After an unexpected break, the Nashville Predators return to the ice at Bridgestone Arena to take on the Anaheim Ducks tonight.
The Nashville Predators will take the ice tonight at home. Nashville's last two games were postponed due to flooding at Bridgestone Arena after a water main break occurred last Friday. With games against the Colorado Avalanche and Columbus Blue Jackets rescheduled, the Preds finally get back to business against the Anaheim Ducks.
The Ducks enter the contest tonight sitting at the bottom of the Pacific Division and with the fewest points in the Western Conference. Despite their 6-15-1 record, the Ducks aren't without talent on the roster. Troy Terry and Trevor Zegras have combined for 17 goals and 43 points in 22 games, while Cam Fowler has stepped up in recent games to contribute on the offensive side of the ice.
Consistent goaltending has been the story for the Ducks so far this season. John Gibson's .890 save percentage is a result of some really good and then really poor performances combined. Gibson left the game Sunday night against the Seattle Kraken with an undisclosed injury in the third period, so Nashville may see backup Anthony Stolarz in net for Anaheim. Stolarz has started five games and earned a 2-3 record.
This is a unique position for the Predators to be in at this point in the season. Nashville finally started to gain some traction in their last ten games, going 6-3-1 in mid November before flooding in Bridgestone Arena postponed back to back games against Colorado and Columbus over the holiday weekend. The Preds have held practices at Centennial Sportsplex and at Bridgestone as soon as the ice was replaced, but tonight is a chance to get back to game pace and earn two valuable points.
Juuse Saros is the likely starter in net tonight for Nashville, and it will be his first action in over a week as back up Kevin Lankinen started Wednesday's game in Detroit. Saros took some time to find his form in October, but in his last five games he has earned a .926 save percentage and made a handful of vintage Saros game changing stops for the Preds.
Special teams could play an important part in tonight's outcome. The Ducks currently sit next to last in the league on the power play, but that isn't a free pass for the Predators to spend time in the penalty box. Anaheim converted on 3 of 4 power play chances against Seattle Sunday night, and while Nashville's penalty kill is a solid 80.6%, the Preds will be far better off playing a clean, well executed game.
Anaheim's penalty kill ranks last in the league after several games in which they gave up multiple power play goals. Nashville has struggled on the man advantage this season and is something they have been working on in practices over these last few days, so tonight would be a good opportunity to get the power play back on track if given the chance.
The Ducks/Predators games always have an undercurrent of rivalry, and that extra emotion may be just what Nashville needs as the team gets back at it. Records aside, look for a game with plenty of physicality and intensity between these two teams.
The Predators take on the Ducks tonight at Bridgestone Arena at 7:00 pm CST. The game will be broadcast on Bally Sports South, streamed on ESPN+, and 102.5 The Game will have the radio call locally.