a five-assist effort with the Rangers on Feb. 15, 1999. It remains tied for the most assists and tied for the second-most points in a single game against the Predators.
Milestone Watch:
Steven Stamkos is two games from 1,200 and five goals from 600 in his NHL career.
Barry Trotz is two games from 200 as an NHL general manager.
Erik Haula is three assists from 200 in his NHL career.
Jonathan Marchessault is five assists from 300 in his NHL career.
Watch & Listen:
Coverage for tonight’s contest begins at 5:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show on FanDuel Sports Network South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley and Hal Gill. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic, analyst Chris Mason and rinkside reporter Kara Hammer will have the call on the television side.
Voice of the Predators 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.)
