Game Day: Canucks vs. Preds Preview

After collecting three out of a possible four points on their latest road trip, the Nashville Predators return home to Bridgestone Arena tonight to host the Vancouver Canucks (20-19-6). Tonight's contest is the third and final meeting between the Preds and Canucks this season; Nashville is 1-1-0 against Vancouver thus far.
The Predators have gathered a total of seven points in their last four games to climb up to sole possession of second place in the Central Division. Now, Nashville will look to continue that momentum in search of one more victory before the NHL All-Star Break over the coming days.

"We've done some good things to this point," Preds Head Coach John Hynes said Monday afternoon. "We really tried to pinpoint these things and present them to the guys in areas where we can continue to grow, continue to get better, what parts of our identity are really strong, which parts are starting to drop off before they really drop off. I think that's a good way to try to really keep our attention, keep our focus short-term but also continue to build our game and build our results."
The Predators could receive some additional help tonight with forward Eeli Tolvanen (COVID-19 protocol) and defenseman Dante Fabbro (upper-body) as both are close to returning to the lineup. Nashville reassigned defenseman Matt Tennyson to Milwaukee on Sunday; the Preds have not played since Thursday's shootout loss in Edmonton.

The Good Guys:

Captain Roman Josi, who was named to the NHL All-Star roster on Sunday, continues to lead the Predators in points with 43 (13g-30a), followed by Matt Duchene, who tallied a goal in the last outing against Edmonton, with 40 points (21g-19a). Filip Forsberg also scored on Thursday against the Oilers as he climbed to 36 points (22g-14a). Forward Mikael Granlund (6g-31a) has 37 points on the season, center Ryan Johansen (12g-21a) has 33 points and rookie Tanner Jeannot owns 26 points (13g-13a). Goaltender Juuse Saros is 23-11-3 in net; David Rittich is 3-2-1.

The Opposition:

Vancouver will play the second half of a back-to-back set tonight after defeating Blackhawks last night by a 3-1 final. J.T. Miller leads the Canucks with 44 points (15g-29a). Quinn Hughes trails Miller with 34 points (2g-32a). Other notables include Elias Petterson with 24 points (11g-13a) and Conor Garland with 24 points (10g-14a). Jaroslav Halak got the win last night, so the Preds could face Thatcher Demko this evening; he's 17-14-2 on the season.

All-Time Meetings:

The Predators are 32-39-(2)-6 all-time against the Canucks, including a 17-16-(1)-6 record at Bridgestone Arena. The Predators are 1-4-0 in their last five games vs. the Canucks; they are 5-5-0 in their last 10; and 2-3-0 in their last five at Bridgestone Arena.

Notables Versus Vancouver:

Ryan Johansen, a Vancouver native, owns 14 points (3g-11a) in 29 career games against his hometown team. He has three points (2g-1a) in his last six games vs. Vancouver. North Vancouver native Colton Sissons has six points (4g-2a) in 16 career games against the Canucks. Dante Fabbro hails from Coquitlam and has one assist in five career games vs. Vancouver.
Roman Josi has points in four of his last five games (1g-3a) against Vancouver. He also has 13 points (1g-12a) in his last 14 games vs. the Canucks and posted a six-game point streak (7a) against Vancouver from Jan. 10, 2017-Dec. 13, 2018.
Mikael Granlund is producing at nearly a point-per-game pace in his career against the Canucks, recording 22 points (5g-17a) in 25 games. He posted a four-game point streak vs. Vancouver from Nov. 12, 2019-Nov. 5, 2021 (2g-4a) and established a career-high four points (3g-1a) on Feb. 4, 2017 against the Canucks.

Watch & Listen:

Coverage for tonight's 7 p.m. CT puck drop from Nashville begins at 6:30 p.m. CT with the Predators Live! pregame show on Bally Sports South hosted by Lyndsay Rowley and Hal Gill. Willy Daunic, Chris Mason and Kara Hammer have the call on the television side, while Pete Weber and Brooks Bratten will broadcast on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network. Pregame coverage on the radio begins at 6 p.m. with Darren McFarland. For broadcast information and channel locations throughout the country,
click here
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