The road ahead could not look any more grueling to the Nashville Predators right now.
A six game losing streak follows them out west, and they have yet to record a point in March. The next four games are on the road, including the California gauntlet. Only two games the rest of this month come against a team not in the playoff picture. One of those is tonight, against the bottom-feeding Arizona Coyotes. Needless to say, a win tonight is imperative.
Prepare for a hollow preview, for we are but hollow shells of our former, jubilant selves.
The Arizona Coyotes
The next few years may be a little bleak in the desert, but general manager Don Maloney can hang his hat knowing he did the right thing in selling this year. By jettisoning Zbynek Michalek, Antoine Vermette and Keith Yandle, they’ve stock piled draft picks and added a top prospect in Anthony Duclair. If they manage to win either of the prizes in the McEichel Sweepstakes, the Coyotes could turn very dangerous in a few years time.
All that’s left to be decided this year is how far down in the standings they’ll find themselves in April. Arizona is two points up on the Oilers and six on the Sabres. Connor McDavid isn’t guaranteed to the 30th place team, but the battle for worst seems to have taken on a life of its own, and is getting entertaining to watch.
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” lang=”en”><p>Bar erupts with a Coyotes win. In Buffalo.</p>— Joe Yerdon (@JoeYerdon) <a href=”Canadiens on Saturday. So when the Predators play a team that management has set up lose as many games as possible, and even people in Glendale hardly recognize who’s on the ice, a seventh consecutive loss would probably be the worst thing ever.
On the other hand, a win is a win is a win is a win. It doesn’t matter how it happens, just as long as it does. Just remember, the players on the ice don’t want to lose. But if Nashville plays like they did against the Islanders, the six-game skid will be a bad memory.
The Nashville Predators
Chose Your Own GIF:
The Predators Win
The Predators Lose
Sights and Sounds
Best put a pot of coffee on tonight, and get used to being tired in the morning. The games this week are of the late variety. 9 p.m. CST on FS-TN and 102.5 The Game. Will it be worth staying up for? The world may never know.