Tonight the Nashville Predators travel to Detroit to take on the Red Wings. Tonight the Nashville Predators travel to Detroit to take on the Red Wings in the first game of a road back to back. Both teams are coming off of disappointing losses Wednesday night— Nashville dropped their game to the Carolina Hurricanes and Detroit loss to the Minnesota Wild. TEAM STRUGGLES The struggles have been partly due to injury for the Red Wings recently. The good news for Detroit tonight is that Olli Maatta and Jeff Petry are expected to return to the lineup after missing games due to injury. They are still without Christian Fischer, Ville Husso, and Klim Kosten who remain on IR. Nashville has been tripped up lately by lapses in games that have cost them big. Their December 23 loss to the Dallas Stars came as the Stars scored two goals in the final thirteen seconds of the game. The Predators gave up three power play goals in the loss to the Hurricanes and didn't play up to head coach Andrew Brunette's expectations. Mar 14, 2023; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Nashville Predators center Philip Tomasino (26) handles the puck while pressured by Detroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider (53) during the third period at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAzMjQyNjQxNjAzNjk5ODk0/usatsi_20231232.jpg] Mar 14, 2023; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Nashville Predators center Philip Tomasino (26) handles the puck while pressured by Detroit Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider (53) during the third period at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports GOALTENDING Tonight goaltender Alex Lyon is expected to return to the ice after an upper body injury kept him out of the net since December 16. Lyon has won four of his seven starts this season and earned a .932 save percentage. James Reimer has struggled in his recent starts, and head coach Derek Leland is hoping Lyon can play a solid sixty minutes for the Red Wings. The goaltending situation for Nashville is slightly more murky for this back to back. Juuse Saros will likely get the start tonight in Detroit, but the team brought both Kevin Lankinen and Yaroslav Askarov on the trip. Lankinen is listed as day-to-day with illness, but head coach Andrew Brunette will evaluate how he is doing after practice this morning. The hope is that Lankinen will be ready to play one of the games on this trip. TOP LINE VERSUS TOP LINE Detroit's top line of Alex DeBrincat, Dylan Larkin, and Patrick Kane combined for two goals and an assist in the Wild loss. The Red Wings have gotten scoring up and down their lineup at times this season, but the Predators will need to contain Detroit's top players. Nashville's line of Filip Forsberg, Ryan O'Reilly, and Gus Nyquist has racked up goals but not as many at five on five this month as they were scoring in November. O'Reilly has been successful on the power play and Forsberg has come up clutch in overtime, but Nashville will need their top line to finish on offensive chances at even strength. Dec 27, 2023; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Nashville Predators center Ryan O'Reilly (90) celebrates with teammates after a goal during the second period against the Carolina Hurricanes at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAzMjQyNjY3OTEwMzc0OTc5/usatsi_22181266.jpg] Dec 27, 2023; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Nashville Predators center Ryan O'Reilly (90) celebrates with teammates after a goal during the second period against the Carolina Hurricanes at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports HOW TO WATCH The Predators take on the Red Wings tonight at Little Caesars Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 6:00 pm CT. Bally Sports South will broadcast the game while 102.5 The Game will have the radio call. Predators Practice Report 12/28: Line Rushes, Spicy Drills, and a Goaltending Update [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/preds-talk/predators-practice-report-12-28-line-rushes-spicy-drills-and-a-goaltending-update] Yaroslav Askarov: "I Feel I'm Ready to Play Now" [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/prospects-ahl/yaroslav-askarov-i-feel-im-ready-to-play-now] Andrew Brunette: Carolina Loss Reminiscent of Predators Early Games [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/nashville-predators/preds-talk/andrew-brunette-carolina-loss-reminiscent-of-predators-early-games]
