The Nashville Predators play their final pre-season game at 6:00 p.m. Central tonight on the road against the New York Islanders, in what should be our best preview yet of how the 2013-14 edition of the team will look. There’s no TV or streaming video tonight, so tune in to 102.5 The Game for radio coverage.
The lineup looks very much like what we can expect to see on Opening Night when the Predators play at St. Louis on Thursday. The notable absences include Mike Fisher and Mattias Ekholm (besides the injured trio of Filip Forsberg, Viktor Stalberg, and Patric Hornqvist of course).
Forwards
Matt Cullen, David Legwand, Nick Spaling, Craig Smith, Rich Clune, Simon Moser, Eric Nystrom, Matt Hendricks, Paul Gaustad, Colin Wilson, Taylor Beck and Gabriel Bourque.
Defense
Seth Jones, Ryan Ellis, Shea Weber, Kevin Klein, Roman Josi & Victor Bartley.
Goalies
Stories to Watch
- Does Simon Moser earn an NHL contract?
- How do the defense pairings shape up?
- How much does Pekka Rinne play?
- How well does Carter Hutton play?/
Make sure to check back for our Game Thread, which should post at 5:30 p.m., and head over to Lighthouse Hockey to bone up on the Isles before game time. Until then, go shop for some Preds gear (Fanatics has marked down their Sale items by an additional 40% this weekend) or check out some of the other articles posted here at OTF recently:
More from On the Forecheck:
- Colin Wilson Season Preview: Shouldering the Offensive Load Post-surgery
- Fantasy Hockey 2013: Recommended Resources for Draft Day
- Friday’s Dump & Chase: Preds Close Preseason On Long Island
- Craig Smith Season Preview: How Will He Respond to a Dreadful 2013?
- Thursday’s Dump & Chase: The Glory Days of March/