The Nashville Predators face the Sharks Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena.
Nashville Predators
The Predators played a very solid, consistent game against the New York Rangers on Thursday. They scored on the power play and killed off a few Rangers penalties, too. It’s worth emphasizing that the Preds played a neat north-south game, and I was thrilled to see Cole Smith get in on the action with two goals, including one breakaway goal.
Juuse Saros was spectacular in net, especially against some backdoor chances that seem to be increasingly prevalent across the League. Tonight might be a good game for Kevin Lankinen, but we don’t know what Andrew Brunette has planned. Cole Smith, Ryan O’Reilly, and Filip Forsberg scored for Nashville on Thursday evening.
Something to keep an eye on will be the status of Cody Glass. He left early in the first period and the team announced that he would not return to the game and did not practice on Friday.
Editor’s note: Alex Daugherty reports that Glass will be out of the lineup 7 to 10 days with a lower-body injury per head coach Andrew Brunette.
Andrew Brunette tells us Cody Glass will be out 7-10 days with a lower body injury. pic.twitter.com/vfxluBCwr1
— Alex Daugherty (@AlexDaugherty1) October 20, 2023
Could Samuel Fagemo or Phil Tomasino get back in the lineup? Tomasino was scratched in favor of Michael McCarron on Thursday.
San Jose Sharks
The Sharks don’t have a lot going for them. They’re largely expected to finish in the basement of the League after Erik Karlsson was traded in the offseason to the Pegnuins. Logan Couture and Tomas Hertl are some of the only remaining Pred-killer Sharks from the 2015-2018 era. Hertl has 4 assists on the season, but no goals yet.
Look for Anthony Duclair to try to build on his first goal on Thursday, and the Sharks will certainly be hungry for a win – they have not won yet this season. Filip Zadina will be looking to prove his worth after his offseason contract termination with Detroit and subsequent deal with San Jose’. Zadina has scored twice this season. Former Predators Matt Benning, Luke Kunin, and Mikael Granlund will be familiar faces in teal and white tonight. Granlund is on injured reserve after just one game as a Shark, so I’m not sure that he travels with the team.
Between the pipes, we could see either Mackenzie Blackwood or Kaapo Kahkonen. Both have 2 starts to their name.
Reasons to Watch
- Saturday night hockey!
- A break from football?
- Can Roman Josi get his first goal of the season?
Keep Your Eye on This Guy
For Nashville, the guy I’m watching tonight is Gus Nyquist. He wanted to score so, so badly on Thursday. He was pressuring, creating chances, and generating a lot of offense. His first goal is coming soon.
Saturday’s Theme Song
How to Watch
Puck drop is at 7:00 pm Central. Bally Sports South has the broadcast and 102.5 The Game and El Jefe will have the radio call.