Game Day: Preds at Blackhawks Preview

After starting the week with a 5-2 win over the Blackhawks on Monday night, the Nashville Predators have jetted off to Chicago for two more crucial contests with the Hawks, and the puck drops against tonight at 6 p.m. CT at the United Center.
The Preds have yet to lose to the Blackhawks in six meetings this season, and they'll look to continue that streak and gain ground in the Central Division, as the race for the fourth and final playoff spot tightens.
Nashville bounced back on Monday night after a pair of losses to Carolina, and according to Calle Jarnkrok, who appeared in his 500th career game in the win, the Preds got back to their identity once more.
\[View: Digital Preds Press\]
\[Read More: Preds Projected Lineup at Chicago\]
[Dr Pepper Preds Arcade: The virtual, interactive arcade is open for today's matchup. Enter your predictions for the game and win prizes with other mobile games]

"We had a little setback there going into Carolina, and we didn't really play our type of hockey," Jarnkrok said Tuesday. "We played better yesterday and got back to winning hockey, just playing our game. Everybody's working hard, and [goaltender] Juuse [Saros] has been great in net for us too, so that really helps."
With tonight's game starting a bit earlier than normal, Nashville will not hold a morning skate, but they did practice on Tuesday at Bridgestone Arena with the addition of two familiar faces.
Forwards Eeli Tolvanen and Brad Richardson have been upgraded to day-to-day, as they work their way back from their respective injuries, according to Head Coach John Hynes, and while there was no confirmation as to whether or not they could play in Chicago, their addition to practice was a welcome sign. Additionally, Hynes said all other injured players on the Nashville roster remain week-to-week.
Update: The Preds have recalled forward Tanner Jeannot from the taxi squad and reassigned forward Philip Tomasino to Chicago (AHL) from the taxi squad.

The Good Guys:
In addition to Jarnkrok, Matt Duchene, Mattias Ekholm, Tanner Jeannot and Luke Kunin all found the back of the net in Monday's 5-2 win, and Saros stopped 30 shots to earn his 16th win of the season.
The Predators have won 14 of their last 19 games, a stretch that started with a 4-1 victory at Tampa Bay on March 15. In that time span, Nashville's 14 wins are tied for the most in the NHL with Colorado and Vegas. Since March 15, Nashville leads the NHL in goals against per game (1.89) and team save percentage (.942); it is second in penalty kill percentage (88.9 percent).
Roman Josi is Nashville's active leading scorer with 28 points (6g-22a), followed by Viktor Arvidsson with 24 points (10g-14a) and Jarnkrok with 22 points (12g-10a). Mikael Granlund has 11 goals on the season, Rocco Grimaldi has nine and Colton Sissons has seven. Saros is 16-9-0 in net for Nashville; Pekka Rinne is 9-12-1.

The Opposition:
Following Monday's result, the Blackhawks are four points behind the Preds in the Central Division with one game in hand, and Chicago has also lost two of their last three outings overall. Patrick Kane leads the Hawks with 57 points (15g-42a), followed by Alex DeBrincat with 44 points (23g-21a) and Dominik Kubalik with 29 points (14g-15a). Kevin Lankinen, who was pulled in the third period on Monday after the Preds had taken a 5-2 lead, is 16-13-4 on the season; Malcolm Subban is 5-5-1.
All-Time Meetings:
The Predators are 59-50-(4)-10 all-time against the Blackhawks, including a 34-22-(3)-3 record at Bridgestone Arena. Nashville is 6-0-0 versus Chicago in 2020-21, tied for its most wins in a single season against the Blackhawks (2005-06).
The Preds have earned at least a point in 15 of their last 18 games against the Blackhawks (13-3-2). Nashville has limited Chicago to two-or-fewer goals in 16 of their last 18 meetings. This will be the 124th time the Predators and Blackhawks clash in the regular season, Nashville's most games played against a single opponent.

Notables Versus Chicago:
Mikael Granlund has 27 points (7g-20a) in 37 career contests versus the Blackhawks. Mattias Ekholm has two goals and seven assists in his last 14 games versus the Blackhawks. He's recorded 15 points (3g-12a) and a +21 rating in 35 career games against Chicago.
Ryan Johansen has 24 points (6g-18a), including six multi-point games, in 39 career regular-season meetings with the Blackhawks. Viktor Arvidsson has recorded a point in five of his last 12 contests against Chicago (4g-2a), including his record-breaking 34th goal of the 2018-19 season on April 6, 2019, the most in a single season in Preds history.
Luke Kunin leads the Preds in points against the Blackhawks this season with six (2g-4a) in six games.
Watch & Listen:
This evening's contest from the United Center is being shown nationally on NBCSN and begins at 6 p.m. CT. Fans may also tune in on ESPN 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network with Pete Weber and Hal Gill on the call. Pregame coverage on the radio begins with Darren McFarland at 5 p.m. CT. For broadcast information and channel locations throughout the country,
click here
.
Streaming Info:
Listen to a Live Radio Feed
(on active during the game broadcast window).
Watch a Live Stream of the game with NBCSports.com
or through
NHL.TV
.