The San Jose Sharks are back at the SAP Center tonight, as they play what Ryan Warsofsky has deemed, "the most important game of the season."
The Sharks and Predators are currently tied for the second Wild Card spot in the Western Conference, with San Jose holding the playoff position due to tiebreakers. As a result, a win tonight, in either direction, will help shape the postseason picture.
All-time, the Predators are 50-29-2 against the Sharks but importantly, the last time the Sharks defeated Nashville was back in 2019. The Predators have won their last 14 meetings with the Sharks.
It'll also be a revenge game for Yaroslav Askarov, as he'll be facing his former team for just the second time since being traded to San Jose. He last faced the Predators in January 2025, where he surrendered six goals on 38 shots.
Projected Lines (Per NHL.com)
Nashville
Zachary L'Heureux - Ryan O'Reilly - Steven Stamkos
Filip Forsberg - Matthew Wood - Jonathan Marchessault
Tyson Jost - Erik Haula - Luke Evangelista
Reid Schaefer - Fedor Svechkov - Joakim Kemell
Brady Skjei - Roman Josi
Nicolas Hague - Nick Perbix
Adam Wilsby - Justin Barron
Juuse Saros
Justus Annunen
San Jose
Igor Chernyshov - Macklin Celebrini - Will Smith
William Eklund - Alexander Wennberg - Kiefer Sherwood
Collin Graf - Michael Misa - Tyler Toffoli
Barclay Goodrow - Zack Ostapchuk - Adam Gaudette
Dmitry Orlov - Vincent Desharnais
Shakir Mukhamadullin - Mario Ferraro
Sam Dickinson - Nick Leddy
Yaroslav Askarov
Alex Nedeljkovic