The Nashville Predators will kick off their fourth and final back-to-back set of the month looking to hit the brakes on a two-game skid as they face the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on Friday.
In Detroit, the Predators will square off against one of the highest-scoring teams in the League and an old nemesis in Patrick Kane, who signed with the Red Wings in late November.
To find success in the Motor City, Nashville will need to quickly get to their winning style of play and limit the Red Wings’ opportunities with the puck.
“We haven’t seen them yet this year, but they’ve been playing really well,” Predators Captain Roman Josi said following practice on Thursday. “They’re playing with a lot of skill, they're playing fast and they've been getting better and better each year for the past two years. And now with Kane too, obviously they’ve got a ton of skill up front. We’re going to watch some film, since we haven't seen them yet, but it's going to be a tough game.”
Puck drop is set for 6 p.m. CT, with the game scheduled for broadcast on Bally Sports South, 102.5 The Game and El Jefe Radio. Here’s everything you need to know:
LAST TIME OUT
On Wednesday, the Predators liked their effort but not the result, falling to the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 at Bridgestone Arena.
Despite outshooting the visitors 37-25 - and registering a season-high in shots in the process - the home team gave up three costly power-play goals and struggled to steal back enough momentum to turn the game around.
“I think there were some things we did well,” Josi said. “I thought we played with a lot of speed at some points in the game. The energy was good… But I think there’s still some things we can do a lot better, or more consistently, and I think we have another level. I don't think it was a bad game, but it wasn't it wasn't our best either. So, I think there's another level and that's something we’ve got to find.”
“We just need to get to our game,” Predators Head Coach Andrew Brunette said. “When we’re playing our game, I think we take away time and space and we have the puck. And those are the things I thought we did [Wednesday] for a good chunk of the game.”
Gustav Nyquist and Ryan O’Reilly (PPG) each tallied for the Predators, while O’Reilly, Colton Sissons and Josi picked up the assists.
Juuse Saros made 14 saves on 19 shots before being swapped for rookie netminder Yaroslav Askarov at the start of the third period. In his Bridgestone Arena debut, Askarov turned away all six shots faced.
Jeremy Lauzon led the Predators with six hits; the blueliner additionally leads all League skaters in hits with 126.
Nashville went 1-for-4 on the power play and 3-for-6 on the penalty kill.
The result moved the Predators to 19-16-0 on the season and 11-9-0 at home.
THE GOOD GUYS
Filip Forsberg leads the Predators in points (38), goals (16) and assists (22). O’Reilly is second in points with 29 (14g-15a) and Josi third with 28 (7g-21a).
Saros is 15-13-0 after 28 games, with a 2.94 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage.
Askarov played in his first game of 2023-24 on Wednesday. In his second professional season with the Milwaukee Admirals, Askarov has posted an 8-6-1 record, a 2.45 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage in 15 games.
Tyson Barrie (upper body, day-to-day) and Kevin Lankinen (illness, day-to-day) are not expected to skate in Friday’s game.
The Predators are fifth in the Central Division with 38 points.
THE OTHER GUYS
The Red Wings return to Little Caesars Arena on Friday also eager to curb a two-game skid, after falling to the Minnesota Wild 6-3 on Wednesday and the New Jersey Devils 3-2 on Saturday.
Alex DeBrincat leads the Red Wings in points (34) and goals (16), while Shayne Gostisbehere leads the team in assists with 19.
Netminder Alex Lyon, who’s expected to start in Friday’s game, is 4-3-0 after seven games, with a 2.14 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage.
The Red Wings have scored the third-most goals in the NHL this season with 123. They are fifth in the Atlantic Division with 36 points, a 16-15-4 overall record and a 9-6-3 record at Little Caesars Arena.
ALL-TIME MEETINGS
The Predators are 45-52-(4)-10 all-time against the Red Wings, including a 19-28-(2)-7 record on the road. This is the first of two matchups between Nashville and Detroit in 2023-24; it is the first and only at Little Caesars Arena.
The Predators are 4-1-0 in their last five games against the Red Wings; they are 8-2-0 in their last 10; and 3-2-0 in their last five on the road. Nashville went 1-1-0 against Detroit in 2022-23, winning the most-recent matchup, 2-1, at Bridgestone Arena on March 14. Tommy Novak scored the game-winning goal in the third period and Kiefer Sherwood had two points (1g-1a) in the win.
Nashville has won 10 of its last 13 games against Detroit, including six in a row from Feb. 23, 2021-Jan. 22, 2022, the franchise’s longest-ever win streak vs. the Red Wings. The Predators went 6-2-0 against the Red Wings in 2020-21, their most wins in a single season vs. their former Central Division rival. Nashville outscored Detroit 27-15 during the eight-game regular-season series, and both of the Predators’ seven-goal games in 2020-21 came against the Red Wings.
On Feb. 28, 2009, the Predators defeated the Red Wings, 8-0, at Bridgestone Arena. It is tied for the highest margin of victory in a game in franchise history.
NOTABLES VS. DETROIT
- Josi (Nov. 26, 2011) and Forsberg (April 14, 2013) made their NHL debuts against the Red Wings.
- Josi has a team-high 27 points (3g-24a) in 36 career games vs. the Red Wings; Forsberg has posted 17 points (7g-10a) in 21 career meetings with Detroit.
- Saros is 7-2-0 with a 1.61 goals-against average, .943 save percentage and one shutout in 10 career games against the Red Wings.
- Lankinen recorded his first career NHL shutout on Feb. 17, 2021 at Detroit.
- Dante Fabbro recorded a career-high three points (1g-2a) on Dec. 7, 2021 at Detroit.
- Nyquist was selected by Detroit in the fourth round (121st overall) of the 2008 NHL Draft. He played the first 481 games of his NHL career with the Red Wings from 2011-19, tallying 295 points (125g-170a).
- Michael McCarron is a Grosse Pointe, Mich., native and played for the Honeybaked AAA program and the USA Hockey National Team Development Program.
- Prospect Egor Afanasyev played on Detroit Little Caesars’ 16U squad in 2016-17; prospect Chase McLane is a product of the Detroit Compuware, Little Caesars and Belle Tire youth hockey programs.
LINE ‘EM UP
Below are Nashville’s line combinations from Wednesday’s game against Carolina:
Forsberg - O'Reilly – Nyquist
Pärssinen - Glass – Sissons
Sherwood - Novak – Evangelista
Smith - McCarron - Tomasino
McDonagh – Josi
Lauzon – Carrier
Fabbro - Schenn
Saros
Askarov
Scratches: Barrie, Lankinen (illness, day-to-day), Trenin
MILESTONE WATCH
- Josi (165) is two goals from passing Shea Weber (166) for the most by a defenseman and the third-most among all skaters in Predators history.
WATCH & LISTEN
Coverage for Friday’s game begins at 5:30 p.m. CT with the Predators LIVE! pregame show on Bally Sports South, hosted by Lyndsay Rowley. Play-by-play announcer Willy Daunic and analyst Chris Mason will have the call on the television side. The game can also be streamed live on Fubo; click here for a 14-day free trial.
Pete Weber and Hal Gill will call the game on 102.5 The Game and the Predators Radio Network, with pregame, postgame and intermission coverage by Max Herz beginning one hour before puck drop. The game will also be broadcast in Spanish on El Jefe which airs on 96.7 FM, 105.3 FM and 810 AM.
