The Nashville Predators finish off their homestand tonight against the New Jersey Devils. Wednesday’s game saw the Preds losing a slog of a game to the Vegas Golden Knights; they’re hoping to get another win under their belts this evening before going back on the road to face the high-octane Colorado Avalanche tomorrow.
The Nashville Predators
Filip Forsberg is back, and back in style. That’s about the only bright spot the Preds were able to take away from Wednesday night, during which their transition game got stymied and their defense got shredded. Juuse Saros allowed more goals than he can have been happy with, but he didn’t get much if any help.
The New Jersey Devils
The Devils have been having a rough couple of weeks. Jesper Bratt leads the team in points with 13, while Pavel Zacha has the goals lead at 6 and Nico Hischier the assists lead with 10. Former Pred PK Subban has nine points. Jonathan Bernier and Mackenzie Blackwood have split the starts in goal, with Bernier holding a .916 Sv% and Blackwood a very nice .922.
The Preds and the Devils have both been underwater this season in xG share at even strength, but the Devils have been both sinking and swimming a little faster (that is, both allowing and taking more chances than the Preds have). On special teams the opposite is true, with the Devils playing a stifling penalty kill and a stifled power play. They’ve had bad luck on the penalty kill in spite of that, though, which might give the Preds a chance there.
How to Watch
The game airs at 5 PM Central on ESPN+ and Hulu, or you can listen on 102.5 The Game.
Statistics from naturalstattrick.com. Additional background from hockeyviz.com.