The Hockey News' Derek Lee previews the Ducks' matchup against the Nashville Predators.

Coming off a 3-2 shootout loss in Los Angeles to the Kings last night, the Ducks are right back at it tonight against the Nashville Predators.

It was a much better performance for the Ducks in their second matchup of the season against the Kings, a far cry from their 5-2 defeat at Honda Center back in November.

The Predators come into town off the back of a 4-2 win against the San Jose Sharks last night. It is the final game of a five-game road trip for them.

There is mild concern for Troy Terry, who briefly left last night's game in the third period after taking a hard hit into the boards from Kevin Fiala. Terry's right shoulder appeared to take the brunt of the hit and he went to the locker room after a short shift and a conversation on the bench with head athletic trainer Chad Walker.

Terry did return to the game, taking several shifts prior to the end of the period. He was also on the ice for overtime but was not one of the three shooters selected for the shootout.

With no morning skate today on the back-to-back, it's unknown if Terry will give it a go tonight. If he can't go, Bo Groulx or Brett Leason would draw into the lineup.

"We know it's going to be a physical game," said Sam Carrick. "We've got to bring it. If we play like (we did against LA), we're going to have a good chance to win most games."

"Nashville's a big, heavy team," said head coach Greg Cronin. "They grind you down in your (defensive) zone and we're going to have to find ways to get pucks back. They're a good transition team with Josi and Forsberg, two of the better players in the league. We're going to have our hands full."

With both John Gibson and Juuse Saros getting the start last night for their respective teams, the likely goaltending matchup is Lukáš Dostál against Kevin Lankinen. Though, Cronin did say yesterday morning that he wasn't sure who would start on Sunday just yet.

Fast facts:
-The Predators currently hold a four-game winning streak on this road trip, the first time they've done so since 2021.
-This is the third and final Ducks-Predators matchup of the season and the first taking place at Honda Center. Anaheim is 2-0-0 against Nashville this season.
-Defenseman Urho Vaakanainen has five points in five career games against the Predators, three of which have come this season.

Ducks Projected Lines

Adam Henrique - Leo Carlsson - Alex Killorn
Frank Vatrano - Mason McTavish - Max Jones
Isac Lundeström - Ryan Strome - Jakob Silfverberg
Ross Johnston - Sam Carrick - Brett Leason

Urho Vaakanainen - Cam Fowler
Pavel Mintyukov - Ilya Lyubushkin
Jackson LaCombe - Radko Gudas

Lukáš Dostál

Predators Projected Lines

Filip Forsberg - Ryan O'Reilly - Gustav Nyquist
Yakov Trenin - Colton Sissons - Cody Glass
Mark Jankowski - Tommy Novak - Luke Evangelista
Cole Smith - Michael McCarron - Kiefer Sherwood

Roman Josi - Dante Fabbro
Ryan McDonagh - Luke Schenn
Jeremy Lauzon - Alexandre Carrier

Kevin Lankinen