What - Game 30 (16-12-1)
When - 7:30 p.m., Friday, Dec. 14
Where - PNC Arena; Raleigh, NC
How to Watch - ESPN+/HULU
The Carolina Hurricanes head back home to face the Nashville Predators (16-13-0) tonight at PNC Arena as the second half of a back-to-back.
Following a four-game losing streak to start a six-game road trip, the Canes managed to salvage some points with back-to-back wins over the Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings.
Carolina has looked a lot more composed as of late and have been getting stable goaltending, something that was missing in those first four games.
Hopefully Antti Raanta can get back to his winning ways much like Pyotr Kochetkov has tonight against the Predators.
Nashville has surprisingly found itself hovering around the playoff bubble despite many predicting a step down for the team this offseason.
The Predators have won their last two games and five of their last six on the back of some very solid goaltending.
Carolina is very familiar with what Juuse Saros could do so this could be gearing up to be a headache of a game, but morning skate seemed to hint that Kevin Lankinen surprisingly may get the start.
Streaks
- Jack Drury has points in four straight games (1g, 4a)
- Martin Necas (1g, 1a) and Brett Pesce (2a) have points in back-to-back games
Milestone Watch
- Seth Jarvis is one point shy of 100 career points
- Rod Brind'Amour will be coaching his 400th career game tonight.
Game Notes
- Carolina has an all-time record of 23-16-1-3 against Nashville.
- Last season, the Predators swept the season series 2-0-0 with a 5-3 and 3-0 loss. If you also recall that 5-3 loss came on a night where the Canes posted a franchise record 67 shots on goal.
- Sebastian Aho for one loves playing against the Preds. In 20 games, he has 10 goals and 19 points.
Key Matchups
Starting Goalies
- Antti Raanta: 6-5-0; 0.860 Sv%; 3.4 GAA
- Kevin Lankinen: 3-3-0; 0.903 Sv%; 3.04 GAA
Leading Scorers
- Goals - Teuvo Teravainen (11) / Filip Forsberg (15)
- Points - Sebastian Aho (25) / Filip Forsberg (33)
Power Play
- Carolina - 21.4% (14th)
- Nashville - 20.6% (16th)
Penalty Kill
- Carolina - 80.7% (15th)
- Nashville - 77.7% (22nd)
Hurricanes Projected Lineup
Stefan Noesen - Sebastian Aho - Seth Jarvis
Teuvo Teravainen - Jesperi Kotkaniemi - Martin Necas
Jordan Martinook - Jordan Staal - Jesper Fast
Michael Bunting - Jack Drury
Jaccob Slavin - Brent Burns
Brady Skjei - Brett Pesce
Dmitry Orlov - Jalen Chatfield
Tony DeAngelo
Antti Raanta
Pyotr Kochetkov
Injuries and Scratches: Brendan Lemieux, Andrei Svechnikov (UBI), Frederik Andersen (blood clotting issue)
Predators Projected Lineup
Filip Forsberg - Ryan O'Reilly - Gustav Nyquist
Juuso Parssinen - Tommy Novak - Kiefer Sherwood
Yakov Trenin - Cody Glass - Colton Sissons
Cole Smith - Michael McCarron - Philip Tomasino
Ryan McDonagh - Roman Josi
Jeremy Lauzon - Alexandre Carrier
Tyson Barrie - Luke Schenn
Kevin Lankinen
Juuse Saros
Injuries and Scratches: Luke Evangelista, Dante Fabbro
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