The Nashville Predators (4-7-1) begin a back-to-back set on the road tonight when they face the Capitals (8-3-0) in Washington, D.C. for a 6 p.m. CT puck drop. This evening’s contest is the first of two meetings between the clubs this season; they’ll meet again in Nashville in January.
After registering points in five of six games (4-1-1), the Preds will be looking to bounce back tonight from a 3-0 loss to Los Angeles on Monday, an outing that saw Nashville only register 16 shots on goal. That effort left the Predators frustrated with their lack of opportunity to find the back of the net, and with seven of their next eight games away from Bridgestone Arena, they’re hoping to find success in the basics on the road.
“Hopefully, we simplify our game,” Preds Head Coach Andrew Brunette said following Tuesday’s practice. “[Monday] we were in the slot a few times, and we’re looking to find the prettier play. Hopefully on the road, we’re not trying to put on a show for anybody and we just focus on hockey and try to focus on our game. I always felt it was a little bit easier on the road, because you’re just trying to survive on the road. Sometimes at home here, you put pressure on yourself, or you want to put a show on for people, so you get on the road and just try to get to your game.”
Nashville’s lineup has been unchanged the past two games; forwards Philip Tomasino and Michael McCarron, as well as defenseman Dante Fabbro, were scratched in Monday’s loss.
The Good Guys:
Filip Forsberg leads the Preds with six goals and 10 points through 12 games, followed by Ryan O’Reilly (3g-6a) with nine points. Gustav Nyquist (4g-3a), Jonathan Marchessault (2g-5a) and Roman Josi (1g-6a) have seven points apiece, while Brady Skjei has two goals and six points from the blueline. Juuse Saros is now 3-6-0 on the season; Scott Wedgewood is 1-1-0.
The Opposition:
The Capitals had won three straight before falling to the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday by a 4-2 final. Dylan Strome (4g-13a) leads Washington with 17 points, followed by Alex Ovechkin (7g-7a) with 14 points. Connor McMichael has seven goals and 12 points on the season; Tom Wilson has found the back of the net on six occasions. Goaltender Logan Thompson is 5-0-0 in net for the Caps; Charlie Lindgren is 3-3-0.
All-Time Meetings:
Nashville is 20-12-(1)-4 all-time against Washington, including a 9-7-(0)-2 record on the road.
The Predators are 3-2-0 in their last five games against the Capitals; they are 7-3-0 in their last 10; and 4-1-0 in their last five games at Capital One Arena.
Nashville won eight straight games against Washington from Feb. 25, 2017-Jan. 29, 2020.
Notables Versus Washington:
Steven Stamkos has tallied 18 goals against the Capitals in his career, tied for the seventh-most of any active skater in the league. The game will feature two of the top three active goal scorers in the NHL in Stamkos (557) and Alex Ovechkin (860).
Filip Forsberg has 17 points (8g-9a) in 17 career games against the team that selected him 11th overall in the 2012 NHL Draft. Forsberg was acquired from Washington for Martin Erat and Michael Latta on April 3, 2013.
General Manager Barry Trotz won the 2018 Stanley Cup as head coach of the Capitals. He spent four seasons with Washington from 2014-18, going 205-89-34 in 328 games as head coach.
Senior Advisor David Poile spent his first 15 years as an NHL GM at the helm of the Capitals from 1982-97.
Head Coach Andrew Brunette was selected by Washington – with Poile as its GM – in the seventh round (174th overall) of the 1993 NHL Draft. He played the first three seasons of his NHL career with the Capitals, recording 40 points (18g-22a) in 62 games from 1995-98.
Milestone Watch:
Luke Schenn is one point from 200 in his NHL career.
Tommy Novak is one point from 100 in his NHL career.
Steven Stamkos (216) is two power-play goals from passing Mike Gartner and Jaromir Jagr (217) for the 11th-most in NHL history.
Filip Forsberg (77) is four power-play goals from passing Shea Weber (80) for the most in Predators history.
Gustav Nyquist is four games from 800 in his NHL career.
Ryan O’Reilly is five assists from 500 in his NHL career.
Watch & Listen:
Coverage for tonight’s game begins at 5:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show on FanDuel Sports Network South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic and analyst Chris Mason will have the call on the television side.
Max Herz and Hal Gill will call the game on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network. The game will also be broadcast in Spanish on El Jefe which airs on 96.7 FM, 105.3 FM and 810 AM. (El partido también se transmite en español por El Jefe en 96.7 FM, 105.3 FM y 810 AM.)
