Game Day: Preds at Hurricanes Preview

After a shootout victory in Dallas to start their franchise-long eight-game road trip, the Nashville Predators have traveled to Carolina for a two-game set against the Hurricanes, and it begins tonight at PNC Arena. This evening's contest is the third of eight meetings between the two clubs this season; Nashville has lost twice to the Canes in the previous outings.
The Predators held a 3-0 lead in the third period on Sunday night in Dallas, and although the Stars tied the game to force overtime, and then a shootout, Nashville ultimately prevailed to start the road trip with a much-needed victory.
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"We got those two points that we came here to get," Preds forward Mikael Granlund said following Sunday's win. "The first two periods we were doing a good job, got the lead, and obviously the third period wasn't the way we wanted it to go, but that's hockey, that's something that sometimes happens. We found a way to get those two points, and that's just a really good start for the road trip. It's going to be a long one, so we get off with a win and let's go from here."
Forward Rem Pitlick entered the Nashville lineup for the first time in 2020-21 on Sunday night and centered Granlund and Calle Jarnkrok on the second line. Forwards Matt Duchene and Luke Kunin, defensemen Ryan Ellis and Luca Sbisa, and goaltender Juuse Saros all remain out of the lineup and on Injured Reserve.

Update: Preds Head Coach John Hynes says Saros (IR) is on the trip, has resumed skating and is making progress. Hynes also confirmed Rinne will start tonight in Carolina.
4 p.m. CT Update: Preds Captain Roman Josi is week-to-week with an upper-body injury. The Preds have recalled forwards Mathieu Olivier and Rem Pitlick and defenseman Jeremy Davies from the taxi squad.

The Good Guys:
Granlund, Jarnkrok and Eeli Tolvanen all scored for Nashville in regulation on Sunday night before Filip Forsberg and Roman Josi tallied in the shootout. Granlund's goal and Tolvanen's goal both came on the power play, and goaltender Pekka Rinne made 35 saves through 65 minutes of play before making two more in the shootout to pick up his 365th career win.
Forsberg paces the Preds with 10 goals and 26 points, followed by Josi with 16 points (2g-14a). Viktor Arvidsson (3g-9a) has 12 points, while Granlund (5g-5a) has 10 points. Jarnkrok is second only to Forsberg in goals with six on the season; Tolvanen also has five goals for the Preds, with four of them scored on the power play. Rinne is now 6-9-0 on the season; Kasimir Kaskisuo has yet to see NHL action with the Predators.
The Opposition:
Carolina has won five consecutive games, including a 4-2 victory over Florida on Sunday, and a 4-2 win over the Preds back on March 2. Vincent Trocheck leads the Hurricanes with 13 goals and 22 points; Sebastian Aho (9g-13a) also has 22 points, and Andrei Svechnikov (8g-12a) and Jordan Staal (8g-12a) have identical stat lines for the Canes. Nino Neiderreiter has scored 11 times for Carolina, and Brock McGinn has seven goals. James Reimer is 11-3-0 in net on the season; Alex Nedeljkovic is 4-2-1.
All-Time Meetings:
The Predators are 15-14-(1)-3 all-time against the Hurricanes, including a 9-7-(0)-1 record at Bridgestone Arena. After enjoying success against Carolina in the late 2000s and early 2010s - including an eight-game point streak (6-0-2) from 2008-12 - the Predators have dropped nine of their last 10 against the Hurricanes (1-7-2).
The Predators are 2-2-1 in their last five road games vs. the Hurricanes; they are 4-5-1 in their last 10 games at PNC Arena.
Notables Versus Carolina:
Filip Forsberg scored on Jan. 18 against Carolina and has seven points (4g-3a) in 12 career games against the Hurricanes. Mikael Granlund has points in four of his last six games versus Carolina and 12 points (4g-8a) in 14 career contests versus the Hurricanes.
Ryan Johansen has 11 points (3g-8a) in 19 career meetings with the Hurricanes and had a four-game point streak (1g-3a) against Carolina from Jan. 27, 2014 to Nov. 4, 2014. Pekka Rinne is 7-5-1 with a 2.28 goals-against average and .914 save percentage in 13 career games against the Hurricanes.
Watch & Listen:
Coverage for tonight's 6 p.m. CT puck drop from Raleigh begins on FOX Sports Tennessee at 5:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show hosted by Lyndsay Rowley and Terry Crisp. Willy Daunic, Chris Mason and Kara Hammer have the call on the television side, while Pete Weber and Hal Gill will broadcast on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network. Pregame coverage on the radio begins at 5 p.m. with Darren McFarland. For broadcast information and channel locations throughout the country,
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Streaming Info:
Listen to a Live Radio Feed
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Watch a Live Stream of the game
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