NHLBAM11_7NSHvsCOLPreview2

The Predators continue their four-game road trip tonight (at 8 p.m. CT) in Colorado as they meet the Avalanche at Pepsi Center. It's the first of four meetings on the season between the two Central Division rivals; the other three outings will come over a month-long span in the new year.
Nashville started out the journey with a 6-1 win in Detroit on Monday night, including a span of 5:36 in the second period that saw them score four times. The result ended a two-game skid for the Preds, and gave them a victory against a Red Wings team that has given them trouble in recent memory.
"Starts of a road trip are huge because it sets the tone, gives you a flavor," Preds forward Matt Duchene said following Monday's win. "Even if you lose that second game, you still know you're 1-1. If you're .500 on the road, or a bit better, you put yourself in a really good spot to be where you want to be down the stretch and at the end of the season… This is just a great start for us, and we want to keep going."

The goals and points have come in bunches for the Predators this season, and 19 of Nashville's 23 skaters to appear in a game have registered a point, in addition to goaltender Pekka Rinne, who has two assists for the first time since the 2015-16 season. Nashville is the only team to have nine players with at least 10 points in 2019-20.
Speaking of Rinne, he owns an 8-0-2 record to start the season and became the first goaltender in NHL history to post a season-opening point streak of 10 or more games at age 36 or older. Rinne had already set the franchise record for the longest point streak by a goalie to begin a season, breaking Tomas Vokoun's mark of eight (7-0-1) set in 2006-07.

Last Time Out:
Duchene scored twice, and Filip Forsberg, Nick Bonino, Kyle Turris and Colton Sissons also tallied in Nashville's 6-1 victory over the Wings on Monday night. Forsberg's goal came on the power play, as did one of Duchene's, to give the Preds a goal on the man advantage in 10 of their 15 games this season.
Preds Captain Roman Josi continues to lead the team in points with 16, followed by his d-partner, Ryan Ellis, who has 15. Duchene has 13 points on the season, Bonino has 12, and Forsberg, Sissons, Calle Jarnkrok and Ryan Johansen all have 11. Bonino is tops on the club with eight goals; Forsberg and Viktor Arvidsson have six goals apiece.

Grimaldi expects Avalanche to be hungry, fierce

The Opposition:
Colorado has dropped five-straight games, including a 4-1 loss to the Stars on Tuesday night in Texas. Avalanche Captain Gabriel Landeskog, plus forwards Mikko Rantanen and Colin Wilson all missed Tuesday's due to injury.
Nathan MacKinnon leads the Avs with eight goals and 18 points, followed by rookie defenseman Cale Makar with 12 points. Newcomers Nazem Kadri and Andre Burakovsky have nine points apiece; Joonas Donskoi and Matt Calvert have eight points each. Philipp Grubauer is 6-3-2 in net with a .915 save percentage; Pavel Francouz is 2-2-0 with a .919 save percentage.
All-Time Meetings:
The Predators are 44-30-(5)-3 all-time against the Avalanche, including a 22-16-(2)-2 record at Pepsi Center. Nashville has won 12 of its last 14 regular-season games against Colorado, including an 11-game win streak from April 5, 2016 to Nov. 7, 2018. During the win streak, Nashville posted 4.2 goals per game and held Colorado to two-or-fewer goals seven times.
The Preds have won eight consecutive games on the road in Colorado, a streak that dates back to March 5, 2016. Nashville went 2-2-0 against Colorado in the 2018-19 season, with the road team winning each of the four games.

Laviolette says speed could lead to offensive game

Notables Versus Colorado:
Matt Duchene was drafted third overall by the Avalanche in the 2009 NHL Draft. He recorded 428 points (178g-250a) in nine seasons with Colorado from 2009-17.
Roman Josi recorded a 12-game point streak versus Colorado (5g-11a) from March 28, 2016 to Jan. 21, 2019. He's recorded a point in 22 of his 32 career games against the Avalanche, tallying 11 goals and 29 points.
Colton Sissons posted a five-game point streak (7g-1a) against the Avalanche from Oct. 17, 2017 to Nov. 7, 2018. He has 10 points (8g-2a) in 13 career regular-season games versus Colorado; including the postseason, he has 17 points (11g-6a) in 19 games.
Filip Forsberg notched his fourth career hat trick on Feb. 23, 2017, against the Avalanche. He's averaged more than a point per game in his career versus Colorado, recording 26 points (13g-13a) in 24 games, including four game-winning goals.
Watch & Listen:
Coverage for tonight's 8 p.m. puck drop at Pepsi Center begins with Predators Live on Fox Sports Tennessee at 7:30 p.m. Willy Daunic, Chris Mason and Lyndsay Rowley 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 side begins at 7 p.m. CT with Darren McFarland. For broadcast information and channel locations throughout the country,
click here
.
Tonight's Preds Official Watch Party takes place at Buffalo Wild Wings in Hendersonville.
If the Predators are playing hockey, you can count on the game being on at Preds Approved Bars & Restaurants. Locations throughout Tennessee may be seen by
clicking here
.
Streaming Info:
Listen to a Live Radio Feed
(only active during the game broadcast window).
Watch a Live Stream of the game
on the Fox Sports Go App or
Watch on NHL.TV