Newcomers made an impact Friday as Ryan McDonagh (1a), Nino Niederreiter (1g) and Kiefer Sherwood (1g-1a) all found the scoresheet in their Nashville debuts. Friday marked the second time in Predators franchise history in which multiple players scored in their team debut.
Eleven different Predators players recorded a point in the win. Filip Forsberg (1a) recorded a point in his seventh straight season-opening game, the longest active streak in the NHL.
The Good Guys
Juuse Saros was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy last season after finishing third in the NHL in wins with 38, a career high and the fourth-most in a season in Predators history. Saros, who was named an All-Star for the first time in his career, also led NHL goaltenders in minutes played (3,931:23) and starts (67); both were the fourth-most in a season in team history.
Mikael Granlund had 53 assists in 2021-22, a career high. He became the second center and fifth skater in franchise history to reach the 50-assist mark in a season.
Ryan Johansen tallied at least 60 points for the sixth time in his NHL career; his 26 goals were his most since also tallying 26 in 2014-15. Johansen scored a career high 11 power-play goals and closed out the 2021-22 regular season with 27 points (13g-14a) in his last 30 games.
The Other Guys
With Friday's loss, Sharks Head Coach David Quinn is 0-1 as he enters his first full season behind the bench. San Jose went 32-37-13 in 2021-22, scoring 214 goals and allowing 264.
All-Time Meetings
With Friday's win, the Predators are 41-29-(2)-8 all-time against the Sharks. This is the second of three matchups between Nashville and San Jose in 2022-23; it will be the first of two with Nashville designated as the road team.
Nashville went 3-0-0 against San Jose last season, including an 8-0 victory on March 5, the largest margin of victory in a road game in franchise history. It was the eighth time in Predators history they've scored at least eight goals in a game. The Predators are 5-0-0 in their last five games against the Sharks; they are 7-2-1 in their last 10; and 2-2-1 in their last five as the road team.
Notables vs. San Jose
Last Time Out
With Friday's win, the Predators improved to 14-9-(0)-1 all-time in regular-season openers and moved to 2-1-0 in three all-time games played outside North America.
Watch & Listen
Coverage for Friday's game begins at 12:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! Pregame show on Bally Sports South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley alongside analyst Hal Gill. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic and analyst Chris Mason will have the call on the television side, while Pete Weber and Terry Crisp will broadcast the game on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network. Pregame coverage on the radio begins at 12 p.m.CT with Max Herz.
